As a result of a legal dispute over cleanliness standards between the US-based fast-food company and its local franchise holder, McDonald’s locations in Sri Lanka have been closed, as confirmed by court officials on Sunday.
A directive to close the business until April 4 was issued by the Commercial High Court of Colombo in response to the parent company’s accusations that the local franchisee was not adhering to international sanitary standards.
According to a court representative, the closures were implemented while the situation was being looked into.
The local company Abans was the subject of a franchise agreement that McDonald’s legal representatives reportedly told the court was canceled just last week. To further address the matter, the court hearings are set to continue in early April.
Since McDonald’s first opened in Sri Lanka in 1998, Abans, the franchise holder, has run 12 locations. Neither McDonald’s nor Abans have released an official statement as of yet.
There was no indication on Sunday as to when or if McDonald’s locations will reopen, only that they were closing.
Fascinatingly, after a recent technological glitch that caused disruptions to operations in McDonald’s restaurants throughout East Asia, the branches in Sri Lanka continued to run normally.
