McDonald's Owner and Operator Shawn Saputo said the company has a strong relationship with Michigan agriculture: 127,421 pounds of corn, 3.4 million pounds of pork and 51,479,000 dozen of its eggs are sourced from Michigan's farms. 

The McDonald's food system spent an estimated $470 million on Michigan's supply chain and $285 million on ingredients from Michigan agriculture. 

Exactly 7,067,000 gallons of milk and 3,753,000 pounds of McDonald's butter come from Michigan. Also, 28,708,000 pounds of apples, 54,728,000 pounds of cucumbers and 917,000 pounds of beef are from Michigan's farms. 

"Our buying power in the state of Michigan with produce is enormous," Saputo said.   

Sen. Sam Singh (D-East Lansing) said the agricultural part of his district, including Clinton, Shiawassee and Ingham counties, serves as "an incredible part of who we are."   

Farmers contribute more than $100 million to Michigan's economy, employing 800,000 workers and are 17 percent of the working population, he said. 

"When you talk about corn and cucumbers and pork and soybeans, I mean, that is Michigan's economy," Singh said.   

Michigan is the most diverse state for specialty crops and vegetables in the United States, said Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Chief of Staff Kathy Angerer. She described McDonald's as a "premier purchaser of those products." 

Greg Bird, director of the Michigan Vegetable Council, said McDonald's has purchased 54,728,000 pounds of cucumbers from Michigan farms. 

"In my personal opinion, I think McDonald's needs to make the double barbecue pickle burger, two patties with just lots of pickles and lots of barbecue sauce on it and a bun," Bird said. "But that's just my personal opinion, so keep that in mind."