¶ … consumer who has read Fast Food Nation, I personally believe that I can make an informed choice to NOT eat fast food burgers at McDonald's. However, even as someone who actively solicits information about the food I eat, it can be difficult to know what is good to buy. First of all, in regards to meat, there are many conflicting studies about its health, some proclaiming the superiority of a high-protein, low-fat diet, the others stating that a vegetarian diet is superior. Secondly, many products purport to be healthy because the burgers are said to be organic, or are from grass-fed cows, or because they are 'prime' and 'choice.' These health claims may mean little to consumers. A consumer must be very vigilant about dietary information in today's America. Furthermore, he or she must also continually weigh the merits of one study over others when making decisions.
The average fast food consumer lacks a source of clear information about his or her decisions. Some information does exist about the true 'cost' of a fast food meal -- the terrible damage...
There has also been a great deal of publicity promoting the idea that fast food burgers are very unhealthy. It is clearly healthier to spend more on a burger made from leaner, sustainably-raised beef, or to eat a piece of wild caught salmon than to eat a low-cost Big Mac. Adam Smith might say that this is part of the marketplace's determination -- consumers must make a decision of 'trade-offs' between what they spend on food and their other needs and wants, and for many middle and low-income consumers, eating fast food is the way that they economize on both time and money.
However, even on a personal level, the 'cost' of a fast food meal is very great, simply from a standpoint of consumer health. Consumers of fast food frequently have poorer health as a consequence of eating high fat food with low nutritional density. But, at the point of purchase, these individuals do not take into consideration the full costs…
