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Pork checkoff helps take McRib nationwide

The national pork checkoff was instrumental in convincing McDonald’s to do a nationwide roll-out of the McRib sandwich this fall.

McDonald’s usually features the McRib only in certain regions of the country.  But National Pork Board president Gene Nemechek says the popular pork sandwich is currently available all across the U.S., through November.

“We’re really excited about it because we think that it’s going to move some pork product and people are going to enjoy that pork at McDonald’s,” Nemechek says, “and we think it’s a great way for us to just have more product moving to the consumer.”

The McRib sandwich is still a limited-time menu item.  Nemechek says he’d like to see it offered year-around. “We’d really like to see that stay on their menu year-around, because I think that people would learn to enjoy it and it would really help us as an industry.”

Nemechek says, as part of the McRib promotion, the pork logo is prominently featured on special tray liners at all participating McDonald’s restaurants nationwide.

AUDIO: Gene Nemechek (4 min MP3)