McDonald's (Creative Commons)

On Oct. 21, the company announced that its "Dollar Menu" will now be renamed the "Dollar Menu and More," in order to account for price raises that are coming shortly. The world’s biggest hamburger chain will now add two more tiers to this menu: the first tier with items ranging from $1 to $2, and the second selling larger, more complex pieces for up to $5.

Due to its accuracy in actually selling food items for only the remarkably low price of only 100 cents, the Dollar Menu has become one of McDonald’s defining features since the menu’s launch in 2002. This menu currently offers the Sausage McMuffin, Premium Roast Coffee, Hash Browns, the Sausage Biscuit and the Sausage Burrito for breakfast, and the McDouble, the McChicken, the Grilled Onion Cheddar Burger, the Side Salad, the Fruit and Yogurt Parfait, Sweet Tea, the Vanilla Cone and the Soft Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie for the rest of the day. The new Dollar Menu and more will continue to serve these pieces at their same prices, but also introduce more items, such as the 20-piece McNugget, for approximately $5, and serve old, classic items like bacon burgers, but now for around $2.

When asked the reasoning behind this menu change, McDonald's representatives stated that this new addition will help augment pricing flexibility within the company. The "Dollar Menu and More" will replace McDonald’s Extra Value Menu, which currently offers snack wraps, McFlurrys and the Double Cheeseburger. This menu, which was launched in 2012, was a middle-tier menu that offered certain items for around $2, but it never fully reached its sale objectives.

One reason for this attempted new menu was the rising price of beef, which is stemming from droughts in cattle-ranching regions in the Mid-West. The rising temperatures plus lack of rain have led to farmers having fewer cattle, due to limited pasture space and more expensive food for the animals. Therefore the cattle that the cattle ranchers do have can be sold for higher prices. A specific item that caused much conflict for McDonald’s is the Double Cheeseburger, for despite the large quantity of beef that it required, the burger remained on the "Dollar Menu." The compromise came in the form of the McDouble, which was a hamburger with two patties but only one slice of cheese. This issue of drought and expensive beef has not been resolved though, and may absolutely serve as key reasoning behind the new "Dollar Menu and More" price hikes.

While the "Extra Value Menu" might have been a bit of a fluke, Micky D’s did put a lot of effort into promoting the McWrap, which is a pricier item, but also turned out to the most successful new featured item on the menu. The McWrap ties into McDonalds’ new focus on healthier eating habits and food options. So it may not be surprising to see the "Dollar Menu and More" feature more healthy wrap and salad options. 

In its ten years of activeness the "Dollar Menu" has been responsible for 13-15 percent of the McDonald’s total sales. And now only time will tell the effects that this new addition will bring. The "Dollar and More" menu is now being tested in Fresno, Calif., Columbia, S.C., Hartford, Conn. and Memphis, Tenn., but will officially launch nationwide on Nov. 4. 

Reach Staff Reporter Samantha Jacobs here or follow her on Twitter here.