McDonald’s to focus on quality ingredients in ad campaign

McDonald's Corp., home of the assembly-line burger, will soon roll out an ad campaign that focuses not on speed or cost but on the quality of its ingredients.

The giant fast-food chain teased a simple 15-second spot featuring farmer Frank Martinez peeling and then biting into a potato.

"They're good now," he says just before the scene cuts to a rustic image of the golden arches surrounded by plants and hills. "Just wait until they're McDonald's fries."

Martinez will join another potato grower, a lettuce farmer and a beef rancher in a series of television, print and online advertisements that are scheduled drop on Jan. 2. The spots, as well as longer-form versions, will also be featured on a dedicated website.

Under pressure from increasingly health-conscious diners, competing restaurants promoting more nourishing options and lawmakers wielding new regulations about meal content, fast-food companies are trying to prove that they too can offer natural, garden-fresh fare. 

McDonald’s dumped Sparboe Egg Farms, one of its suppliers, after viewing undercover footage showing animal abuse at the company's Midwest facilities. The chain's pork supplier, Smithfield Foods, has promised to phase out cramped crates for pregnant pigs by 2017.

Other restaurant companies such as Wendy's and Domino's have hopped on the artisan trend, which touts local, small-scale food production.

Burger King's ads are now dominated by visuals of succulent patties and crisp produce. Del Taco is making over some of its restaurants with wall murals stating "Chicken grilled here" and "Cheddar hand-grated here."

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-- Tiffany Hsu

FDA's 1-800-GET-THIN warning follows L.A. County official's complaint

The Food and Drug Administration has ordered 1-800-GET-THIN, the company behind the ubiquitous advertising campaign for Lap-Band weight-loss surgery, to take better steps to warn consumers about risks associated with such procedures.

The move, in an FDA letter to eight California surgical centers and the marketing firm 1-800-GET-THIN, comes one year after Los Angeles County's public health chief, Dr. Jonathan Fielding, asked the FDA to take action.

In a December 2010 letter, Fielding said "advertising of this medical device by 1-800-GET-THIN ... inadequately informs consumers of potential risks."

Since 2009, five patients have died following surgeries at centers affiliated with the ad campaign. A series of lawsuits blamed the deaths on mistakes by the surgery centers and doctors who performed the surgeries.

An attorney for 1-800-GET-THIN filed a complaint against Fielding with the county, contending that the county official had a conflict of interest because he's a former executive and a shareholder of Johnson & Johnson, which competes with Lap-Band manufacturer Allergan Inc. in the gastric-band market.

Fielding said he wasn't aware when he wrote to the FDA that Johnson & Johnson, where he worked in the 1980s, makes gastric bands. Regardless, he said, he would delegate any issues related to weight-loss devices to members of his staff.

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Lap-Band clinic sued over death

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FDA accuses 1-800-GET-THIN centers of deceptive advertising

-- Stuart Pfeifer and W.J. Hennigan
Twitter.com/spfeifer22 and Twitter.com/wjhenn

Photo: Paula Rojeski died Sept. 8 after having Lap-Band weight-loss surgery at an outpatient clinic in West Hills, officials said. She was the fifth person to die in the last two years after having surgeries at clinics that, according to wrongful-death lawsuits, are affiliated with the 1-800-GET-THIN ad campaign. Credit: Marni Rader

Arsenic, lead found in many samples of grape and apple juice

Consumer Reports recently discovered high levels of lead and arsenic -- much of it inorganic and potentially carcinogenic -- in several samples of grape and apple juice that researchers bought in August and September.

The publication’s advocacy arm Consumers Union said Wednesday that the results should compel the Food and Drug Administration to limit the presence of the dangerous elements in juice -- a large part of many children’s diets.

The government agency currently regulates arsenic and lead content only in water. Consumers Union said the limit for juice should be 3 parts per billion for arsenic and 5 parts per billion for lead -- a threshold that only 41% of the group’s test samples met.

The 88 samples of juice tested by Consumer Reports were mostly made from concentrate and packaged in ready-to-drink boxes or bottles. A quarter exceeded the 5 parts per billion lead limit set for bottled water, and 10% surpassed the 10 parts per billion limit for arsenic in drinking water.

Samples with high arsenic levels came from brands including Mott’s, Welch’s and Gerber. High levels of inorganic arsenic can cause irritation in the lungs, vomiting and even death.

Recently, the FDA posted its own results of testing on apple juice samples, including two with as much as 45 parts per billion of arsenic.

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-- Tiffany Hsu

Photo: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times

Consumer Confidential: Smoking prevention, dumb passwords

Here's your waltzing-Matilda Wednesday roundup of consumer news from around the Web:

--Tough economic times mean less smoking prevention. States have cut funding for tobacco prevention programs 12% this year, to the lowest level since 1999, according to a new report from a coalition of public health groups. States will collect $25.6 billion in tobacco taxes and legal settlements from the tobacco industry this fiscal year. But they will spend just 1.8% of that on programs to prevent or stop tobacco use. That's about 12% of the $3.7 billion the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends. Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia are spending less than a quarter of the amount recommended by the CDC. In contrast, tobacco companies spent $10.5 billion to market their products in 2008, the most recent year tracked by the Federal Trade Commission. (Associated Press)

--A word to the wise: Don't be dumb with your passwords. They're generally the one thing standing between the bad guys and your email, network access, bank accounts and all the other personal and corporate resources you use every day. Yet many people still use passwords like these: password, 123456, qwerty, abc123, monkey, 1234567, letmein, 111111, iloveyou, master, sunshine, passw0rd, shadow, 123123, 654321, superman and qazwsx. This list was compiled by security company SplashData from lists of passwords posted online by hackers. What should you use instead? Something that's not to obvious. Also, something that doesn't connect to you personally, such as the name of a spouse or pet. And try to mix in a few numbers to boot. Why make things easier for hackers than they already are? (MoneyWatch)

-- David Lazarus

 

Naked Juice not so natural, lawsuit says

There’s more to Naked Juice than the Monrovia-based juice company promotes in its advertising, according to a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

The lawsuit accuses Naked Juice and parent PepsiCo Inc. of marketing juice products as “all natural” when they actually contain “unnaturally processed and synthetic ingredients.”

Those ingredients include zinc oxide, ascorbic acid, cyanocobalamin and others.

“Consumers were deceived into believing that the unnatural products were in fact natural substances,” but were actually created through "artificial and mechanical means," the lawsuit said.

Andrea Foote, a spokeswoman for Naked Juice, said the company by policy does not comment on pending litigation.

“We stand behind the juices that we craft and we’re committed to full compliance with labeling laws and regulations,” she said.

The lawsuit, filed Monday by Los Angeles consumer Gina Park, seeks certification as a class action. It accuses Naked Juice of violating California’s Unfair Business Practices Act and seeks unspecified monetary damages and an injunction ordering the company to discontinue its marketing practices.

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-- Stuart Pfeifer

Photo: Naked Protein Zone Mango is one product identified in lawsuit against Naked Juice and parent PepsiCo Inc. Credit: nakedjuice.com 

 

Fresno dairy raw milk products recalled by state

California food safety regulators have placed a recall and quarantine order on raw milk products from a Fresno dairy, Organic Pastures.

All milk products except cheese aged a minimum of 60 days must be pulled from retail stores, and consumers are urged to dispose of any remaining products in their homes, said the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

The quarantine order came after state health authorities identified a cluster of five children infected between August and October with the same strain of the bacteria E. coli 0157:H7 in Contra Costa, Kings, Sacramento and San Diego counties. An investigation revealed that the only common factor was the drinking of raw milk from Organic Pastures.

State milk and dairy food inspectors have begun a full check of the Organic Pastures facilities.

Organic Pastures marketing manager Kaleigh Lutz said that the dairy's own testing has been negative for presence of pathogens. The family-owned company is working with Food and Agriculture to resolve the investigation. Organic Pasture's organic beef, raw cheese and organic pastured eggs are not affected by the recall.

Symptoms of E.coli infection include abdominal cramps and diarrhea, which is often bloody, officials said. Most people recover within a week, but some victims need to be hospitalized.

Related:

Disagreement over what's in that glass of raw milk 

Raw milk crackdown went too far, defense attorney says 

Food borne pathogens carry devastating long-term effects

-- Marc Lifsher

Photo: A cow whose milk has not been subject to a California recall is being milked for fans of nonpasteurized milk. Credit: Ted S. Warren / Associated Press

Farmers markets double, local food sales to hit $7 billion, USDA says

Locally produced foods could pull in $7 billion this year, according to a new U.S. Department of Agriculture report.

Whether sold directly to consumers through farmers markets, roadside stands or middlemen such as supermarkets or restaurants, the market for food grown nearby is growing fast. The industry hit $4.8 billion in sales in 2008, according to the report.

Sales made straight from farms to buyers doubled in two decades to $1.2 billion from $650 million in the 1990s, according to the report. Local food sold through intermediary retail channels pulled in $2.7 billion.

The surge may coincide with increasing interest in healthful eating and artisan cooking, trends that have encouraged major companies such as Burger King and Domino’s Pizza to focus on fresh ingredients.

The USDA found that more than 80% of local food producers are small farms making less than $50,000 in gross annual sales. But large farms pulling in $250,000 or more, which represent 5% of the farms with local food offerings, account for in 92% of the associated revenue.

Demand is strongest in metropolitan areas, especially in the Northeast and on the West Coast. The number of farmers markets doubled to 5,274 nationally in 2009 from 2,756 in 1998, according to the report.

The USDA also believes that farms may be hiring more staffers to support their local food efforts.

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Burger King freshens advertising campaign, kicks out the King

-- Tifany Hsu

Photo: The City Market in Kansas City, Mo. Credit: Ed Zurga / Associated Press

Consumer Confidential: Bank Transfer Day, hoodia settlement

Here's your fight-the-power Friday roundup of consumer news from around the Web:

--Have any plans for Saturday? How about sticking it to your bank? Nov. 5 is Bank Transfer Day, organized by Kristen Christian, an art-gallery owner in California who is using Facebook to invite people to shift their funds from for-profit banking institutions to not-for-profit credit unions. As of Thursday, nearly 36,000 Facebook users "like" the concept while more than 73,000 indicated they will be taking matters into their own hands. An estimated 650,000 consumers have joined credit unions nationwide since Sept. 29, according to a statement from the Credit Union National Assn., a credit-union advocacy group. That’s the day Bank of America announced its now-aborted $5 debit-card fee.

--If you've been thinking about taking hoodia to help lose weight, don't bother. The Federal Trade Commission says it's settled a case against two companies which hyped weight-loss products based on hoodia, a substance derived from the Hoodia gordonii cactus of southern Africa. The FTC complaint alleged executives at Nutraceuticals International and Stella Labs falsely marketed hoodia products as effective weight-loss and appetite-suppression supplements, even though there was no scientific evidence of such benefits. David Romero, a principal at both companies, was assessed a $22.5-million fine for his role in the marketing claims. Romeo forfeited to the FTC a Vermont vacation home and $635,000 in business loans as part of his settlement. A $4-million judgment was also assessed against Deborah Vickey, a marketing executive at Nutraceuticals International.

-- David Lazarus

Photo: Frustrated consumers are being encouraged to switch banks on Nov. 5. Credit: Ted S. Warren / Associated Press

 

Lap-Band sales fell 16% in third quarter, Allergan says

Sales of Allergan Inc.’s Lap-Band weight-loss device dropped 16% in the third quarter of the year, the company said.

The Lap-Band is familiar to many Southern California residents because it is marketed extensively by a company called 1-800-GET-THIN on freeway billboards, television, radio and the Internet. The ad company is not affiliated with Allergan.

In a Wednesday conference call with analysts, Allergan Chief Executive David E.I. Pyott blamed the slump in Lap-Band sales on the sluggish economy, high unemployment and steep insurance co-payment requirements. In a statement, the company said it “remains committed to the Lap-Band business, as we strongly believe it represents an important tool in addressing the obesity epidemic.”

Since 2009, five Southern California patients have died after undergoing Lap-Band procedures at clinics affiliated with the 1-800-GET-THIN ads, according to lawsuits, coroner’s records and interviews.

Several lawsuits have been filed against the advertising company, clinics at which the surgeries were performed and the doctors involved in the surgeries. Through their attorneys, the marketing company and surgery centers have denied wrongdoing.

The Lap-Band represents just a small fraction of Allergan’s sales. The Irvine company also markets Botox wrinkle treatment, breast implants, an eyelash lengthening drug and a number of eye medications. Allergan reported $1.31 billion in sales for the third quarter, down slightly from the $1.33 billion that analysts had expected. Its shares fell $3.22, or 3.7%, to $83.74 on Wednesday.

RELATED:

Another patient dies after Lap-Band surgery

Ad firm, two doctors sued over death of Lap-Band patient

Lap-Band clinic directed to improve

-- Stuart Pfeifer

Photo: An advertisement for Lap-Band surgery. Credit: Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times

California farmers call Colorado cantaloupe sickness 'isolated'

Federal regulators' pinpointing of a deadly listeria food poisoning to a single packing shed in Colorado provides evidence that the outbreak was an isolated case of poor sanitation practices, according to California's biggest trade group for fresh fruits, nuts and vegetables.

On Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration linked the bad cantaloupes to Jensen Farms in Holly, Colo. Water had been allowed to accumulate, providing an ideal environment for the bacteria to grow and spread, the FDA said.

"The recent, tragic outbreak of listeria associated exclusively with a single cataloupe packing facility in Colorado should not have happened," said Tom Nassif, chief executive of the Western Growers Assn. in Irvine. "We are confident that California and Arizona cantaloupe producers have the controls and preventive pactices in place to ensure the safety of over 45 million cases of canaloupes, 85% of the total U.S. volume, grown in this region."

Nassif said that Western Grower farmers in the two states follow stringent food-safety rules in all phases of production, harvest and packing.

The FDA investigation revealed that the Colorado packing shed was difficult to clean. Workers there did not "pre-cool" the fruit to remove field heat before it went to cold storage. Bacteria could have grown in the condensation that formed on the melons.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the contaminated cantaloupes made 123 people sick in 26 states, killed 25 people and caused a miscarriage in one pregnant woman.

Related:

Listeria: FDA IDs potential factors in cantaloupe outbreak

Tainted cantaloupes: How long will listeria outbreak continue

Listeria-related romaine lettuce recall unrelated to cantaloupes

-- Marc Lifsher and Eryn Brown

Photo: Late season-cantaloupes being harvested near Firebaugh, Calif. Credit: Gosia Wuzniaka / Associated Press

No fruit in Fruit by the Foot? General Mills sued over snacks [Updated]

There’s not much fruit in General Mills snacks such as Fruit Roll-Ups, Fruit by the Foot and Fruit Gushers, alleges a new suit against the giant food company.

Instead, the candies are stuffed with sugars, artificial additives and dyes, according to a complaint filed Friday in federal court in California. The nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest, filing on behalf of Northern California mother Annie Lam, claims that the products give a misleading impression of being healthy by professing to be low in calories, fat and gluten.

The Washington, D.C. organization said that labels calling the snacks “naturally flavored” or “made with real fruit” violate laws governing deceptive advertising and fraudulent business practices.

While Strawberry Fruit Roll-Ups contain no strawberries, according to the group, the complaint alleges that the product’s contents include pears from concentrate, corn syrup and other components such as acetylated monoglycerides, malic acid and a dye called Red 40.

[Updated 10:05 a.m.: Minnesota-based General Mills said it still had not been served with the suit and would not comment on the claims.

"We stand behind our products — and we stand behind the accuracy of the labeling of those products," the company said in a statement.]

“General Mills is basically dressing up a very cheap candy as if it were fruit and charging a premium for it,” said Steve Gardner, litigation director for the science center. “It’s an elaborate hoax on parents who are trying to do right by their kids.”

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-- Tiffany Hsu

Photo credit: General Mills