McDonald’s signature sandwich meal is a prime example of the diversity of the human food supply. The meal — a Big Mac burger with full garnish, French fries and coffee — contains ingredients originating from at least 10 different countries in eight centers of cultivated plant diversity.

“We were curious about how diverse the human diet was compared to other animal species,” said researcher Jana Vamosi in an e-mail. Vamosi is an evolutionary ecologist from the University of Calgary.

Vamosi chose the No. 1 Extra Value Meal because of its variety of ingredients. The study dissected the meal’s plant products and chose to focus on their location of origin. For instance, corn, chili peppers, potatoes and tomatoes originated in South America.

Along with beef, the sandwich includes “Mac” sauce made with garlic and cucumbers, onions, pickles, lettuce, mustard and ketchup on a sesame bun - ingredients which originated in the Mediterranean, India, Turkey, Iran, Mexico, New Guinea and China.

“Everyone eats internationally, in terms of origin,” said Laurie Hodges, an associate professor and extension specialist of commercial vegetables at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “There weren’t any tomatoes in Europe until Columbus, and Italian cuisine is based on tomatoes.”

“The exchange is still going on now and it’s wonderful we’re doing that,” said Hodges, who teaches on East Campus, which is, incidentally, where the McDonald’s McRib sandwich was invented. …