McDonald's Korea has ceased sales of the Chungju corn burger due to the presence of foreign objects.

The Chungju Corn Cheese Croquette Burger was released on July 9 as part of the Taste of Korea campaign. Approximately 25 metric tons of waxy corn, grown by farmers in the city of Chungju (North Chungcheong Province), were used to prepare this dish. The product became one of the company's fastest-growing seasonal offerings in terms of sales volume: more than 1 million units were sold in the first two weeks.

The decision to discontinue sales was made on Thursday, nearly two weeks before the scheduled end of the promotion, which was set for August 12. A company representative explained that the measure is a preventive step taken out of concern for consumer safety. According to the organization's internal regulations, sales of a product are suspended if three or more complaints regarding the same safety-related issue are received.

Currently, McDonald's Korea, together with raw material suppliers and production partners, is investigating the incident to determine how foreign objects could have entered the burger. According to the chain's representative, there are no plans to resume sales even after the causes have been identified. Development of this product took about a year and included stages of concept planning, ingredient selection, prototype creation, and consumer testing.

The Taste of Korea campaign has been running since 2021 and is aimed at using Korean agricultural products in the chain's menu to support local producers and expand sales channels for farming communities. Previously, as part of this initiative, the Changnyeong Garlic Burger, featuring garlic from Changnyeong, was added to the menu of international restaurants, specifically in Taiwan.