[1][2] The breakfast business that he pioneered with this item had grown to an estimated $4–5 billion in annual revenues for the fast food restaurant chain McDonald's by 1993.

[3] Born and raised in Chicago, Petersen, who served in the United States Marine Corps, where he attained the rank of Major in three years during World War II, began his career with McDonald's as vice president at D'Arcy Advertising in Chicago, which was McDonald's in-house advertising arm,[1] Peterson coined McDonald's first national advertising slogan, "Where Quality Starts Fresh Every Day.

[5] Peterson developed the Egg McMuffin, which has become a McDonald's breakfast signature item, in 1972.

Peterson was said to like eggs benedict, so he worked to develop a breakfast item which was similar to it for the fast food chain.

[1] The Egg McMuffin was served as an open faced sandwich on a buttered and toasted English muffin.