Krispy Kreme will stop selling its doughnuts at McDonald’s on July 2, the companies said in a press release Tuesday.

“McDonald’s USA’s Chief Marketing and Customer Experience Officer Alyssa Buetikofer said the collaboration was going well for the burger chain and its franchisees, but it ‘needed to be a profitable business model for Krispy Kreme as well,’” reported CNBC.

As of March 2024, McDonald’s had said it would roll out the Krispy Kreme offering nationwide by the end of 2026.

The deal had placed Krispy Kreme doughnuts in 2,400 McDonald’s locations. The companies “paused their partnership in May after sales slowed down, and Krispy Kreme withdrew its full-year financial outlook in part due to economic ‘softness,’”

As part of the deal, Krispy Kreme had agreed to not supply its doughnuts to any other QSRs in the U.S. through the end of 2026, reported Reuters. “The doughnuts were part of McDonald's crucial breakfast menu—a feature the restaurant chain has been trying to bolster by adding new items, bringing back crowd favorites and investing in marketing,” wrote Reuters.

In the June 2025 issue of NACS Magazine article “The Foodservice Playbook”, experts weighed in about how innovation on menus is critical for foodservice. Companies are investing in innovation centers, test labs and working on equipment and operational updates.