McDonald's Is Making Moves Toward Sustainably Sourced Coffee

Following its promises to use cage-free eggs and removing artificial ingredients from some of its menu items, McDonald's has now moved its focus to coffee and has announced its plans to source all its coffee from sustainable sources by 2020, Bloomberg reported.

The fast-food chain is working on this initiative with environmental group Conservation International, which helped Starbucks develop sustainable sourcing practices.

"Our customers want to see where our products come from, what's in it and how it's made," said Townsend Bailey, head of supply chain sustainability for McDonald's.

Last year, only 37 percent of the coffee purchased by McDonald's came from sustainable sources.

"Having a major brand like McDonald's taking a very visible step will definitely drive restaurants and brands of retail names to join in the sustainable coffee challenge," said Peter Seligmann, CEO of Conservation International. "We see this as an important, catalytic event."