BDS celebrates ‘MickeyD Dip’ as McDonalds, Starbucks report losses

Alameen Templeton

McDonalds and Starbucks are blaming the Gaza genocide and the BDS backlash against Nazi Israel for plummeting sales and profits.

McDonald’s says its global sales have declined for the first time since 2020 – net profit plunged 12 percent compared to the same period last year. Starbucks said Tuesday sales in North American were down 2 percent, but sales in the rest of the world sagged a significant 7 percent. But the real blood on the floor cam in its total international profits, down a shocking 23 percent.

Although the companies also blamed currency fluctuation, a China slowdown, and consumer resistance to rising prices, the bosses of both corporations immediately cited Gaza when discussing problems they face.

Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) — a Palestinian-led movement opposing Israel’s occupation/annexation and genocide in Palestine — celebrated the “MickeyD Dip” on their social media accounts, writing, “#BDS is working!” BDS turned its attentions to McDonalds after October 7, when the chain’s Israeli franchises supported the Israeli military in its incursion on Gaza.

“McDonald’s Israel provided free meals for Israel’s forces during #GazaGenocide against 2.3 million Palestinians, and the company with its dozens of branches has for decades fed apartheid Israel’s war chest,” the group said, using the hashtag #BoycottMcDonalds.

During a quarterly earnings call Monday, McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said “several markets … continue to be negatively impacted by the war in the Middle East.” He also noted that sales in France were down, and attributed that decline to the country’s large Muslim population.

Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan also invoked the conflict in the company’s quarterly call on Tuesday, indirectly pointing to boycott efforts in the same regions as McDonald’s international hot spots.

“Headwinds persist in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, parts of Europe driven by widely discussed misperceptions of our brand,” said Narasimhan. Earlier this year, the company reported a “significant impact on traffic and sales” in the Middle East and the U.S. markets, which it also attributed to “misperceptions” about its brand, The Intercept reports.

Shortly after October 7, Starbucks Workers United, that represents 10 000 employees, expressed solidarity for Palestine on its X account in a since-deleted tweet. It read “Solidarity with Palestine!” and quote-tweeted an image of a bulldozer breaking through the fence encircling Gaza. Starbucks sued it for damaging its reputation and misleading consumers to think the company supports Palestine. News of the lawsuit went viral, along with calls to boycott the chain.

Calls to target McDonald’s began days after October 7, when the fast food giant’s Israeli franchisee announced on social media it had “donated and continues to donate tens of thousands of meals to IDF units, the police, hospitals, residents around the strip and all rescue forces”.

Kempczinski defended his company amid the boycott in January, blaming hits on “the war and associated misinformation.” He added international stores were owned locally, “including in Muslim countries.”

Residents in Muslim-majority nations like Pakistan and Kuwait, started to boycott the chain, prompting the Pakistani franchisee to distance itself from the issue. In April, McDonald’s was forced to buy back its 225 restaurants in Israel after the boycott tanked sales.