McDonald’s Place in Our Society Written by Paul Montrone ‘22 cDonald’s, the prominent fast-
image of McDonald’s had led the company to suffer a
food giant and staple of American
steady decline in sales in the following years. But, as
culture, has been serving customers
with most forms of mass media, information can be
for over sixty-five years. Through-
misleading.
out those years, McDonald’s has
gained widespread popularity and
after USDA scientist Gerald Zirnstein publicly criticized
The term “pink slime” surfaced around 2012
become a symbol of American influence worldwide,
the practice of treating lean beef trimmings with am-
but its relationship with society has somewhat been
monia gas to kill bacteria, and many lawsuits over LFTB
that of a roller coaster, both good and bad. With over
were filed. Still, the USDA has maintained that these
thirty-seven thousand restaurants found in over one
lawsuits were “without merit”, and so LFTB remains
hundred twenty countries, McDonald’s is certainly one
approved for consumption to this day. Nevertheless,
of the most recognizable fast-food chains in the world.
McDonald’s has not used LFTB for over seven years.
However, despite its ubiquity and popularity to many,
McDonald’s still possesses a notorious reputation of
as the name suggested, but it was not actually used in
serving non-nutritious and cheap food. Even more, the
only McDonald’s products. Once the term “pink slime”
social norm of eating at McDonald’s has become taboo.
emerged, McDonald’s, as well as major supermarkets,
Is this stigma actually deserved?
restaurants, and other fast-food chains, including
Burger King and Taco Bell, all publicly announced to
One of the main reasons for McDonald’s tainted
Not only was “pink slime” not nearly as bad
reputation for causing obesity and making low-quali-
stop using LFTB. Yet, likely because of McDonald’s
ty food stem from the 2004 documentary, “Super Size
ubiquity, this image stuck with only McDonald’s.
Me”, which points blame at McDonald’s for being a
Thankfully, its reputation has improved somewhat over
major contributor to America’s obesity epidemic. The movie was shocking to the general public, who had never before questioned where they were getting their food,
Look after the customers and the business will take care of itself. -Ray Kroc, McDonald’s Business Tycoon
and taught an entire gener-
the past few years, especially as customers began using food delivery services like Uber Eats and DoorDash.
McDonald’s is a cultur-
al staple. According to Gallup, ninety-six percent of Ameri-
ation of millennials that McDonald’s food was poison.
cans eat fast food at least once per year. Very few other
In 2014, another exposé revealed how McDonald’s used
places, including gyms, libraries, or even religious in-
“ammonia-treated lean beef trimmings”, also known
stitutions, are this ubiquitous. With America becoming
as LFTB (lean finely textured beef), but better known as
increasingly divided these days, fast food restaurants
its less disingenuous name “pink slime”, to make their
are one of the few places where truly everyone is wel-
chicken nuggets. These revelations among a plethora
come.
of others branded McDonald’s as an “evil” company
that prioritized making a cheap buck rather than caring
reputation, McDonald’s has made a concerted effort
about the content or quality of its food. This marred
to become a more healthy and transparent fast food
17 Entrepreneur Illustrated | Society
Despite being unfairly branded by its tarnished
