A NUMBER OF locals in Thurles, Co Tipperary are objecting to McDonald’s Ireland constructing a new drive-thru fast food restaurant on health grounds.

McDonald’s Restaurants of Ireland Ltd lodged plans in late September for a new drive-thru restaurant on lands at Slievenamon Road and Thurles Relief Road in Thurles.

However, over 20 objections have been lodged against the proposal.

The objections are concerned with the planning issues such as location, opening hours, litter nuisance, while a number have raised concerns on health grounds.

Ronan Spain of Carraig Donn, Clongour, Thurles told the council that “as a father of two young children, I object to the development of a fast food restaurant on health grounds.

“Particularly as we are in the midst of an obesity crisis in this country, where one in five children aged under five is obese according to a study referenced on the HSE website on October 10th 2024.”

Along with his wife, Karen, the Spains state that the proposed site is located close to a creche facility and public health policy in a lot of counties dictates that fast food outlets should not be built within 300 metres of creche facilities or schools.

Chris Delahunt echoes the health concerns cited by the Spains in his own objection against the proposal.

In another objection, Paul Ryan from The Mall, Thurles has told the council that the proposal is in conflict with public health policy in that there is a creche 150 yards away.

Mr Ryan said: “I and my family live 150 yards from this proposed McDonalds development. It is also 100 yards from my place of work, a doctors’ surgery.”

He said: “Having a fast food outlet is of no help at all in our efforts to promote healthier lifestyles.”

A spokeswoman for McDonalds said today: “We are excited about the opportunity to open a new restaurant in Thurles bringing new jobs and significant investment to the local area.”

Asked to comment on those objecting to the planned drive-thru on health grounds, the spokeswoman said: “Our customers are at the heart of every choice we make which is why we’ve been providing nutritional information on our menu for over 30 years.”

She added: “We continue to evolve our menu to ensure our customers can make informed decisions, with 54% of our menu now classified as non-HFSS (not high in fat, salt or sugar) and 89% of our items in our core menu containing under 500 calories.

“As a business, McDonald’s prides itself on being a good neighbour in the communities in which it operates, and we look forward to continuing to work with the Council and local residents to mitigate any concerns raised.”