Possible Reasons Your Favorite Fast Food Menu Item Was Discontinued

Losing something you love is difficult. That's true even if that thing is a favorite fast food menu item. It's happened to millions of people who discover a delicious go-to meal or snack, only to have it ripped away by the unfeeling hands of corporate fast food execs, with no sign of when or if it'll ever return to the menu. It leaves many with one haunting question — why?

The answers are as varied as America's fast food cuisines. Take the McDonald's McRib, for instance. Many have long suggested the infamously sporadic sandwich comes and goes to generate hype among its dedicated fanbase and curious newcomers. This is likely at least partially true and has proven to be a successful marketing strategy for the Golden Arches.

But the real reason it keeps disappearing from the menu is related to dollars and cents. The pork cuts used to create the patty aren't always available at a price that makes the chain money, a phenomenon at least partially caused by the massive demand for pork from McDonald's itself.

Sometimes, seasonal issues are at play as a practical reason that fast food chains have limited-time items. For example, it makes sense to offer ice cream or other refreshing treats in the warmer months when people are far more likely to order them. They might be replaced by hot drinks or other winter-appropriate specials when the temperature starts to drop, only to reappear the next year.

The other hard-to-face reality for some fast food lovers who see their favorite item discontinued is that it simply may not have been that popular. Former fast food workers on Reddit pointed to items like the McDonald's snack wrap, which required a relatively high number of sales to break even, which it rarely achieved. Others mention that items that are marginally popular or profitable may still get the axe if they introduce too many extra ingredients to prep areas or slow down the pace of order prep.

While the reasons can be many, the feeling of loss is still the same. Fortunately, there are plenty more fish (or Filet-O-Fish) in the fast-food sea.