McDonalds and Consumer Protection

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Making existing and potential customers knowledgeable about products/services, consumer awareness creates more informed buying decisions. Consumers cannot purchase products and services if they do not know they exist. That being said, I believe McDonalds does uphold the basic rights of consumers. Currently, McDonalds displays nutrition facts on all of there food items. That was not always the case. Prior to the movie super size me, and the ensuing lawsuits, McDonalds would offer consumers the option to upgrade their already unhealthy meals to a even larger potion known as super size. This ignored consumer rights because the establishment did not warn customers that they would be consuming nearly half of there daily calories just by having fries. Appropriately, McDonalds no longer tries to gear people towards the unhealthy option of super size and displays nutrition information on all of its products. Therefore it is fitting to state that the major rights of consumers have not always been upheld at McDonalds, but they are taking steps in the right directions. At present, they are making phenomenal strides toward a healthier menu. McDonald's started giving customers the option of choosing apple slices and milk as part of the Happy Meal package. They also began packaging 100-calorie versions of Oreos, Wheat Thins and other healthy treats. Also McDonalds is currently working on removing trans fats from their food. More and more McDonalds is taking gradual steps to making the American consumer more responsible for what they put in their own mouths. Soon, it is very likely that people will no longer be able to blame corporations like McDonalds for obesity because there will be healthy options and people will be informed. Moreover, Some believe that large food corporations, like McDonalds, should claim responsibility for obesity in the United States. The arguments for and against the proposition that the food and restaurant industries should be held liable for the rise of obesity in the United States are as follows. In his opinion dismissing the original lawsuit, the judge said that legal consequences should not attach to the consumption of hamburgers and other fast-food fare unless consumers are unaware of the dangers of eating such food. However, Sweet said plaintiffs argue that McDonald's products have been so altered that "their unhealthy attributes are now outside the ken of the average reasonable consumer." For instance, Sweet called Chicken McNuggets a "McFrankenstein creation of various elements not utilized by the home cook.

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