McDonald's is arguably the most popular fast-food chain in the world with thousands across the UK, including in Ayrshire.

We have three of the golden arches meaning that you are never far from a Big Mac or a Chicken Legend.

But with each restaurant there comes a different standard to cleanliness and hygiene. 

And thanks to the Food Standards Agency (FSA) we get to look at what each of the hygiene ratings is for the different locations. 

The inspections are carried out by the local authority and findings are updated on the FSA website whenever there is a new inspection conducted by the council. 

What the ratings mean:

There are three different ratings in Scotland under the Food Hygiene Information Scheme.

  • Pass means they meet the legal requirements for food hygiene.
  • Improvement Required means the business didn’t meet the legal requirements and needs to make improvements.
  • Exempt Premises means the business has been inspected by a local authority food safety officer, met the pass criteria, but doesn’t meet the criteria to be part of the scheme.  These businesses are low-risk to people’s health in terms of food safety and you perhaps wouldn’t normally think of them as a food business – for example, newsagents, chemist shops or visitor centres selling tins of biscuits.

A new business or if there is a new owner will be listed as "Awaiting Inspection" and will not have a food hygiene rating. 

How is McDonald's assessed?

Inspectors look at a few different key elements when assessing the hygiene of a restaurant including: 

How hygienically the food is handled- such as how its prepared, cooked, re-heated, cooled, and stored.

The condition of the structure of the buildings – the cleanliness, layout, lighting, ventilation, and other facilities.

How the business manages what it does to make sure food is safe and so that the officer can be confident standards will be maintained in the future.

All the McDonald's in Ayrshire hygiene ratings:

Hawkhill Retail Park, Stevenston

Rating: Pass

Last inspected: 26 February 2020

Riverway Retail Park, Irvine

Rating: Pass

Last inspected: 23 May 2018

Whitletts Road, Ayr

Rating: Pass

Last inspected: 18 June 2018