McDonald's Big Mac is going chicken The new big sandwich is reportedly landing in the U.S. this year

 McDonald’s is hoping to attract more U.S. customers with a new, big sandwich reportedly named the “Chicken Big Mac.”

If the name sounds familiar, it’s because it is. The sandwich is designed to resemble the classic Big Mac but in a new way.

Instead of all beef patties, the “Chicken Big Mac” will include two “tempura chicken patties,” according to influencer Snackolator on Instagram.

Talks of the new big sandwich come after McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski taste-tested the Chicken Big Mac in March 2024. This isn’t the first time the item has been available to diners. Back in 2022, it was tested as a limited-time offer in Miami.

The sandwich has gained serious popularity among international customers, particularly in the U.K. and Australia, to the point that restaurants had to temporarily remove it from their menus due to supply chain issues.

Whether the “Chicken Big Mac” will make its way to the U.S. is still uncertain. McDonald’s has also been testing the “Big Arch,” a new big burger aimed at outshining the Big Mac, across three international markets. That burger is also yet to debut in the U.S. as well.

The introduction of new items could be one way McDonald’s is trying to win back inflation-weary consumers. The company reported weaker-than-expected second-quarter earnings earlier this month, which fell short of Wall Street’s expectations, and revealed that consumers are struggling with higher prices.

Despite this, executives mentioned “value” nearly 90 times during their earnings call, partly in response to the summer launch of its $5 meal deal and other promotions aimed at U.S. customers.

Most recently, McDonald’s launched a new “Collector’s Meal” promotion aimed at combining its storied Happy Meals with well-known characters. Despite being a limited-time promotion, the cups have garnered enough attention that they are being sold on third-party websites for about $15 to $100 a pop.

Wendy’s is reportedly planning to launch a real-life Krabby Patty burger this fall, thanks to a secret collaboration with Paramount PARA+1.71%, the owner of “SpongeBob SquarePants” through Nickelodeon.

Popverse, citing an internal memo sent to some Wendy’s locations, reported that the burger will debut alongside a sweet companion: a Pineapple Under the Sea Frosty — referencing the titular character’s house. Wendy’s and Paramount PARA

+1.71% did not respond to Quartz’s request for comment.

For those unfamiliar with the show, the Krabby Patty in the cartoon was a mythical, meatless marvel, crafted from seaweed buns and a patty with unknown origins. It was also famously the target of devious trickster Plankton, who had been plotting to get his hands on the secret formula.

Wendy’s promises its version will have real meat plus a slab of secret “Krabby Patty Sauce,” designed to capture the “magic of the iconic fictional sandwich.”

Should the burger become a reality, it could mark a historic pairing of food and entertainment. The promotion is expected to kick off on October 8 and last until November 11, with The Krabby Patty available at participating Wendy’s locations across the U.S., Canada, and Guam.

Talks of the special burger come as fast food chains launch deals and limited-time promotions to lure inflation-weary consumers. Notably, Wendy’s Frosty is already part of a special campaign. For $3, customers who buy a keychain can score a Jr. Frosty with any purchase until the end of the following year. Those keychain sales go towards helping with children’s adoptions.

Nonetheless, Wendy’s has been faring pretty well. Its $3 breakfast bundle has been a hit among U.S. consumers, so much so that the company said it would invest millions to keep the breakfast offering around through 2025. Breakfast stands to be very big business for Wendy’s, according to CEO Kirk Tanner, who told investors during the company’s earnings call in August that each location has the potential to make about $3,000 a week just on breakfast sales.

Meanwhile, its $5 Biggie Bag has also resonated with diners seeking lunch options. That’s on top of other promotions like its 4 for $4 meal deal.

United Airlines UAL-1.92% flight attendants seeking a new union contract just unveiled a new escalation in their negotiations. With 99.99% of voting members in approval, the workers announced that they have authorized a strike should talks reach an impasse.

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“We deserve an industry-leading contract. Our strike vote shows we’re ready to do whatever it takes to reach the contract we deserve,” said Ken Diaz, president of the United chapter of the larger Association of Flight Attendants union, in a statement. “We are the face of United Airlines and planes don’t take off without us. As Labor Day travel begins, United management is reminded of what’s at stake if we don’t get this done.”

When the vote on whether to authorize a strike was called for last month, the union said that it was meant to increase pressure on United to reach a deal. The flight attendants’ contract ran out in 2021.

“We continue to work toward an industry-leading agreement for our flight attendants, including negotiations this week and every month through November,” United said in a statement provided to Quartz. “Both sides have been actively engaged in these negotiations facilitated by the federal mediator requested by the union. We remain eager to reach an agreement.”

Earlier this year, American Airlines AAL-0.2% flight attendants came surprisingly close to a strike before they announced that had reached a tentative agreement following five years of pandemic-disrupted negotiations. Flight attendant contracts are governed by the Railway Labor Act, which more strictly governs when unions can do work stoppages because they would interrupt interstate commerce.

“Under the Railway Labor Act, the [National Mediation Board] will keep the parties bargaining as long as they see the potential for a deal,” the American Flight Attendants’ union explained in one update for members. “That means if the company is putting tens or hundreds of millions more into the agreement, the NMB will keep the pressure on both parties to move forward to reach a deal. While we do not agree with how long or difficult it is to exercise our right to strike, when there is movement, the NMB will require more bargaining.”

 Flight attendants at United Airlines (UAL.O), opens new tab have voted in favor of a strike authorization, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA said on Wednesday.

Over 90% of the flight attendants participated, with 99.99% of the votes in favor of a strike authorization, the union said.

It is the first time since the 2005 bankruptcy negotiations that flight attendants at United voted on a strike authorization, it added.

Over 28,000 flight attendants of the Chicago-based carrier affiliated with the AFA have been negotiating for a double-digit base pay increase and higher pay for time at work - including on-ground duties, retroactive pay, schedule flexibility, and work rule improvements.

"As Labor Day travel begins, United management is reminded what's at stake if we don't get this done," said Ken Diaz, president of the United chapter of the AFA.

The situation unfolds amid new contract negotiations in the U.S. and Canada, where cabin crews at carriers are also seeking compensation for on-ground duties such as boarding passengers and waiting between flights.

Last year, United's flight attendants filed for federal mediation through the National Mediation Board (NMB).

The union added that it can now request a release from the NMB leading to a 30-day "cooling off" period and strike deadline.

Even though the strike is authorized, the flight attendants cannot walk off the job until they're granted permission from the board after it determines that both parties are at a standstill and further negotiations would not be productive.

South Korea's parliament passed a bill on Wednesday that allows nurses to perform some medical procedures normally conducted by doctors as the healthcare workers called for greater legal protection amid a prolonged doctors' strike.

For years, nurse lobby groups and unions have pushed for a nursing law to improve working conditions, but their attempts have been thwarted by stiff opposition from doctors and a lack of bipartisan consensus.

But concerns have been mounting about the increased burden - both legal and workwise - that nurses now have to carry since thousands of trainee doctors began a nationwide walkout in February to protest a government plan to boost the number of medical school admissions to address a shortage of doctors.

A recent surge in COVID-19 cases has also threatened to saturate hospitals, prompting rival parties to seek a compromise this week.

The latest legislation was designed to lay the legal groundwork for government measures that allow so-called physician assistant nurses to perform some procedures.

Other elements listed in an initial bill, including whether and how to ease qualifications for nursing assistants, were left for additional discussions, the government said.

The Korean Nurses Association welcomed the bill, saying it was the outcome of a 19-year effort.

"Today's passage opened the path to establish a nursing care system and realize universal health coverage, while laying the foundation for the state's responsibility to train, dispatch, and secure outstanding nursing personnel," the group said in a statement.

The Korean Medical Association, the largest grouping of doctors, however, accused the government of driving a wedge between hospital staff and said the legislation would ultimately harm patients.

"The medical sector will become a mess due to the prevalence of illegal, unlicensed medical practices and confusion over the scope of work, and the damage will be passed on entirely to the ordinary citizens," it said in a statement.

Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong, speaking at a briefing, said the bill would help boost support for medical professionals and pleaded for doctors to seek a resolution to their strike.

 The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Wednesday to revive President Joe Biden's student debt relief plan, giving a boost to Republican-led states that have sued to block it.

The justices rejected the administration's request to temporarily lift a judicial decision that paused the plan, which is designed to lower monthly payments for millions of borrowers and speed up loan forgiveness for some.

Following the Supreme Court's June 2023 decision blocking Biden's earlier plan to cancel hundreds of billions of dollars in debt, his administration said it would continue providing student debt relief to as many borrowers as possible.

The White House in August 2023 launched a policy called the Saving on a Valuable Education, or SAVE, plan, which it touted as "the most affordable repayment plan ever created."

The plan would cut monthly college undergraduate loan payments from 10% to 5% of a borrower's discretionary income, which would save the typical borrower around $1,000 a year, according to the White House.

Other benefits of the plan include a pause on payments by borrowers making less than $32,000 per year until their income exceeds that amount. It would also provide debt forgiveness for some smaller loans in as few as 10 years, compared to the 20- or 25-year timeline under earlier rules.

The administration estimated that the plan would cost taxpayers around $156 billion over 10 years, but Republican state attorneys general argue that its actual cost totaled around $475 billion. Some parts took effect in February while others were set to take effect in July.

Seven Republican-led states sued to block the program in April 2024, arguing that the Biden administration's U.S. Education Department had exceeded its legal authority by enacting the student debt relief plan.

In June, U.S. District Judge John Ross in St. Louis blocked the administration on a preliminary basis from implementing the provision of the SAVE plan that would grant loan forgiveness to certain borrowers.

A ruling by the St. Louis-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on Aug. 9 went further, blocking the administration's debt relief plan in its entirety while that case proceeded. This prompted the administration's emergency filing to the Supreme Court.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said the Biden administration strongly disagreed with the Eighth Circuit's decision, saying it would force millions of borrowers to pay hundreds of dollars more each month.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, hailed the Supreme Court's decision on Wednesday. Missouri was the lead plaintiff in the suit.

"This court order is a stark reminder to the Biden-Harris Administration that Congress did not grant them the authority to saddle working Americans with $500 billion in someone else’s Ivy League debt," he said. "This is a huge win for every American who still believes in paying their own way."

A separate challenge by another set of Republican-led states to the administration's debt relief program is pending in the Denver-based Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling last year, powered by its six conservative justices, blocked Biden's plan to cancel $430 billion in student loan debt - a move that had been intended to benefit up to 43 million Americans and fulfill a campaign promise.

The conservative justices invoked the "major questions" doctrine, a judicial approach that gives judges broad discretion to invalidate executive agency actions of "vast economic and political significance" unless Congress clearly authorized them in legislation.

Toymaker Lego said on Wednesday it was on track to replace the fossil fuels used in making its signature bricks with more expensive renewable and recycled plastic by 2032 after signing deals with producers to secure long-term supply.

Lego, which sells billions of plastic bricks annually, has tested over 600 different materials to develop a new material that would completely replace its oil-based brick by 2030, but with limited success.

Now, Lego is aiming to gradually bring down the oil content in its bricks by paying up to 70% more for certified renewable resin, the raw plastic used to manufacture the bricks, in an attempt to encourage manufacturers to boost production.

"This means a significant increase in the cost of producing a Lego brick," CEO Niels Christiansen told Reuters.

He said the company is on track to ensure that more than half of the resin it needs in 2026 is certified according to the mass balance method, an auditable way to trace sustainable materials through the supply chain, up from 30% in the first half of 2024.

"With a family owner committed to sustainability, it's a privilege that we can pay extra for the raw materials without having to charge customers extra," Christiansen said.

Item 1 of 9 A view of a Lego figure on display inside their headquarters in Billund, Denmark, April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Jacob Gronholt Pedersen

[1/9]A view of a Lego figure on display inside their headquarters in Billund, Denmark, April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Jacob Gronholt Pedersen Purchase Licensing Rights, opens a new tab

The move comes amid a surplus of cheap virgin plastic, driven by major oil companies' investments in petrochemicals. Plastics are projected to drive new oil demand in the next few decades.

Lego's suppliers are using bio-waste such as cooking oil or food industry waste fat as well as recycled materials to replace virgin fossil fuels in plastic production.

The market for recycled or renewable plastic is still in its infancy, partly because most available feedstock is used for subsidized biodiesel, which is mixed into transportation fuels.

According to Neste, the world's largest producer of renewable feedstocks, fossil-based plastic is about half or a third of the price of sustainable options.

"We sense more activity and willingness to invest in this now than we did just a year ago," said Christiansen. He declined to say which suppliers or give details about price or volumes.

Rival toymaker Hasbro has started including plant-based or recycled materials in some toys, but without setting firm targets on plastic use. Mattel plans to use only recycled, recyclable, or bio-based plastics in all products by 2030.

Around 90% of all plastic is made from virgin fossil fuels, according to lobby group PlasticsEurope.