Queensland bakery contacted by McDonald’s over trademark pie

McDonald’s is already at war with an Aussie eatery over its Big Pac burger. Now it’s a humble bakery’s turn to get into a food fight with the fast food giant.

The Big Pac burger earned the wrath of McDonalds earlier this week — and now it’s a Big Mack pie that has caught the attention of the Golden Arches.

According to The Courier Mail, Blackbutt Bakery in Queensland was recently contacted by the global burger giant in relation to its Big Mack pie — a concoction boasting two beef patties, special sauce, onions, pickles and cheese.

Owner Roberta Anson told the publication McDonald’s contacted her after the award-winning Big Mack pie returned to the menu after a 12-month break.

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But while the matter is still being investigated, Ms Anson said it seemed likely she would be able to continue using the Big Mack name.

“McDonald’s phoned us about our pie and were taking it to their legal department but said they felt confident we weren’t profiting from their name,” Ms Anson told The Courier-Mail.

The Big Mack pie at Blackbutt Bakery raised the eyebrows of Maccas representatives. Picture: Supplied

“They said the fact it was a pie and not a burger and also we wrote it as ‘Big Mack’ they felt we weren’t crossing the line.”

However, Brisbane burger joint Burger Urge haven’t been so lucky with its Big Pac alpaca burger.

Brothers Sean and Colby Carthew, who founded the eatery in 2007, said they had been served with a cease and desist for their Big Pac burger, with McDonald’s asking for the item to be removed from menus by tomorrow.

Sean Carthew said he was “perplexed” by McDonald’s reaction in a statement yesterday.

“Burger Urge is the only restaurant chain in Australia that serves Alpaca burgers, so we don’t think anybody could possibly confuse us with McDonald’s.

McDonald’s was unimpressed by the Big Pac burger. Picture: AAP Image/Claudia Baxter

“I guess they are annoyed because the BIG PAC is calling out the big players who have been serving up uninspired food for as long as we can remember.

“We’re committed to using the finest ingredients and serving a premium and unique product, which would never be confused with the corporate behemoth’s offering.”

Meanwhile, McDonald’s issued a statement of its own, accusing Burger Urge of “leveraging” Maccas’s name and reputation.

“This is simply a marketing stunt to leverage our well-established and iconic brand,” the statement read.

Ms Anson said she understood why Burger Urge was targeted, given it was selling a similar product to McDonald’s, but said the company should simply change the burger’s name.

“They might have got away with it if they had changed the concept by adding different components to the burger,” she told the Courier Mail.

“I think Big Pac is a great concept but they just need to change it up.”

McDonald’s has been contacted for comment.

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