Fast food culture do more good than harm ?

Debate

Motion : Modern commercial fast food is often highly processed and prepared in an industrial
fashion, on a large scale with standard ingredients and standardized cooking and production
methods. It is usually rapidly served in cartons or bags or in a plastic wrapping, in a fashion that
minimizes cost. In most fast food operations, menu items are generally made from processed
ingredients prepared at a central supply facility and then shipped to individual outlets where
they are reheated, cooked or assembled in a short amount of time. This process ensures a
consistent level of product quality, and is key to being able to deliver the order quickly to the
customer and eliminate labor and equipment costs in the individual stores. Because of
commercial emphasis on quickness, uniformity and low cost, fast food products are often made
with ingredients formulated to achieve a certain flavor or consistency and to preserve freshness.
Fast food restaurants are traditionally distinguished by their ability to serve food via a drive-
through. Franchise operations that are part of restaurant chains have standardized foodstuffs
shipped to each restaurant from central locations.

Advantages of fast food culture:

1. Saves Time.
One of the advantages of choosing fast food chains over regular restaurants or home cooking is
its fast serving time. In this digital age, are too busy with work and have to cope with deadlines,
on top of keeping two jobs. Moreover, it is hard enough to balance personal life and career with
mothers having to drive their kids to school before going to work and pick them up after a whole
day at the office. Some parents and career people rely on ordering their food online to have them
delivered or drive through their children’s favorite burger joint for dinner. This is because people
in a hurry only have to wait for a few minutes or get their food as they choose them from the
counter, pay for the check and leave. The term “fast food” was named so because of what it
means, literally, food served fast.
2. Convenient.
Aside from not having to exert too much effort to eat or cook for the whole family or yourself,
Americans love fast food because there are establishments in almost all the corners and streets in
the city. Take New York, for example. The Upper East Side is filled with restaurants and fast
food chains from 1st St. up to Central Park. Starbucks branches are just a block or two from each
other and so is McDonalds. Moreover, items on their menu are aplenty and with variety. Eating
and getting a full meal is not a problem because anyone can just walk a few meters or cross the
street and food is available.
3. Offers Healthy Options.
Fast food items are not really limited to hotdogs, burgers, fries and tacos. Today, fast food chains
are starting to add healthier food options in their menu lists. Chipotle, the Mexican fast food
chain has already toppled Subway as America’s healthy fast food of choice. Moreover, it is
known for having fresh ingredients. Organic salads and burgers are also being offered in fast
food restaurants. As for the hotdogs, there are also choices like chicken and turkey.
4. Opens Job Opportunities.
Since the start of this food industry, it has offered jobs to millions of Americans. Many students
who are struggling to go to college or pay for student loans are given chances to earn money by
working several hours a day. Additionally, the shifting schedule also provides for flexibility in
schedule.

With Tastes Growing Healthier, McDonald’s Aims to Adapt Its Menu

Under pressure to provide healthier meals, McDonald’s announced that it would no longer
market some of its less nutritional options to children and said it also planned to include
offerings of fruits and vegetables in many of its adult menu combinations. Customers choosing
one of its “value meals,” which typically include a sandwich or wrap, French fries and a drink,
will have the option of having a side salad or a piece of fruit or a vegetable in lieu of the fries. It
plans to make the changes to its menu in 20 of the company’s largest markets, which account for
more than 85 percent of its overall sales, including overseas.
“Companies like McDonald’s play a powerful role in shaping the culture and environment that
influences the health-related behaviors of young people,” said Howell Wechsler, chief executive
of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, an organization set up by the Clinton Foundation and
the American Heart Association to reduce obesity in children.
Promoting healthier menus
As part of the new menu changes, the company said it would use its arsenal of marketing
tools, from menu boards to national television advertising campaigns, to help customers
understand the nutritional choices available. On its menu boards and in-store promotions, and
through advertising campaigns, McDonald’s said it would promote juice, low-fat milk and water
as the drink choices for its Happy Meals for children, although customers would still be able to
buy soda. It also plans to promote fruits and vegetables in “fun ways” on its Happy Meals
packaging, with advertising aimed at children to include messages about nutrition and well-
being.
The customer eats what he wants
The industry has defended itself by placing the burden of healthy eating on the consumer,
who freely chooses to consume their product outside of what nutritional recommendations allow.
Many fast food restaurants added labels to their menus by listing the nutritional information
below each item. The intent was to inform consumers of the caloric and nutritional content of the
food being served there and result in directing consumers to the healthier options available.
However, reports do not display any significant drop in sales at sandwich or burger locations
which highlights no change in consumer behavior even after food was labeled.
A study conducted in 20 Fast Food restaurants in America showed that despite the availability of
healthy meal options on the menu less than 3% of the consumers observed opted for a healthy
meal which emulated results of other recent Australian research on consumption of healthy
meals at Fast Food locations. In this 12 hour observational study, about 34% of meals purchased
were take-away, meals that were excluded from the study, and 65% represented the unhealthy
eat-in meals while the remaining 1% represented the healthy meals purchased
About customer’s money
Fast food is also affordable on people's incomes and expenses relating to the regions they live.
"Healthy foods including whole-grain products, low-fat dairy foods, and fresh fruits and
vegetables may be less available, and relatively costlier, in poor and minority neighborhoods."
So, fast food stores are located in the areas where the demand by the population is high.
Some other studies show that eating fast food is not dependent on a person's income. Researchers
found that an amount of fast food consumed does not correlate with a person’s income level. The
article "Wealth doesn't equal health Wealth: Fast food consequences not just for poor," is talked
about the same issue: not all rich people are healthy food consumers, but they also buy fast food
products everyday. Besides there was mentioned that fast food clients work harder and longer
than people who do not eat daily. So, it is dependent on a person to choose their meal based on
their lifestyle.

https://corporate.mcdonalds.com/corpmcd/scale-for-good/commitment-to-families.html

SDG 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth

Reducing unemployment and developing useful skillsets, especially for young people, are
essential components of sustained and inclusive economic growth. The Company and its
independent Franchisees employ over a million people worldwide at any given point in time.
Together we have the opportunity to provide meaningful work, valuable development
opportunities across McDonald’s restaurants and offices, and are proud to promote diversity
and inclusivity in our communities.
Related Scale for Good work streams: Youth Opportunity, Our Investment in People, Farmer
Livelihoods, and Diversity and Inclusion

SDG 2 – Zero Hunger

Universal access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food at all times of the year requires
sustainable food production systems and more resilient agriculture practices. McDonald’s is
committed to serving delicious food, sourced in a way that is better for both the planet and the
communities in our supply chains and where we operate. We’ve also set new goals on kids’
nutrition as part of our commitment to families.
Related Scale for Good work streams: Commitment to Families, Farmer Livelihoods, Beef
Sustainability, Responsibly Sourced Chicken, Fish, Responsibly Sourced Coffee, Palm
Oil, Packaging and Recycling, Climate Change, and Conserving Forests.

SDG 12 – Responsible Production and Consumption

Sourcing our food and packaging responsibly is critical for us to continue sourcing high-
quality raw materials long into the future. This includes making the most efficient use of
natural resources, and minimizing negative impacts on people and the planet. The Company
aspires toward supporting a more circular economy by focusing not only on where our
ingredients and materials come from, but also what happens to packaging waste along the
supply chain, in McDonald’s restaurants and in our communities.
Related Scale for Good work streams: Conserving Forests, Responsible Sourcing, Packaging
and Recycling and Eliminating Waste, as well as our Reporting and Governance.

We are focusing on the ways that we can make a difference for families and kids through our
Happy Meals.

Our Global Happy Meal Goals

We’re listening to and learning from families to find areas where our System has the best
opportunity to create positive and meaningful change. In 2018, we announced new, ambitious
global goals through 2022 together with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. These Global
Happy Meal goals continue our collaboration to focus on Happy Meals, offering more
balanced choices that kids and parents love. We aim to offer balanced meals that provide a
variety of offerings from recommended food groups, using simpler ingredients so parents can
feel good about our Happy Meal menu.

Happy Meal Readers

McDonald’s is using its Scale for Good to help inspire a passion for reading. Through the
Happy Meal Readers Book Program, the Company and its Franchisees have collectively
distributed more than 370 million books since 2001. Since 2013, more than 100 markets have
offered books in Happy Meals, including the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand,
Latin America and parts of Asia. Several countries also provide customers with the regular
option to choose a book or toy with a Happy Meal. By making it fun, we can help inspire a
lifelong love of reading for kids.

RMHC (Ronald McDonald House Charities)

When it comes to supporting families, the Company has played an important role for more than
40 years in keeping families together when their children are sick. McDonald’s is the charity’s
Founding Mission Partner. RMHC keeps families together, near the care they need, through
more than 365 Ronald McDonald Houses, 241 Ronald McDonald Family Rooms, and 50
Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles in about 64 countries and regions around the world. RMHC
provides care and resources to millions of children and families each year and saved families
over $880M in meal/lodging expenses in 2017 alone.