McDonald’s is planning to open yet another restaurant in Cork with a new drive-through in Carrigtwohill.The company said 1,750 new jobs will be added through a major €150 million investment that will bring 25 new restaurants to the country over the next five years – as they aim to hit the 100-restaurant milestone. Currently, there is about one McDonald’s per 48,000 residents in Dublin and even more in Cork, with one per 20,000 to 25,000 residents. This is even more McDonald’s per head than the US average of about one for every 25,300 people. Where does public health feature in these plans? Is there any assessment of health impact when planning is considered for fast-food outlets? The VAT rate reduction for food businesses from 13.5 per cent to 9 per cent came in on July 1st. The cut, which will cost the exchequer an estimated €681 million in a full year, will disproportionately benefit owners of McDonald’s and other multinational fast-food chains that continue to expand across the blueprint of cities, towns and villages across the country. The markets may be efficient in providing food that is affordable, but when it comes to sustaining a healthy and productive demographic, the results are appalling by any measure. The latest figures for 2024 show more than one in five adults (21 per cent) continues to live with obesity.Our response: make it even more cost-effective for fast-food multinational corporations to dominate the food market by cutting VAT by 4 per cent. This might be good for businesses, but it strikes another nail in the coffin of public health.DR CATHERINE CONLON,Former director human health and nutrition, safefoodBallintemple, Co Cork