Summary The 500 ml 'Limited Edition Big Mac Special Sauce Bottle #1 of 200' is being auctioned on eBay.
Sydney (AFP) - Fast-food giant McDonald s is giving Australians the opportunity to buy a bottle of the special sauce used on their famous Big Mac -- the only problem is it will cost at least Aus$23,100 (US$18,000).
The 500 ml Limited Edition Big Mac Special Sauce Bottle #1 of 200 is being auctioned on eBay with all proceeds going to charities run by the global chain to help sick children and their families.
"This bottle is #1 of only 200 being produced worldwide, and they won t be sold in restaurants," the eBay ad reads, adding that the sauce could be used to improve anything from goulash to cupcakes.
McDonald s said the special sauce was one of the company s most iconic ingredients, and customers often ask where they could buy it -- but until now it was trapped between the buns of a Big Mac.
"We re excited to be auctioning off the first-ever bottle of Big Mac sauce for a cause we are passionate about," chief marketing officer for McDonald s Australia Mark Lollback said.
The auction for the sauce -- whose ingredients are known to include relish, mustard, distilled vinegar, onion, garlic and salted egg yolks -- will run until February 11.
Australian customers of McDonald s will also be able to buy 25ml tubs of special sauce at restaurants around the country in February, the company said.
McDonald s is the world s largest burger chain, with 36,000 outlets in more than 100 countries, but changing consumer tastes are proving a challenge as are agile new fast-food chains, compounded by a slump in sales in China and Japan after a scare over food safety.
