book review: fast food nation

"The history of the twentieth century was dominated by the struggle against totalitarian systems of state power. The twenty-first will no doubt be marked by a struggle to curtail excessive corporate power."

- Eric Schlosser, Fast Food Nation

I've heard about this book for a few years and had wanted to read it but had always been too busy with school. This was the first "pleasure reading" for a while, although much of what I read turned out to be highly unpleasurable.

Fast Food Nation is a report on the practices and outcomes of the fast food industry. Schlosser, a journalist, produces a description of that covers the meatpacking industry, french fries producers, potato farmers, cattle herders, (illegal) immigrant workers, and food product designers. It is a fascinating study that provides the reader with some interesting historical context, such as the birth of McDonald's and its connection to the Walt Disney company, the political connections and lobbying pressures, and of course, the frightening findings about what goes into a burger.

I was fascinated by a few points in the book. One of it was about the science behind flavoring, and how most of the things we consume, including ones that are labelled "natural flavoring", are all part of a manufacturing process that's far from natural. He points that these are often just semantics that can mislead consumers into thinking that they're eating something healthier, when in fact stuff that goes into "natural flavoring" may in fact be worse than artificial flavors.

I was also alarmed (even though I was aware of this) at how much fast food companies and other corporations such as soda companies are penetrating into schools just so they can sell and market their products to a captive and vulnerable audience. This practice needs to be stopped, especially since the ground meat sold to school cafeterias are held to less standards than those sold to fast food restaurants.

Despite the title, Fast Food Nation wasn't really that much about the fast food industry. Although he does pick on McDonald's a lot - perhaps because they are the most symbolic of them all - the book really focuses more on all the other things that are connected to the fast food industry. He avoids the simple argument that "burgers are fattening" and traces it to how the cattle were raised, slaughtered and processed, making his argument a lot more convincing and a lot less "obvious" than some of the arguments others have made (e.g. Super Size This).

One thing that baffled me a little was his nostalgic tone in various parts of the book, referring to some "good ole days". At one point he seems to lament how the high school students in Colorado (I think) were no longer into cowboys and more into pop cultural phenomenon. I don't understand the point of the lament, as these cultures change and it's neither good nor bad most of the time. It's also possible to critique that he overlooks other parts of the fast food industry by focusing mostly on McDonald's (he mentions other companies but I get the impression that McD was the main target), but perhaps he can write about those other ones later. It would make the book too difficult for most readers if it was that comprehensive.

Personally, I've given up most fast foods. Certainly given up McD and I might go to one of the other chains once a month, if that. I'm working to eliminate it completely from my diet. I encourage everyone, especially parents, to read this novel. Whether you decide to go back to these franchises, or leave, this book does provide good information and things that you might never have known.

They turned this into a movie in 2006, which was not nearly as good.