Update on my book: Fast Food Nation

Here is an update on what I’ve read so far. 

In my last blog, I wrote about chapters 1 and chapter 2, so today I will introduce chapters 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. There are 10 chapters in total so I’ll update you on the last chapters 9 and 10 later!

Chapter 3 “Behind The Counter”: In this chapter, Schlosser considers the workforce that keeps the fast-food industry running. This workforce was predominantly teens, so it answers these questions; how did teens engage the fast-food industry? what are their working conditions; does it interfere with schoolwork; how do teens spend their money? And would Americans be interested in spending more money on this food, which would become more expensive to cover the increased wages/benefits of the fast-food workforce?

As an example, Schlosser shows teens' behavior in Colorado… 

Teens don’t think about unions because they frequently quit their jobs, and spend their money on wasteful items. 

But, why Colorado?

Colorado Springs has a rich resource due to its history and present economic situation. However, it is not representative of the entire fast-food nation. 

Chapter 4 “Success”: In this chapter, the author contrasts old franchisees and new franchisees. 

The old days were the golden days of franchising when an average guy could become a millionaire—and so could his secretary. However, in the 1990s, Schlosser seemed much more suspicious that franchisees can get rich quickly. Part of the problem is unfair business practices, which limit the rights and freedoms of franchisees. Franchisees get angry when new franchises move close by; while, franchisors do not care if the new franchise draws business away from the old franchise because its royalties are based on total sales. 

Who is Dave Feamster? 

Feamster now owns five Little Caesars restaurants, grossing about $2.5 million a year. Though Feamster is certainly not as rich as the restaurant owners of the 1960s and 1970s, he does very well.

Chapter 5 “Why the Fries Taste Good”: In this chapter, Schlosser is concerned with the food, particularly the french fry. How is the potato manufactured and what contributes to its addicting flavor? The earlier chapters talked mainly about the biographical story of the fast-food founders = the “good old days”. But this section titled “Meat and Potatoes,” will discuss much of the behind-the-scenes work of how what we eat gets produced. 

What I found interesting is that …

The flavor is a “highly secretive” operation involving chemistry, biology, psychology, and physiology, which makes the fast-food industry possible. We, humans, buy fast food because of its taste, especially McDonald's fries! 

Chapter 6 “On the Range”: Described the relationship between chicken processors and chicken growers. Chicken growers make little money and usually leave the business after three years. Schlosser returns to the cattle industry for a moment to consider similar difficulties in raising cattle. Ranchers grow larger cattle with hormones but sell fewer cattle in a declining market, cannot sell their cattle to the European Union because the EU has outlawed the bovine growth hormone, and face intimidation from the large meatpacking companies. Specifically in Colorado, ranchers face growing land prices and declining rancher culture. 

Suicide among ranchers?!

In the final section of the chapter, Schlosser tells us that Hank has taken his life. Suicide among ranchers is higher than the national average as pressures continue to fill their lives. 

Hank, the rancher who begins and ends this chapter, is intended to illustrate how such an expansive industry can devastate a single life. 

I recommend watching this video if you want to know the history of fast food! It’s about 7 minutes!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc4925AvhFY

Chapter 7 “Cogs in the Great Machine”: This chapter investigates the large-scale industrialization of meatpacking and shows its effects on workers, towns, and cities. The town introduced is called Greeley in Colorado; a small meatpacking town and a home to a migrant industrial workforce. This town is important because it shows how the Iowa Beef Packers (IBP) revolution changed the lives of those employed by the beef industry.  

Today, ConAgra is the biggest meatpacker in the world. And it is the largest foodservice supplier in North America. The meatpacking industry, which used to provide a middle-class lifestyle for employees, has many immigrants who are easy to control. 

Chapter 8 “The Most Dangerous Job”: This chapter opens with a tour of a slaughterhouse “somewhere in the High Plains.” Schlosser discusses the process that turns live cattle into what we see in the grocery store. Meatpacking has become the most dangerous job in America because most of the work in a slaughterhouse is done by hand and not by machines. You can get injuries from various machines and knives, poor working conditions, and others. For women, they face added threat of sexual harassment. 

Schlosser places some blame on the Reagan administration and also interviews employees that had been injured.

This podcast I found called “Fast Food Research McDonalds Review” talks about how fast food affects the human body. They experimented with a supersize person who ate McDonald's for a whole month and found terrifying side effects. Also, there’s more chance of you getting diabetes. 

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That’s it for my summary. See you on the next blog.