McDonald's Makes 'Multimillion Dollar' Donation to World Food Program

After shutting down Burger King's truce-making McWhopper proposal, McDonald's is today making good on its pledge to promote peace. According to The New York Times, the chain is joining DreamWorks Animation, MasterCard, Facebook, and other companies on the International Day of Peace by donating paid television airtime and digital media access to promote the World Food Program. The efforts include running a 30-second commercial narrated by actor Liam Neeson that draws attention to the refugee crisis in Syria and Iraq.

Jay Aldous, director of the World Food Program, says that providing food assistance and aid would help relieve some of the pressure the tens of thousands of migrants pushing west into Europe. The World Food Program estimates it needs $7 billion to address humanitarian crises across the globe this year but will more likely operate on a budget of around $4 billion. "If we're unable to do our job because of funding shortfalls, the volume of individuals and families seeking asylum in Europe will increase," Aldous tells The Times. McDonald's wouldn't reveal exactly how much the ad time was worth but claims it was a "multimillion dollar" amount.

Burger King is also supposedly working with the World Food Program, though the chain's role isn't clear. "Any peace-related activity McDonald's undertakes, whether in partnership with Burger King or on their own, is great, as it will raise further awareness for Peace Day," a BK rep. Meanwhile, USA Today reports that Burger King has teamed up with Denny's, Krystal, Wayback Burgers, and Giraffas to give out 1,500 collaboration burgers at an Atlanta pop-up restaurant today.