LOS ANGELES, Feb. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern California McDonald's® restaurants are making waves with the launch of a new fish menu innovation – Fish McBites. Available through March 2013, Fish McBites are crispy, tender pieces of poppable flaky wild-caught Alaska Pollock responsibly-sourced from a Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified sustainable fishery.

Conveniently packaged for today's on-the-go consumer, the limited time Fish McBites are available in three sizes – Snack (3 oz.), Regular (5 oz.) and Shareable (10 oz.), and as an option in the Happy Meal. Additionally, from February 12-14, 2013, participating restaurants will offer $1.00 snack size Fish McBites giving customers even more reason to try the new bite-size menu offering. Price and participation may vary.

"For over 50 years, McDonald's has lead the way in offering menu innovations that delight the taste buds of consumers, as we did with the Filet-O-Fish and today with the new Fish McBites," said Michael Mangione, Jr., McDonald's owner/operator and president of the McDonald's Operators' Association of Southern California (MOASC). "With the introduction of the new Fish McBites, we're excited to offer adults and kids yet another fun way to enjoy the delicious, quality fish we serve."

Fish McBites Happy Meal

Recent research shows that kids and parents want to see seafood on kids' menus¹. The limited-time Fish McBites Happy Meal responds to this demand offering kids another great-tasting entree choice.  In fact, Fish McBites Happy Meals with 1% low-fat white milk, 100% apple juice and fat-free chocolate milk, meet new nutrition criteria in the Council for Better Business Bureaus Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative.

"With the new Fish McBites Happy Meal, we want to help introduce fish to the pallets of our youngest guests and offer parents an option they can feel good about serving their kids," said Dan Coudreaut, Senior Director of Culinary Innovation, McDonald's USA. 

Responsible Sourcing

McDonald's has been supporting sustainable fishing for more than 10 years. In January, the company announced it would become the first national restaurant chain to adopt the Marine Stewardship Council's blue ecolabel on its fish packaging in restaurants nationwide.

The MSC certification supports McDonald's commitments to quality, sustainably-sourced ingredients and to helping customers make more conscious food choices. Through the certification with MSC, McDonald's aims to help ensure sustainable supply, but also educate customers about the importance of responsible fishing practices. Customers will see new product packaging with MSC's blue ecolabel beginning this month.

Sustainable fish sourcing is part of McDonald's broader commitment to sustainable sourcing and 100 percent of all fish sold in its US restaurants has been MSC-certified sustainable. To learn more about McDonald's work with the Marine Steward Council visit aboutmcdonalds.com.

 The McDonald's Operators' Association of Southern California (MOASC) is comprised of more than 600 franchised and company-owned McDonald's restaurants in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties. Follow us on Twitter: @McDonalds_SoCal.

¹2012 Kids and Parents Discovery Survey, conducted for Kidzsmart Concepts with The Restaurant Mom and Cincinnati-based Directions Research

SOURCE Southern California McDonald’s