Is fast-food nation becoming fresh food nation?
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
Amid all the hoopla about banning Happy Meals and denying permits for fast-food restaurants in poor neighborhoods, one food industry research company says Americans are actually ordering more healthful options all on their own.
The N.P.D. group says people in the United States ordered 410 million more grilled, roasted or broiled chicken sandwiches during the 12 months that ended Aug. 30 than they did during a similar 12-month period 10 years earlier. By comparison, we ordered 477 million fewer servings of fried chicken.
Orders of fish tell a similar story: The fried variety was down about 187 million compared with a decade ago, but orders of the broiled, baked, grilled and raw versions were up.
Orders of French fries were down 1.6 billion compared with calendar year 2001, and carbonated soft drink orders were down 2.8 billion.
So why are we still getting fatter?
-- Sharon Bernstein