Summary Of The Fries That Bind Us

Unlimited, endless, fast food choices, and yet there are two that stand out above the rest. McDonald’s and Burger King are the two biggest burger fast food chains in the world. So let me ask you this, who has a better menu? Who’s Cheaper? And which one is healthier? This debate will once and for all come to an end, once all of these points have been met throughout my paper. McDonald’s vs. Burger King has been a long running argument. You will finally come to realize that McDonald’s is the better choice for you.

McDonald’s Corporation are the most successful and popular fast food brand in the world, holding the largest fast food market share and being the leading fast food restaurant chain in terms of world sales (8%). They are the second greatest outlet operator with more than 34,000 outlets, serving worldwide to 69 million customers daily, across 119 countries. Their brand is the seventh most valuable and

McDonald’s Corporation operates in the food service industry. The company has its restaurants in more than 100 countries of the world. McDonald’s, the world’s largest food chain is headquartered in U.S. having an employee population of 390000 (About McDonald's..., 2008).

Eric Schlosser shows the audience a very clear picture of how McDonald's has dominated not only the fast food industry but also has made its way onto other business fields. McDonald's is the biggest buyer of beef, pork, and potatoes. The company is the largest owner of retail space in the world, the biggest private operator of playgrounds, and one of the country's major toy distributors. "The fast-food industry now stands alone atop a massive food-industrial complex which has gained control of American agriculture," writes Schlosser.

The United States of America has long been considered a “big nation”, whether is has the biggest cities, houses, and on a negative note, biggest people. In 2003, Morgan Spurlock, a healthy-bodied film director, set on a quest to show America the detrimental effects of the fast food industry and raise awareness on the controversial issue. He produced the documentary “Supersize Me”, where McDonald’s meals were consumed for every meal of the day for thirty days. His film was released to movie theatres so that people could understand the devastating effects of McDonald’s on his body in a very short time span. At the end of his experiment, Morgan gained twenty-five pounds, developed a thirteen percent

As a child who had grown up watching Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, I had always dreamed of one day visiting the factory. I am sure most children my age would agree with this dream. For Eric Schlosser, this dream became a reality, but it was not exactly the reality he was hoping for. In Eric Schlosser’s article, “Why the Fries Taste Good,” he talks much about processed food and the flavors of food, especially McDonald’s french fries. He visited the International Flavors & Fragrances factory (IFF), reminding him much of the factory in Willy Wonka with the glorious smells, white lab coats, and multiple small glass bottles full of chemically produced flavors. For me, I have always seen food as fuel and all these chemicals additives are not food. Eric Schlosser’s article provides an informative piece that has persuaded me to think differently of the flavors of fast foods and processed foods, which ultimately changes the underlying fact of what food is.

McDonald's has successfully created a brand/name for itself as the leading fast food retailer in the world. It is somewhat of impossibility for one to not come across a McDonald's with over 30,000 local restaurants in over 100 countries (McDonald's, 2011). Those restaurants are owned either by a franchise owner or a corporation; a percentage of all the earnings from a franchise owner, including a percentage from their annual revenue go to McDonald's.

McDonald’s is not some ordinary fast food restaurant with its trademark logo advertised almost everywhere in the U.S., many people all over the world know about these famous golden arches. The McDonald’s franchising started in 1955 and in less than fifty years, McDonald’s was introduced all over the world in countries such as, China, Japan, Great Britain, Sweden, France etc. McDonald’s global expansion has intermingled with cultural traditions because these countries are becoming more westernized. Since East Asia is becoming more westernized it also means that there is a cultural difference because of the influences from outside the country. The cultures are being changed because of how ideas are expressed by people and not by their

The global segment of the general environment is that McDonald’s has Internationally and successfully expanded into foreign markets around the world. The first country that McDonald’s expanded to was Canada. Today, McDonald’s successfully operates in more than 100 countries and has over 34,400 locations. According to the McSpotlight.org, “on average, McDonald’s opens a new restaurant every three hours”. The world recognizes McDonald’s as a truly successful American company with tasty and affordable food items.

In the book Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser writes about the fast food industry. However, his book is not merely an expose of the fast food industry but is even more a consideration of how the fast food industry has shaped and defined American society in America and for other nations as America exports its fast food culture to others. Schlosser describes a great deal of American culture to the fast food mentality, and he finds that globalization is taking the fast food culture around the world at a rapid rate. Schlosser addresses a number of specific issues related to food production and distribution. He connects the social order of a society to the kind of food it eats and the way it eats that food, with American society very

REFERENCES•www.mcdonalds.com, accessed on 18 July, 2008•www.mcdonldsindia.net, accessed on 18 July, 2008•en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonald's, accessed on 19 July, 2008•http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/263943/mcdonalds_strategic_marketing_mix.html?cat=4, accessed on 19 July, 2008•www.kfc.com, accessed on 25 August, 2008

Q4) the broad issue facing McDonalds in the UK is the current attitude towars rising obesity. The company seems to have tried many different approaches to deal with the problem, but the problem persists. List all the problems facings McDonalds & critique its various approaches to solving the problem.

McDonald's is the world’s leading food service retailer with more than 30,000 local restaurants in 121 countries serving 45 million customers each day.

While examining the association between McDonaldization and communal change in the American society, Ritzer points out four components of the shifting society that greatly influenced the future of McDonaldization.

Since McDonald’s is the most well know fast food chain in the world with a market cap of 69.35 billion, brand recognition is their biggest strength. The secret of McDonald’s success is its willingness to innovate and maintain consistency in the operation of its many outlets. In recent years McDonald’s has introduced Premium Salads, Snack Wraps, fresh Apple Dippers in the United States, and Corn Cups in China. Also, McDonald 's products are priced so low that economic conditions are almost insignificant.