New York (CNN Business) Breakfast is the most important meal of the day for fast food chains, and McDonald's has released yet another innovation to help it regain lost momentum in the morning.

Donut Sticks are McDonald's latest breakfast creation. The fried dough rods come six or a dozen in a pack, and are served warm with cinnamon and sugar. And McDonald's really, really wants you to buy coffee to go with them. Although breakfast is served all day at McDonald's, the Donut Sticks will be available only during breakfast hours.

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McDonald's MCD has been the breakfast market leader since 1971, when it allowed franchisees to experiment with serving items in the morning. But McDonald's breakfast business continues to slip , losing share to Taco Bell's fledgling breakfast menu and Dunkin's additions of breakfast sandwiches.

Breakfast is the final frontier for the restaurant business: More people prepare breakfast at home than any other meal, and the morning remains the only growth market for the fast food industry, according to NPD. Breakfast sales at fast-food restaurants rose 1% last year, but overall sales were flat.

"There's momentum in breakfast as a consumer trend," said David Portalatin, food industry analyst at NPD. "People are giving greater share of stomach to breakfast at quick-serve restaurants."

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