McDonald’s Australia cuts breakfast hours due to bird flu

Australians who enjoy a late morning McDonald’s breakfast have to get up earlier.

The fast food giant has temporarily reduced its breakfast service hours in the country by 90 minutes due to an egg shortage caused by a bird flu outbreak.

It is currently serving its full breakfast menu only until 10:30 a.m., instead of the usual noon time.

“Like many retailers, we are carefully managing egg supplies due to the current challenges facing the industry,” McDonald’s Australia said in a statement sent to the BBC.

“We continue to work closely with our network of Australian farmers, producers and suppliers as the industry comes together to manage this challenge.”

Multiple strains of bird flu have been detected on 11 poultry farms in south-eastern Australia in the past two months.

Authorities said they had the situation under control.

“Consumers can expect to see empty shelves in the short term, but supplies are being redirected to areas where supply is short,” the Australian government said.

“Consumers should refrain from purchasing more eggs than necessary.”

Bird flu has affected less than 10 per cent of Australia’s laying hens, but some businesses have imposed limits on the number of eggs people can buy.

These outbreaks led to the culling of around 1.5 million chickens in Australia.

So far, none of the strains detected have been the H5N1 variant of bird flu.

The H5N1 virus has spread among bird and mammal populations worldwide, infecting billions of animals and a small number of humans.