...Are Lawsuits Effective? Upon reading the article “Lawsuits against Fast-Food Restaurants Are an Effective Way to Combat Obesity” by John H. Banzhaf III, I realized that the author explains that people with obesity issues tend to blame the fast food industry rather than blaming themselves. The author also explains that the lawsuits against fast food are happening because people are blaming the industry for their own weight issues. He also discusses how legal action should be taken towards certain issues with advertising as well. I feel as though individuals that have issues with their weight need to focus on fixing their own problem rather than wasting time seeking help from everyone else. Taking a fast food company to court because a person is overweight is not exactly an effective way to solve their issue. At the same time, I do believe that there should be some laws that limit the amount of fat and cholesterol in some foods. Nutritional information should be readily available to those who seek it. Not until recently did we notice that more fast food restaurants are displaying their nutritional facts in store as well as online. We are seeing more and more restaurants attempting to offer healthier foods in an effort to reduce the obesity problem in America. I personally feel that this small effort from restaurants will make a big difference with the obesity problems we have right now. People just need to take advantage of these accommodations. The biggest reason...
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...responsible for their daughter’s obesity. One of the girls said that a “McMuffin for breakfast and a Big Mac meal for dinner was her regular diet.” (Wald, 2003) While the other one would eat Happy Meals three to four times a week. When this case went in front of the court, Judge Robert W. Sweet stated this “opinion is guided by the principle that legal consequences should not attach to the consumption of hamburgers and other fast food fare unless consumers are unaware of the dangers of eating such food.” (McLean, 2003) He felt that if consumers knew the potential risks of eating McDonald’s, they wouldn’t be able to blame McDonald’s when they supersize their meals. There were many counts that were brought up in the lawsuit: Counts I and II stating that the value meal was not actually a value, therefore they were deceiving their customers; Count III stated that they were negligent because their food products were “high in cholesterol, fat, salt and sugar when studies show that such foods cause obesity and detrimental health effects”; (McLean, 2003) Count IV stated that McDonald’s failed to warn their customers that their food products could cause health problems and cause individuals to become obese; and Count V stated that McDonald’s failed to market their food products as addictive, both physically and psychologically. This case was dismissed in court in 2003. Judge Sweet called these types of lawsuits “McLawsuits” and felt these lawsuits would “likely be cited for years...
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...GRADUATE CAMPUS ------------------------------------------------- Obesity Lawsuits Against the Fast Food Industry Final Paper August 2, 2013 Breanna Neal I. Introduction Should you be able to sue a restaurant such as McDonald’s for your obesity? Well, it depends who you ask. The customers of such fast-food companies believe their health problems were caused by overeating their addictive fatty foods. Lawmakers are on the other end of the spectrum attempting to ban such litigation because they believe that it is the consumer’s responsibility to not overeat. Today we live in a society where many do not want to take responsibility for their own actions. Everyone wants to jump on the band wagon and sue a business. I decided to take a look at the obesity lawsuits over the years against fast-food companies in order to find out what protection they have from such disgruntled customers. There are many different positions on the topic and various legal cases that went to court. In this research paper I am going to expand on my findings of this controversial topic. First, I will explain the history of obesity law suites and how the first one led many others to sue. Next, I will cite, describe, and analyze various obesity law suits against fast-food companies. Lastly, I will express my opinion on the topic and conclude the paper with an outlook on future obesity lawsuits. II. History of Obesity Litigation with Fast-Food Companies The fast-food industry has been around...
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...Since 2001, McDonalds and many other fast food restaurants have had to defend themselves against lawsuits alleging that their food has been the sole contributing factor for a customer’s obesity or obesity related medical conditions. The lawsuits began with several cases represented by Samuel Hirsh. The first, which was later dropped, was concerning a customer, Caesar Barber, who was a maintenance worker claiming to have become obese from eating at McDonalds and other fast food chain restaurants. While that case was later dropped, Hirsh was back in court with the same allegations except this time he was representing two teenagers: Ashley Pelman and Jazlyn Bradley. The teens claimed to have eaten fast food from McDonalds regularly because they believed the food was a healthy choice. They eventually become obese and developed obesity related diseases, including diabetes, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure and elevated cholesterol intake. The complaint alleged that McDonalds should have known that is food would cause obesity and related medical conditions in American children and that it deceived customers by offering unreasonably unsafe food items, engaging in deceptive marketing, sales and advertising and failing to warn consumers about the dangers of its products. Additionally, since Pelman and Bradley were minors, Hirsh claimed that they could not be accountable for their food choices. The outcome, however, was not what the plaintiffs expected. The plaintiffs could...
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...Obesity: Who is at Fault? Name University of International Business and Economics Obesity: Who is at Fault? It is no secret that an increasing amount of Americans are gaining weight and much of this blame is put on fast food establishments such as McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King, and Krystal’s, to name a few. According to Warren Belasco and Philip Scranton (2002), “The increasing consumption of convenience foods is an international trend influenced by changing lifestyles” (p. 3) From a superficial perspective, this doesn’t seem like much of a problem. However, Robert Jeffery and Simone French (1998), authors of the article Epidemic Obesity in the United States: Are Fast Food and Television Viewing Contributing? assert that “Obesity is an important public health problem that, in recent years, has reached epidemic proportions” (p. 277). In fact, some are calling the problem the “obesity epidemic.” Several lawsuits against fast food establishments have been filed by those who are overweight. It’s a serious problem, one that cannot be ignored. Before anyone assumes that it’s just the United States, think again. With the increasing number of fast food establishments in countries other than the United States, such as China, Japan, and Brazil, so are obesity rates. The obesity epidemic can no longer be ignored and must be solved. While the problem is known, the source of it is not and must be traced. What exactly is the source of obesity? Many people believe it to be fast food...
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...Blaming Fast Food Restaurants for Obesity Let’s face it; everyone loves a Whopper every now and then. Yet we are all aware that one too many can bring on dangerous and life-threatening results. Obesity is a growing problem in the United States and more and more children are being affected. But do uneducated families have the right to put the blame on fast food restaurants for their health issues they could have easily prevented? I believe that we are taking it too far by blaming fast food restaurants for obesity and that it is an individual’s responsibility to take the blame. The first fast food restaurants developed in America in the 1920’s and the United States has grown to have the largest fast food industry in the world. Currently one third of American children are obese or at risk of becoming obese and 67% of Americans are obese. McDonald’s was invented in the 1940’s and has since acquired millions of lawsuits for their extremely unhealthy food. Burger King soon followed in the 50’s and has also received its fair share of lawsuits. Some believe that suing consistently is acceptable because they are using their freedom of using the court system but many believe that it is a frivolous waste of time. Because fast food has become increasingly available, many Americans use the opportunity to eat their food whenever they want it and at a low cost. Yet when the visits are far too often they look for someone else to blame for their mistakes. Take Gregory Rhymes...
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...Childhood Obesity Brian K. Lohman University of Phoenix While parents think that it is not their fault, too many children are effective by this problem. There are more than two million children in the United States that deal with obesity. Parents who have obese children do not want to take the responsibility themselves. There are lawsuits in action on fast food restaurants, school systems, and the price of food. Parents need to know that the issue starts and stops at home. In August 2003, parents of two obese females sued McDonald’s for their children health issue. McDonald’s won that lawsuit. There was not enough evidence to prove McDonald’s was liable for their condition. It is a known fact that fast too much food is not good for anyone’s health. Fast food chains have placed apples and other fruit to their menus to ensure that people have healthier options to choose from. The American school systems have been under close watch by the federal government. There have been many changes in the school lunch program. Lunch rooms throughout the United States have taken sugar snacks and drinks out of vending machines. There have been findings that children who do not participate in after school activities are among the highest in obesity. With prices of food on the rise, it is much cheaper to buy junk food and fast food over buying food from a market. The convenience of not having to prepare the food and just get it to go is the ...
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...Nick Desai 22 November 2011 Obesity: Is it a McProblem? Everyone eats fast food. It is a meal that is usually fast, cheap, and convenient. However, eating fast food also contributes to one of the biggest problems facing Americans today, obesity. It is one of the fastest growing concerns and a major contributor to this problem is the consumption of fast food. While governments and communities are trying to address the problem through legislation, nothing will change until parents take a more active role in promoting the health of their children, therefore, not all the blame for American obesity is on fast food consumption. Obesity is one of the fastest growing health concerns in the U.S. In America, only one out of the fifty states has a B.M.I under twenty-five, the number that is considered to be the benchmark for determining overweightness (BMI Index by State). The number of obese children and adults has tripled and doubled, respectively since 1980 (Obesity at a Glance). “Research from a national health survey shows that an astonishing sixty-five percent of American adults are either overweight or obese” (Loonin 14). Obesity has had a profound impact on the youth population of the world, as the percentage of overweight adolescents and children has risen over twelve percent since 1970*. If this trend is to continue, it is even projected that by the year 2030, one half of the American population will be overweight (Half of Americans to be Obese by 2030). As...
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...trends have become increasingly popular. Moreover, many scientific studies and findings have surfaced and successfully confirmed that children’s increasing intake of fast food, which often contains high sodium content, sugars, saturated fats, and calories, for a long period of time would lead to childhood obesity. Moreover, obese children have a much higher risk of many health problems such as coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and certain cancers--all of which are fatal if left untreated. In 2010, a mother from California sued McDonald’s over the company’s marketing practice of Happy Meal. The mother claimed that McDonald’s used alluring toys to lure kids into Happy Meal. This lawsuit, which might be viewed by many as senseless and absurd, was one of McDonald’s biggest cases. In order to come out of the lawsuit ahead, this largest fast food chain had to undergo some major organizational changes. In this paper, we would like to use the knowledge learned in the class to analyze the event (the lawsuit) and its effects on McDonald’s. The paper will have four main parts. In the first part, we provide a brief introduction of the company, McDonald’s, and the lawsuit. In the second part, we will use the concepts learned in class to analyze Happy Meal’s influencing strategies and the organizational changes during and after the suit. We believe that Happy Meal’s influencing strategies deserve our attention as they were the main causes of the crisis. Since its Happy...
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...strengths. 5. Partnership with best brands. McDonald’s offers only most popular brands in its restaurants, such as: Coca Cola, Dannon Yogurt, Heinz ketchup and others. 6. More than 80% of restaurants are owned by independent franchisees. Therefore, McDonald’s can focus more on perfecting its serving system and marketing campaigns. 7. Children targeting. The business successfully targets very young children through offering playgrounds, toys with its meals and advertisements. Weaknesses 1. Negative publicity. McDonald’s is heavily criticized for offering unhealthy food to its customers, stimulating obesity and strong marketing focus on very young children. 2. Unhealthy food menu. Although McDonald’s tries to introduce healthier choices in its menu, the menu is largely formed of unhealthy meals and drinks. Such menu offering prompts protests by organizations that fight obesity and hence, decreases McDonald’s popularity. 3. Mac Job and high employee turnover. Mac Job is a low paid and a low skilled job, which is often seen negatively by its...
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...case Pelman v. McDonald’s and the issues involved. Part two will cover whether MacDonald’s and other fast-food restaurants should be judged negligent for selling dangerous products, failing to warn consumers of the dangers of a high-fat diet, and deceptive advertising. In august 2002 the most publicized lawsuit at the time, Pelman v. McDonald’s, was a class-action lawsuit against the McDonald’s Corporation. This lawsuit was brought on behalf of children who consumed McDonald’s products and allegedly became obese or overweight and developed diabetes, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol intake, and other health effects as a result. The group was seeking compensation for obesity related health problems, improved nutritional labeling of McDonald’s products, and funding for a program to educate consumers about the dangers of fast food. The plaintiffs claimed that McDonald’s had engaged in deceptive advertising, sales, and promotion; produced food that was unreasonably unsafe and failed to warn consumers of the dangers of their products. The complaint also alleged that McDonald’s knew or should have known that their actions would lead to obesity and its associated health risk in millions of American children (Mello, Rimm,...
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...The most serious dietary issue affecting today’s American children is obesity – the result of eating more food than is needed. Childhood obesity in the United States has doubled in the last ten years (Cohen). Overweight rates are increasing day by day a major cause of which is the advertising and marketing by fast food companies on television in schools. Today television advertising is filled with fast food i.e. soft drinks, burgers, pizzas etc. Fast food marketers have long known that children make attractive customers but attention to this group and to younger and younger members within it is increasing sharply. The pressure of advertising messages by the fast food companies reaches even the youngest child. 44% of the advertisements on the Saturday morning television are for foods with limited nutritional value. McDonalds, burger king and pizza hut account for 11% of these advertisements. (Cohen) To reach young children advertisers use a variety of methods, advertising on television and the Internet is just one of them. The amount of money spent on marketing directed to children and their parents rose from $6.9 billion in 1992 to $12.7 billion in 1997 (Nestle 179). Advertising must be controlled if we want to control the increasing overweight rates in the nation. Advertising is not only limited to television or the Internet its goes beyond them. Food companies such as McDonalds put their logos, symbols on toys games and other supplies. They also distribute coupons. McDonalds...
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...Grantham University Abstract Should businesses be held liable for negative effects of their products on the very customer who chooses to buy it? In Pelman vs. McDonalds is a cause that was brought on behalf of a group of young people who claim that McDonald’s food is responsible for their obesity and ill health. The courts dismissed the case, but it brings up many correlations with the lawsuits against the tobacco industry and the questions of responsibility of marketers. Introduction In August of 2002 a lawsuit against the McDonalds Corporation was brought forward on behalf of a group of overweight children. The lawsuit alleged that McDonald’s food was responsible for their obesity and ill health. The plaintiffs allege that McDonalds falsely claimed to have healthier options, all the while pushing the upsizing of their more well-known items. (Mello, Rimm, & Studdert, 2015). Should a company be responsible to advise the consumers of the possible negative effects of their products? Should companies who fail to provide the facts to their customers be held legally responsible for the outcome? McDonalds In Pelman vs. McDonalds the complainants had some uphill battles with proving their obesity and ill-health were directly related to McDonald’s food. In the complaint it was alleged that McDonalds was negligent by failing to warn customers of the side effects of their products. The complaint also states that McDonalds fraudulently represented they offered healthier food options...
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...infant. However, by the time a child reaches the age of 3 or 4, most know what a McDonald’s chicken nugget and French fries are. A few years ago, we could have included school lunches in this unhealthy choice category. Government and U.S. Department of Agriculture are still working vigorously to bring school lunches to a healthier standard. On top of working with schools to incorporate healthy choices and nutrition, contracting with Drive-In Don’s fast food restaurant who sells the most delicious burgers in town at the most affordable price, is not a smart choice. However, it doesn’t constitute a crime either. If parents and school officials educate our children on healthy choices, the occasional burger from Don’s isn’t going to create obesity. As everyone has heard their own physician say, “Moderation, Moderation, Moderation.” Making bad choices more than making healthy choices, is what...
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...Prior to the movie super size me, and the ensuing lawsuits, McDonalds would offer consumers the option to upgrade their already unhealthy meals to a even larger potion known as super size. This ignored consumer rights because the establishment did not warn customers that they would be consuming nearly half of there daily calories just by having fries. Appropriately, McDonalds no longer tries to gear people towards the unhealthy option of super size and displays nutrition information on all of its products. Therefore it is fitting to state that the major rights of consumers have not always been upheld at McDonalds, but they are taking steps in the right directions. At present, they are making phenomenal strides toward a healthier menu. McDonald's started giving customers the option of choosing apple slices and milk as part of the Happy Meal package. They also began packaging 100-calorie versions of Oreos, Wheat Thins and other healthy treats. Also McDonalds is currently working on removing trans fats from their food. More and more McDonalds is taking gradual steps to making the American consumer more responsible for what they put in their own mouths. Soon, it is very likely that people will no longer be able to blame corporations like McDonalds for obesity because there will be healthy options and people will be informed. Moreover, Some believe that large food corporations, like McDonalds, should claim responsibility for obesity in the United States. The arguments for...
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