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McDonald's achieved its 2017 goal to phase out the use of medically important human antibiotics in its U.S. chicken supply a year ahead of schedule. The fast food chain also announced plans to remove artificial preservatives and high fructose corn syrup from select menu items.

McDonald's launched its first Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability framework alongside a new sustainability report. The framework sets new goals of purchasing beef from sustainable-certified sources by 2016, procuring 100% of fiber-based packaging from certified or recycled sources, and increasing energy efficiency 20% in company-owned restaurants in 7 markets

McDonald's is offering 100% organic beef hamburgers sourced from organic farms for a limited time in Germany. The company's new offering will be available from Oct. 1 to Nov. 18.

The size of McDonald's and its global footprint will drive changes in the food chain as the company moves toward cage-free eggs and local, sustainable ingredients, said CEO Steve Easterbrook. A Fortune reporter goes behind the scenes at farms and production facilities to explore cage-free egg production and what goes in to increasing the supply.

The beef industry is seeking to spread the word about its sustainability efforts, especially to young, eco-conscious diners, experts say. "Our long-term sustainability is predicated on transparency and providing consumers with the information they need to make the decision to purchase beef," says Tom McDonald of JBS Five Rivers Cattle Feeding

In a bid to appeal to eco-conscious consumers, McDonald's will start selling Rainforest Alliance-certified espresso and Marine Stewardship Council-certified fish sandwiches. "We feel there's a tipping point coming. We see the consumer starting to care. Consumer expectations are rising," explains Bob Langert, vice president of sustainability for McDonald's

McDonald's announcement that it would transition to using cage-free eggs in its food was designed to appeal to socially conscious consumers -- but the fast-food giant will need a more holistic approach to succeed, writes Phil Lempert. "Just using cage-free eggs in an Egg McMuffin ... really doesn't change much about the sandwich," he notes. 

McDonald's today announced its "2014 Best of Sustainable Supply" winners in a report highlighting how suppliers achieved significant results by identifying opportunities and applying sustainable solutions in diverse places around the world.

McDonald's announced Tuesday that it has set two ambitious environmental goals that it wants to achieve by 2025. The fast food giant wants to have 100% of its customer packaging come from renewable, recycled, or certified sources and have recycling available in all its restaurants. Currently, 50% of its guest packaging comes from sustainable sources and only 10% of its restaurants are recycling.

In a recent GreenBiz webcast, a panel of experts - including strategists from General MIlls, Kering and McDonald's - explained why going big on sustainability goals is increasingly a smart business strategy, as well as a good stewardship policy. They discussed the intersection of today's major frameworks, such as science-driven goal setting, the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTI), planetary boundaries, Sustainable Development Goals, and more, and provided concrete business cases from several organizations on how they are conducting this transition.

McDonald's is launching a campaign promoting its sustainable fish farming practices in preparation for the increased number of Filet-o-Fish sandwiches the company sells during Lent. Commercials highlight suppliers' fishing processes in the Gulf of Alaska.

British fast food restaurants and grocery chains, including Tesco, Morrisons and McDonald's, buy their chicken from Cargill, which feeds its poultry with imported soy, much of it apparently coming from the Bolivian Amazon and Brazilian Cerrado - areas rapidly being deforested for new soy plantations.

As one of the country's largest Canadian beef purchasers, McDonald's Canada, through the Pilot tracked the journey of nearly 9,000 head of Canadian cattle, or the equivalent of 2.4 million patties. The cattle spent their entire lives, from 'birth to burger', raised on or handled by verified sustainable operations.

McDonald's purchases 2.5% of all the beef produced in the European Union alone-is a key player in the launch of two sustainable beef pilot programs in the U.S. One will attempt to measure beef sustainability through the entire supply chain in a research initiative conducted by the Noble Foundation. The other is a $4.5 million matching grant program run by a group of researchers to test grazing practices that can lead to a negative carbon impact.

The Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) Platform, whose members include McDonald's Europe and Unilever, has launched its Principles for Sustainable Beef Farming, intended to help the beef industry produce beef sustainably.

Sustainable Agriculture Initiative publishes new guidelines designed to help cut the environmental impact of beef production

GreenBlue's Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) announced this week that McDonald's USA is the newest participant in its How2Recycle Label Program. A member of the SPC since 2005, McDonald's is the first national restaurant chain to join How2Recycle, a program dedicated to clearly and consistently communicating recyclability to the public.

Today, McDonald's announces that it will begin purchasing verified sustainable beef in 2016, the first step on a quest to purchase sustainable beef for all of its burgers worldwide.

Fast-food giant McDonald's today is announcing new standards for the chicken supplied to its 14,000 U.S. restaurants. While the company isn't going antibiotic-free, McDonald's plans within two years to sell only chicken "raised without antibiotics that are important to human medicine," according to a statement provided to GreenBiz.