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McDonald's tackles prickly issue of hedgehog-friendly ice cream
US fast food giant McDonald's announced it had gone hedgehog-friendly, following a long running campaign waged by British lovers of the prickly mammals.

McDonald's said it had redesigned cups and lids for its McFlurry ice cream so that they were no longer a danger to the animals.

The British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS) said it had spent more than five years campaigning against the containers, claiming that countless creatures had died by getting their heads stuck inside when trying to eat left-over ice cream.

McDonald's UK said it had invested "significant research and testing" into designing their new cup, which features a smaller opening meaning customers have to remove the lid to eat the dessert.

In a statement the firm said: "We are delighted to announce that we have now introduced a new lid with a smaller aperture for our McFlurry dessert," the burger restaurant chain said.

"The smaller aperture of the lid has been designed to prevent hedgehogs from entering the McFlurry container in the unfortunate incidence that a lid is littered and is then accessible to wildlife."

Relieved BHPS chief executive Fay Vass said life would now be a lot easier for foraging hedgehogs with a taste for ice cream.

McDonald's "always said they were listening but nothing seemed to happen", she said.

"Then we got press coverage and public support followed and they tried a different design.

"We were getting quite a few calls, enough to concern us, so now it's one less danger for hedgehogs to worry about."
(AFP)