McDonald's taste test: What are Venezuela's yuca fries like?

When it comes to fast food, a “Big Mac and fries” should go together like “cheese and pickle” or “fish and chips”, but not if you live in Venezuela - at least not any longer. With Venezuela’s socialist petro-state economy now facing mounting food shortages because of the collapse in world oil prices, more than 100 local Venezuelan McDonald's have run out of potatoes and have been forced to serve local substitutes. Instead of French fries, McDonald's in Caracas visited by The Telegraph had switched to serving fries made from yuca, or cassava – a starchy Latin American root vegetable – or “arepas”, a deep fried maize ball which is a national Venezuelan favourite. More…