Executives have drawn up plans which will give customers a five-star guarantee the meat they are eating is safe. It will be an enormous boost to farmers who have lost millions of pounds since the mad cow scare flared in March. The chain, which has been buying beef from the Continent for the past six months, is set to change the way meat for its flame-grilled products is handled. The production process will be so tightly controlled that a single burger bought in any of the company's 380 outlets could be traced back, not only to the farmyard but to the cows whose meat went into the meal. Burger King is not yet ready to announce a date when British beef will make its comeback, but an in-house trial is expected to start within weeks.
Timing is crucial and depends on customer coinfidence.
Another mad cow scare could wreck the plans. But the company believes it is ahead of rival McDonald's, which is looking at similar proposals. The return would be backed by an advertising blitz, with leaflets and posters explaining how Burger King can trace every burger and offer a promise over safety.