Producers of fries refusing to supply to Russia, McDonald's successor says

Restaurants began opening under the new name Vkusno & tochka

The head of the company now running the former McDonald's Corp chain of restaurants in Russia told RBC TV that producers of French fries are refusing to supply to the country and warned that attempts to increase domestic processing are fraught with difficulties, Qazet.az reports.

McDonald's quit Russia after a Western backlash against Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine, which included a barrage of economic sanctions, and sold all the restaurants it owned to a local licensee in May.

Restaurants began opening under the new name Vkusno & tochka, or "Tasty and that's it", on June 12. CEO Oleg Paroev told Reuters the chain had sold almost 120,000 burgers on opening day.

The new ownership was keen to stress that high quality standards would be maintained or even bettered, and that consumers would not notice much difference. It has since been forced to admit that it is facing a shortage of French fries until autumn, blaming a poor harvest in Russia and supply chain woes.