McDonald’s bets big on changing business trend
Daniel Kline
Mon, December 15, 2025 at 1:47 PM EST
5 min read
You can blame Popeyes for its viral chicken sandwich, but seemingly every fast-food burger chain has tried to find the right recipe for chicken on its menu.
That's something McDonald's has embraced with its McCrispy sandwich and its McCrispy Strips.
"We’ve been listening to our fans on social and beyond, and they have made one thing clear: they want more chicken. But not just any chicken – they want juicy, dippable perfection. So, countless taste tests later, McDonald's is ready to reveal McCrispy Strips and the all-new Creamy Chili Dip – a flavor-packed duo that’s here to stay. This marks the first time since 2021 we’ve debuted a permanent menu item in the U.S. – available in all participating restaurants nationwide by May 5," the chain shared in a press release.
That move happened after many different chicken-related failures for the chain:
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Mighty Wings: Bone-in chicken wings were introduced in the 1990s and re-released later, but sales were poor, and they were pulled quickly after a promotion flop, Mashed reported.
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Chicken McBites: Bite-sized chicken pieces launched to compete with similar products, but never gained traction and were discontinued, according to The Quick Report.
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Chicken McGrill/Crispy Chicken Sandwiches (earlier generations): Various premium grilled and crispy chicken sandwich variants from the 1990s-2000s eventually got replaced as McDonald’s retooled its chicken lineup.
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Chicken Selects: Higher-quality chicken tenders that had a loyal following but were dropped due to declining sales; rebranded iterations (Buttermilk Crispy Tenders) also eventually disappeared, reported CyChicken.
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Buttermilk Crispy Chicken Tenders : A later version of chicken strips that came back in 2017 but were discontinued again in 2020 amid menu simplification, shared Daily Meal.
When you look at the various fast-food chains I have covered, chicken has been a sort of elusive prize. When a product hits, it can be game-changing, but it has proven very hard to stand out with chicken in a crowded market.
Now, with the success of the McCrispy line, a product that has become a billion-dollar brand for the company, McDonald's has gone back to the chicken well for a wide-ranging new list of products.
Chicken prices make poultry a menu staple
It's easy to see why McDonald's wants to expand its chicken lineup.
"Chicken continues to be a rising star in the fast-food industry, with chicken QSR chains growing 8.9% year over year in 2024, while burger company sales grew 1.4%, reported the Wall Street Journal. "Chicken now delivers more than $53 billion in annual sales for U.S. fast-food restaurants that specialize in poultry."
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Restaurants have also battled rising beef prices.
“Tightening cattle supplies have helped lift beef prices to record levels, making chicken a more profitable option for restaurants and meat companies alike.”
McDonald's is not alone in chasing chicken sales. Wendy's recently introduced its "Chicken Tendys" chicken strips, which came not long after its "Saucy Nuggs" chicken nugget lineup.
"Consumers have made it abundantly clear that they want more chicken — preferably boneless, portable, and crispy. The chicken category has continued to drive much of the industry’s growth of late, including a nearly 15% sales increase for the top 500 chicken chains in 2024, according to Technomic data," Nation's Restaurant News reported.
McDonald's tests new chicken menu
McDonald's rarely tests a wide array of menu items at the same time, but that's not the case with its potential new chicken lineup.
"McDonald's is going wild with their chicken menu and is testing some amazing-looking items right now," the Snackolator's Instagram page reported. "Right now they're testing THREE new sandwiches — the McSpicy with a spicy filet (not just spicy sauce), along with two grilled chicken sandwiches with a deluxe and then a BBQ Bacon!"
That's actually only a small part of the chicken offering the chain has been testing at limited locations."Then they have SIX new McCrispy options with both seasoned and sauced options. For the glazed options, they have Sweet Chili, Teriyaki, and Kickin' BBQ, and then with the seasoned strips, they have Spicy Garlic, Sweet Asian, and Garlic Parm," he shared.
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McDonald's is also testing something where it failed miserably (or perhaps mightily) in the past.
"Then they have BONE-IN WINGS with that McSpicy seasoning, along with the return of Big Mac dipping sauce cups," Snackolator shared.
Unfortunately, only some of these items will make it to the national menu (and there's no guarantee of that).
"Currently, these appear to be testing at just a few locations in the Chicago area, but I'll try and see if there are other cities that are testing as well," he added.
Chicken drives McDonald's sales
McDonald's has also used the Chicken Big Mac as a promotion around the world.
"Germany launched exciting marketing and full-margin menu innovations such as the Chicken Big Mac, which hit record high sales in the market during its first full week of launch," CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski said during the company's second-quarter earnings call.
CFO Ian Borden was bullish on the opportunity in the chicken space.
"Chicken also remains a significant opportunity. It's a larger global category than beef and continues to grow at a faster rate. In the second quarter, we increased chicken market share across our top 10 markets. And we remain on track to grow our global chicken share by 100 basis points by the end of 2026, in line with the target we shared at our investor update in late 2023," he explained.
That has been true in multiple markets, according to Borden.
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Chicken was key to driving sales growth and overall market share gains in Australia in the quarter.
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The market saw its first share gains in a couple of years, thanks in part to the Hot Honey Chicken campaign, featuring both McCrispy and McSpicy options, that worked in conjunction with the strong foundation of value and affordability that's now in place.
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Chicken also helped to drive McDonald's performance in China in the second quarter, where it gained market share, not only in the category, but also in overall QSR.
Related: 46-year-old casual restaurant chain closed over 140 locations
This story was originally published by TheStreet on Dec 15, 2025, where it first appeared in the Restaurants section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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