McDonald's wings are the latest chicken addition to the menu. Whether McDonald's wings can compete with the wildly popular McNuggets remains to be seen.
The Oak Brook, Ill.- based company confirmed it will roll out "Mighty Wings" nationally from Sept. 9 and keep them on the menu through November. The company says customers will have the option to dip the wings in nine sauces, including Chipotle Barbeque, Creamy Ranch, Honey Mustard Sauce, and Sweet Chili.
“Wings is a major move," Scott Hume, editor of Burger Business told Medical Daily. “It’s like the Colonel adding a cheeseburger.”
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The wings will come in three-, five-, or 10-piece packs, with prices starting at $2.99.
Bloomberg News said that although wings will be served starting Sept. 9, they won’t be served in all of McDonald's' 4,100 locations until Sept. 24.
The fast-food chain has been overhauling its menu since CEO Don Thompson took over in July of 2012, adding an egg-white breakfast sandwich and chicken McWraps while removing an Angus third-of-a-pound burger.
“They’re being more innovative, and they’re being more aggressive with the changes on their menu,” Peter Saleh, analyst at Telsey Advisory Group, told Bloomberg. “This is good news because it’s in conjunction with the football season.”
The move also is good news to chicken ranches, as higher demand from a national chain will undoubtedly mean higher chicken wing prices, analysts say.
USA Today noted that wings rank among the fastest-growing items in the fast-food business, reporting that sales jumped 11 percent from the previous year to top $8 billion in 2012, according to GuestMetrics.
Although McDonald’s already has some chicken offerings (Chicken McNuggets, anyone?), Hume said that this week's announcement “continues the blurring of the lines between burger, chicken, sandwich, and pizza chains.”
Reaction on social networking sites to the new menu addition wasn’t too enthusiastic.
“Am I the only one who thinks this is totally gross?” tweeted @Steph_lee8.
“You have been warned America,” tweeted @Lagana.
“Can the McWing breakfast sandwich be far behind?,” quipped @BruceKopp13
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