McDonald’s has announced plans to open its first vegetarian-only restaurant next year near India’s Golden Temple, a pilgrimage site located in the city of Amritsar in the north of the country.
The fast food giant’s Indian outlets already feature a menu that is 50 percent vegetarian fare, with regional spins on classic items such as the McAloo Tikki burger, which uses a spicy, fried potato-based patty, and the Maharaja Mac which uses chicken patties.
However, while the gesture is meant to appeal to the country’s different religious groups – the large Hindu population considers cows sacred and eschews beef while Muslim’s abstain from pork and other pig products – the location of the planned outlets has caused controversy.
The Golden Temple is a site of great religious significance to Sikhs – no meat, smoking or alcohol is allowed in the temple – yet the decision to place a McDonald’s, easily the greatest symbol of consumerist and capitalist culture around, next to a sacred and holy site has raised the ire of religious groups and leaders in the area.
Plans for a second vegetarian outlet near the Vaishno Devi cave shrine in Kashmir, a Hindu pilgrimage site that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors a year, have also been met with criticism.