Why on earth does a Big Mac exist that is treated as a 'historical relic'?


by

Elliot

Atlas Obscura, which reports on tourism and mysterious stories related to it, reported on how ``Iceland's last McDonald's Big Mac'' came to be treated as a historical relic. It has been 12 years and 2 months since the purchase date of this Big Mac, but it seems that its color has not faded.

How a Big Mac Became a 'Historical Artifact' in Iceland - Gastro Obscura
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/iceland-mcdonalds

grapevine.is/mag/articles/2015/08/22/an-aging-mcdonalds-hamburger-at-the-edge-of-the-arctic/
https://grapevine.is/mag/articles/2015/08/22/an-aging-mcdonalds-hamburger-at-the-edge-of-the-arctic/

Hjörtur Smárason, who decided to move in 2012, discovered a ``McDonald's paper bag'' while cleaning up his garage. This is a Big Mac and fries that I bought on October 30, 2009, the day before McDonald's completely withdrew from Iceland, about 3 years later.

When Mr. Smárason opened the package, thinking, ``Is it rotten?'', the Big Mac and potatoes in question were as good as new, and ``they looked like they had just been purchased 15 minutes ago.'' The roller blades that remained in the same garage had mouse bite marks, but the Big Mac and fries in question were intact, indicating that even a mouse had not touched them.

McDonald's is a global fast food chain that operates in approximately 120 countries, but as of January 2022, it does not exist in Iceland. During the global financial crisis that began in late 2007, which was triggered by subprime loans , the financial bubble burst in Iceland, which was known for its high leverage. The currency, the krona, was around 60 krona to the dollar in 2007, but in 2008 it plummeted to 125 krona to the dollar, and the country was described as ``on the verge of national bankruptcy.''



McDonald's has strict regulations regarding the ingredients it handles, and in the case of its Iceland branch, they imported ingredients from Germany. However, due to the dramatic depreciation of the krona during the financial crisis mentioned above, McDonald's was forced to either significantly raise prices or withdraw from the business, and as a result they chose to withdraw.

``McDonald's withdrawal from Iceland was a big blow,'' explains Professor Kristín Loftsdóttir of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Iceland. According to Professor Loftsdóttir, the fact that McDonald's entered Iceland in 1993 means that ``Iceland has globalized and become a developed country in the West.''



Professor Loftsdóttir explained that since Iceland has been focused on becoming a major Western power since it achieved independence from Denmark in 1944, McDonald's withdrawal was seen as ``a symbol of a decline in international status.'' Masu.

On the other hand, Iceland's tourism and export industries have made great strides due to the aforementioned currency depreciation, and in just three years it has been able to escape from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) support program, which has been described as a ``miraculous comeback.'' . It seems that a domestic hamburger chain called ``Metro'' sat in McDonald's successor, and the hamburger ``Heimsborgari'', which means ``

cosmopolitan '' and reflects the Icelandic values of hamburgers as ``symbols of globalization'', is popular. It is said that he is making a profit.



Regarding the aforementioned ``Iceland's last McDonald's Big Mac'', Mr. Smárason, who realized that it was the only McDonald's hamburger existing in the country, donated it to the National Museum of Iceland. After being exhibited for a year, it was exhibited at an accommodation facility called Bus Hostel Reykjavik, and as of January 2022, it is still showing its unfading appearance at an accommodation facility called

Snotra House in southern Iceland.



in Junk Food,   , Posted by darkhorse_log