Salt to taste and take ill? … The fast food chains thrive on the patronage of men, women and children always in a hurry. Is such food nutritious? It certainly doesn’t seem to matter at least to the youngsters. Is it safe? That’s a different story. These are some of the concerns that journalist Eric Schlosser addresses in his immensely popular book, ”Fast Food Nation: The Darker Side of the All-American Meal”.
The key theme of Mr. Schlosser’s work is exposing the working conditions, the lack of cleanliness and the safety for the worker. He regrets the power of the food industry and the weakness of the governmental agencies to protect the health of its citizens as well; that the government cannot easily recall a deadly infected beef only goes to show the clout the fast food industry has.
The author also provides a detailed account of how fast food chains like Macdonald’s first began and their consolidation throughout the world. When everything moves at a brisk pace, when everyone is always short of time, the situation is quite understandable, as he has said in his book.
All that he has said in his book will not drive everyone away from these fast food restaurants; he has suggested ways and means to improve the meat processing plants. He has also called for a dialogue on what more can be done.
We would recommend everyone to have a quick read of this book to address a problem that is spreading to every developing country in the world. Today many of our school children live largely on French fries and vegetable puffs; that’s the pity.