After a seemingly endless amount of debating, various votes, a mayoral veto and whatnot, the San Francisco that puts an end to the practice of including toys and other giveaway gimmicks in Happy Meals (and many other fast food kids’ meals with similar freebies) kicks in later this week. But the folks at McDonald’s have devised a clever plan to get those Shrek movie promo toys in your little ones’ hands — by simply charging for them.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, McDonald’s will start charging customers $.10 to customers who want to score the toy.

“This law is not what my customers wanted or asked for, but the law’s the law,” one Golden Arches franchisee explains to the paper. “It complies with the letter of the law.”

The local franchisees say they considered lowering the price of the Happy Meal to effectively negate the cost of the toy, but a rep for the fast food titan says it surveyed customers and found that “They told us 10 cents is fair and reasonable.”

On a somewhat positive note, the franchisees in San Francisco won’t be pocketing the $.10 toy fee. Instead, the money will go to the Ronald McDonald House.

McDonald’s will charge for Happy Meal toys in SF [SFgate.com]

Thanks to Alisa for the tip!

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