Australia

The fast food chain has previously replaced single-use plastic bags with recyclable paper bags. Subway has announced that it will continue to explore “a range of innovative measures” to further improve its operations in environmental sustainability and minimise waste. The fast food chain was recently cited in the 2018 Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation’s Annual Report for its packaging and environmental sustainability plan that has reportedly eliminated 76 tonnes of plastic bags and 300,000 kilograms of paper and cardboard from their operations. (Also read: Subway Australia eliminates plastic bags in sustainability push) “We’re taking steps to reduce single-use business to business packaging by increasing carton efficiency. We’re focused on increasing the number of items per carton, to reduce cardboard cartons used, including increasing napkins this year from 6000 to 6750 per carton saving over 4,600 cardboard cartons. Cutlery pack changes have also reduced cardboard cartons,” Ben Miles, Subway’s senior corporate social responsibility manager, said in a statement. Subway, which serves more than 1.6 million subs in Australia weekly, also encouraged customers to take steps in recycling. “For example, labelling on our salad bowls encourages active consumer engagement in packaging sustainability,” Miles added.  

The Mexican restaurant chain added another plant-based topping to their menu.

The competition will run until September 2. Looking to drive purchase and customer engagement, The Cheesecake Shop has launched their Father’s Day “Win Dad a Man Cave Upgrade” promotion where they will be giving away four $5,000 AUD cash prizes. According to the cheesecake brand, participants are eligible to participate by purchasing any item. The competition will be promoted through digital, social media, and in-store advertising. “Keeping promotions simple has been the key to our recent success. Words like win, free, free entry and cash figures have always played a role in promotional success,” The Cheesecake Shop general manager of marketing and operations Peter Dable said. “It has never been our intention to reinvent the wheel; rather, we want the wheel to be bigger, better, faster and more memorable.” The Father’s Day promo will be on-going until September 2. Winners will be announced after a week after on their Facebook pages.  

Share prices fell despite the "record profit" and increased dividend.

Private investment firm TDM Growth Partners will now have a minority stake in the growing Mexican brand.

Restaurants now have the opportunity to nominate their business for customers across Australia.

After launching its pre-packaged taco kits, the Mexican food brand is still looking for ways to provide the freshest options for people on-the-go. Mad Mex recently launched its new Taco Kit, which contains 12 tacos, 2 fillings, a choice of salsa, black beans, pico de gallo, cheese, lettuce, and sour cream, already cooked and prepared. Sold for $45, the taco kit aims to offer customers a fresh, pre-packaged ready-to-eat meal through delivery platforms like Uber Eats or Deliveroo. The taco kits are also sold through the brand’s own stores across the country.

Here is a summary of the most interesting QSR news stories of the week from around the world.

Find out what QSRs have been up to on social media this week. BRAND AND STORE UPDATES Domino's Australia and New Zealand CEO Nick Knight announced that it was able to raise over $174,000 for Australian Farmers affected with drought with the help of its customers. In addition to a $40,000 donation from the Domino’s registered charity Give For Good, the brand’s teams donated 50c from each pizza sold for a limited time to Rural Aid.

The Vietnamese fast casual brand is nearing the 70-outlet mark.

Find out the implications of the 2016 Australian census for restaurant owners.

The fast food giant’s iconic signatures are now being served around the clock.

Farmers from NSW and QLD are facing issues brought by the dry weather conditions. The Bavarian restaurants from the Rockpool Dining Group will start their one-day drought-relief project, Raise a Fork for Our Farmers campaign on August 26. The profits made within the day by 16 The Bavarian and The Bavarian Beerhaüs restaurants across New South Wales and Queensland will be donated to Aussie Helpers, a charity foundation dedicated to Australian farmers. “Agriculture is the backbone of Australia and the hospitality industry,” said Rockpool Dining Group’s CEO, Thomas Pash.  “Farmers are our producers, suppliers, friends and peers and we want to support them and give back to our rural communities in a substantial and meaningful way,” he continued. The group urges their customers to dine out at their branches in York Street, Sydney, Bondi Beach, Castle Hill, Chatswood, Entertainment Quarter, Manly, Miranda, Parramatta, Penrith, Rouse Hill, World Square, Bowen Hills, Brisbane, Broadbeach, Chermside, Eagle Street Pier and Toowoomba. “We hope to see full community support for this great initiative at each of the Bavarian restaurants on Sunday, 26 August so we can make a significant contribution to the nation’s drought relief effort,” Neil Perry said, the group’s culinary director.

Deliveries are free of charge when the icon is lit up.

The announcement comes two weeks after celebrating their 50th drive-thru milestone.

Only 1 out of 16 of their outlets is reportedly compliant with workplace laws.