Fast Food Nation Eric Schlosser Major themes Problem

Fast Food Nation Eric Schlosser Major themes Problem with the nation’s diet ¼ of population on any day visit a fast food restaurant

Fast Food Growth Driven by Societal Changes Many facets of life dominated by chains & franchises Rise in Dual earner families—less time to prepare food Life in a “workaholic” society Vast differences in diets via SES

Keys to Franchise Success Uniformity Cheap labor--typically teens High turn over Little room for pay increase or advancement Extensive & expensive marketing Direct appeals to young children

Influence of Multinationals Huge agribusiness & purchasing power Elimination of most small farms and ranches Demand for uniformity Meatpacking no longer a good paying job—now dangerous & employees unskilled immigrant laborers OSHA Regulations & Fast Food Industry www. osha. gov/Publications/OSHA 3108/osha 3108. html

Nebraska's Meatpacking Industry Immigrant workers hold 80% of jobs. Meat processors at Farmland plant in Crete, Nebraska

Drastic Societal Changes that influenced Fast Food Industry Population growth especially during the baby boomer years Massive increase in highways across the nation Massive growth in the housing industry & move to the suburbs Increased car ownership and driving (car culture) Growth of drive-thru chains (food) & assembly line production of food Mass marketing efforts to children—toys, playgrounds, school advertising, etc. Increase in consumption of soda

Mc Donald’s Business Model Mc. Donald's makes money by operating its own restaurants and franchises to third parties. Of its 32, 278 restaurants around the world (September 30, 2009), 25, 975 (80%) were franchises and 6, 303 (20%) were company-operated.

Fast Food Chains in the U. S. Hamburger: A&W · Arctic Circle · Back Yard Burgers · Big Boy · Burger King · Burgerville · Carl's Jr. · Checkers/Rally's · Cook Out · Culver's · Fatburger · Five Guys · Freddy's Frozen Custard · George Webb · Hardee's · Hot 'n Now · In-N-Out Burger · Jack in the Box · Johnny Rockets · Krystal · Maid-Rite · Mc. Donald’s · Nation's Giant Hamburgers · Roy Rogers · Spangles · Sonic Drive-In · Steak n Shake · Swensons · Original Tommy's · Wendy's · Whataburger · White Castle · Winstead's · Zippy's

Parody about the business practices of Mc. Donald’s

Mc. Donald's International Revenues Geographic Region % of Total Revenues US 35% France, Germany, UK 21% Rest of Europe 14% Australia, China, Japan 8% Rest of Asia, Mid East, Africa 8%

Growth in “Liquid Candy”

From 1977 to 2001, Americans doubled their consumption of sweetened beverages—a trend that was paralleled by a doubling of prevalence of obesity

Influence of Suburban Sprawl Growth of suburban strip malls & large shopping malls Subsequent growth in fast food industry & strict regimentation & standardization 90% of workers paid an hourly wage (low wage), with no benefits, scheduled to work only when needed Workers subjected to numerous abuses, e. g. paid with food rather than wages for all hours worked

Fast Food Industry Strongly Anti-Union Penalized for union organizing activities Website for union information http: //www. unions. org/home/ Use youth & immigrants as workers—less likely to unionize—More likely to be injured on the job Because of low pay & monotony of work most work only a short time—leave & move on to other low earning jobs

Worker Vunerabilities Injury rate of teens 2 X rate of adults Subjected to workplace violence & victims of robberies May 2000, 5 Wendy’s employees murdered during a robbery attempt Craig Godineaux was sentenced to five life terms behind bars for his part in the Wendy's Massacure of 2000 http: //wcbstv. com/investigates/wendys. massacre. queen s. 2. 481369. html

Most Popular Fast Food Item FRIES! Frozen fries—low cost, huge profits Typical American eats > 30 lbs. of frozen fries yearly ½ of potato farmers gone—now Corporate Farms Fries cooked in vegetable oil—taste like beef Aroma of food— 90% of flavor—use of flavor additives, chemicals

Rheology—”Mouthfeel”

Consolidation of Ranches Only 4 top meatpacking firms—Con. Agra, IBP, Excel, National Beef—allowing mergers without anti-trust violations during Reagan era Slaughter 84% of the nation’s cattle Concentration reduces prices for independent ranchers Same thing happened to poultry growers— 8 plants control the poultry industry in only 4 states— Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi > ½ of poultry produced

Largest Purchases of Chicken KFC & Mc. Donald’s Mc. Nuggets—resemble beef more than chicken 2 X per oz of fat than hamburger Popular among children

Mc. Donald’s Chicken Mc. Nuggets Mc. Donald's Chicken Mc. Nugget is 56% corn Mc. Nuggets also contain several synthetic ingredients, quasiedible substances that ultimately come not from a corn or soybean field but from a petroleum refinery or chemical plant. Most alarming ingredient is TBHQ, tertiary butylhydroquinone, an antioxidant derived from petroleum that is either sprayed directly on the nugget or the inside of the box it comes in to "help preserve freshness”

Status of Ranches Cheated by large meatpacking giants Traditional way of life of ranchers now destroyed Suicide 3 X higher among ranchers & farmers Tangible connection to the past now lost

Industrialization of Cattle-raising & Meatpacking Costs cut by meatpacking giants mainly wages Turned a best paying job to a low paying job Created rural ghettos—crime, poverty, drug abuse, homelessness

Meatpacking Industry: From Urban to Rural Past: Cities like NY and Chicago History of abusive practices—book, “Jungle, ” Upton Sinclaire led to safety legislation in 1906 After WWII most jobs union—good paying From 1970 s onward one by one they closed down New meatpacking plants now in rural areas—Iowa, Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Nebraska paying wages up to 50% less than union wages http: //www. dailyyonder. com/immigrants-nebraska-pay -more-taxes-they-receive-services

Support from Reagan Adm Reagan administration did not oppose disappearance of hundreds of small meatpacking firms Opposed using anti-trust laws to stop giant meatpackers

Con. Agra #1 producer of french fries & largest sheep & turkey processor Largest distributor of agricultural chemicals #2 manufacture of frozen food & flour miller #3 producer of chicken & pork Leading seed & feed producer Sells food under 100 consumer brand names

Growth of Con. Agra Largest meatpacker in the world & foodservice supplier in North America

Examples of Con. Agra Brand Names Healthy Choice Hunt’s Hebrew Nationl Reddi-Wip Swiss Miss La. Choy Orville Redenbacher’s County Pride Armour Taste O’Sea Knott’s Berry Farm

Tax Shelters of Large Corporations Con. Agra influenced re-writing of Nebraska’s tax code Lower taxes paid by large corporations & wealthy executives Provided tax deductions for Con. Agra’s corporate jets Due to the 1987 legislation, IBP paid NO corporate taxes in Nebraska for the next decade 1997 IBP re-located to South Dakota with NO corporate or personal income taxes From 1967 onward, IBP crushed labor unions

Changing Nature of Lexington 1990, IBP opened new slaughterhouse, pop. 7, 000 1991, highest crime rate in Nebraska 2000, # of serious crimes doubled & became a major distributer of illegal drugs Gangs, drive-by shootings appeared Latino inhabitants increased ten-fold, now 50% of pop White inhabitants left 1 slaughterhouse responsible for such sudden change, hardship, and despair

Most Dangerous Job Common injuries: lacerations, tendinitis, back & shoulder problems, “trigger-finger, ” trauma, carpel tunnel syndrome, accidential stabbings of self & others Meatpacking industry— 1/3 higher than national average in industry IBP directly responsible for many of the hazards due to the expectations of speed working the assembly line Widespread methamphetamine abuse Late-night cleaning crew jobs also very dangerous

Rise in Foodborne Illnesses Changes in how food is produced Industrialization & centralization of food processing can lead to statewide or even national outbreaks Huge feedlots, slaughterhouses, hamburger grinders allow for wide dispersal of food supply According to the CDC, > ¾ of food-related illnesses & deaths caused by infectious agents NOT YET IDENTIFIED

E-Coli Bacteria

E-Coli Infection The result of an infection may be as little as a case of diarrhea. From 5 to 10% of people infected develop a serious condition known as haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), in which the kidneys are damaged. HUS can lead to permanent kidney damage, requiring long-term dialysis treatment. Some patients die, with the very young and very old being most at risk.

Children becoming Ill & Dying > 500, mainly children, made ill by E coli Thousands hospitalized Hundreds died Herds of cattle became infected via being fed livestock waste (dead sheep & cattle) until 1997 when the FDA banned such practices However, allow cattle feed to contain dead pigs, horses & chickens Also fed to cattle, waste products from poultry, including sawdust & old newspapers

Spread of Pathogens Spread not only in feedlots but also at slaughterhouses & hamburger grinders 1 infected animal can contaminate 32, 000 lbs of ground beef 1 fast food hamburger can contain meat from dozens or even hundreds of different cattle Reagan & Bush administrations cut spending on public health measures & staffed U. S. Dept of Agriculture with officials more interested in deregulation than food safety

Meatpacking Allies in Congress 1990 s Congressional support thwart modernization of meat inspection system Even now, USDA cannot demand a recall—just suggest that meat be withdrawn Company under no obligation to inform the public that a recall is taking place Republicans in Congress failed to enact legislation that would demand meat recalls & impose fines on meatpackers (legislation introduced 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999)

Lexington, NE Races in Lexington: • Hispanic (51. 2%) • White Non-Hispanic (46. 3%) • Other race (30. 8%) • Two or more races (2. 3%) • American Indian (1. 5%) • Vietnamese (0. 7%) (Total can be greater than 100% because Hispanics could be counted in other races) Dec. 2009 cost of living index in Lexington: 75. 7 (low, U. S. average is 100) Read more: http: //www. city-data. com/city/Lexington. Nebraska. html#ixzz 0 onqc. TAx. W

What Kids Eat In 1980 s & 1990 s, questionable beef served in school cafeterias Typically sell the cheapest meat to schools 1998, Georgia 11 year old seriously ill after eating a hamburger at school Tests of ground beef found that the facility was so filthy, USDA withdrew inspectors, a highly unusual move Next day, company’s owner committed suicide

Major Chains Outside the U. S.

Obesity as Major Health Problem

Fattest States in the U. S.

Obesity Statistics Obesity is the #2 cause of preventable death in U. S. 60 million Americans, 20 years and older are obese 9 million children and teens ages 6 -19 are overweight Being overweight or obese increases the risk of health conditions and diseases including: Breast cancer, Coronary heart disease, Type II diabetes, Sleep apnea, Gallbladder disease, Osteoarthritis, Colon cancer, Hypertension and Stroke

Obesity Among Children Diabetes, hypertension & other obesity-related chronic diseases prevalent among adults, now more common in youngsters. % of children & adolescents who are overweight & obese is now higher than ever before. Poor dietary habits and inactivity are reported to contribute to the increase of obesity in youth. Today's youth are considered the most inactive generation in history caused in part by reductions in school phys ed programs & unavailable or unsafe community recreational facilities.

Costs to Society

Obesity in America

Increase in Obesity

The Future Of Food See video at, http: //www. thefutureoffood. com/