Fast Food Nation

According to Schlosser, this is “a mistaken belief that what seems good for an individual will still be good when others do the same” (119). Schlosser uses the term to describe how farmers and ranchers adopted techniques that would ultimately cause the demise of their businesses. In the case of ranchers, injecting cattle with hormones would make them bigger and ideally more profitable; however, this was not the case. Instead, because they produced bigger cattle, the bulk price meant lower yield than natural cattle.

A franchise is a contractual arrangement between a corporation and a person who operates a store that represents the corporation’s brand. Fast food franchises are a common example. Schlosser points out that “the McDonald’s corporation insists that its franchise operators follow directives on food preparation, purchasing, store design, and countless other minute details” (75). The McDonald’s brand is based on consistency—a customer should be able to visit a McDonald’s store anywhere in the world and have the same experience, especially in terms of how the food tastes. Therefore it holds its franchisees to strict, unwavering standards.

A rather benign, almost positive-sounding concept, this is the term McDonald’s uses to describe their strategy to operate stores all over the world. Schlosser calls it “conquest” and devotes a chapter to discussing how the strategy has been put into action.

A cow’s natural diet is grass. However, most cattle raised for food today eat grass for only a few months after their birth. Then they are moved to feedlots, where they are quickly fattened for slaughter on a diet of grains and soy. The advantage of grain-fed beef is the speed of its production. However, beef from cows who are allowed to eat grass is more nutritious. It has less monounsaturated fat and more omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin A, and vitamin E. Grass-fed cows also do not require antibiotics to combat the infections that result from an unnatural diet.

OSHA is the federal government’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Created in 1970, its website defines its purpose as “to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for workers by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance.” As Schlosser notes, OSHA’s mission was undermined by the deregulation trend of the 1980s, allowing unsafe working conditions in poultry plants and other fast food–related workplaces to go largely unchecked.