McDonald's Nutrition Initiative has Chain Adding Fruit Salad to Menu in Favor of Fries
Under constant pressure from government and health agencies for better quality fast food, McDonald's usually bares the brunt of the criticism because they are the largest of the franchises. The company has heard the cry, and is now responding.
Other options beside fries and fruit salad will be side salads and vegetables. McDonald's hopes to have all of their stores acclimated to the new menu by 2020 Reuters reports.
Changes in marketing will also be applied to Happy Meals. McDonald's said they will promote water, juice, and milk in advertisements and promotions, although soda will be available as well.
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The restaurant also reduced the size of the french fry portions and added apples to all Happy Meals in July 2011.
"McDonald's slow march toward healthier meals made a major advance today, but a long road lies ahead for the company," the Center for Science in the Public Interest said in a statement to the public.
McDonald's said in their announcement that this new initiative was in part by working with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.
During the summer there was clamor around the chain's $1 McDouble burger being the most nutritious sandwich for the money.
A caller to popular radio podcast, Freakonomics, made a comment to host Kai Ryssdal about the dollar Mickey D's option that surprised most.
"[It's] the cheapest, most nutritious and bountiful food that has ever existed in human history," he said of the McDouble.
In addition to this claim, a column in the New York Post also praised the sandwich for its cheap price and nutritional benefits.
"For the average poor person, it isn't a great option to take a trip to the farmers market to puzzle over esoteric lefty-foodie codes. (Is sustainable better than organic? What if I have to choose between fair trade and cruelty-free?) Produce may seem cheap to environmentally aware blond moms who spend $300 on their highlights every month, but if your object is to fill your belly, it is hugely expensive per calorie," Kyle Smith wrote in his column while taking shots at "healthier" optioned organic food.
According to the Daily Mail, the burger contains 390 calories, 23 grams of protein, 7% the daily amount of fiber, 20% of the day's calcium, and 19 grams of fat. Supporters of the burger feel it is the most efficient per buck food that has every existed.
"It's a pretty extreme claim," said Jim White, a dietician and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, to Yahoo! Shine concerning the column. "My main problem is it's got 40 percent of the saturated fat for the day," he explained. "I'm worried about heart disease. And I hate to hear a claim like this because affordable foods can still be healthy."
While McDonald's did not create the McDouble with intentions of being "healthy," they are now becoming series about the health of their customers.
Do you think McDonald's is on the right track as far as becoming a healthier fast food restaurant?
