Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Preface
3. Fast Food
3.1. Health
3.2. Environmental Pollution
4. Publicityv
4.1 Child Influence
5. The Third World
5.1.Rain Forest Destruction
6. Employees' Exploitation
7. Animal Husbandryv
8. Stories
9. Conclusion
List of Literature
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
One Small Bite for Man, One Giant Problem for Mankind 1
~McDonalds~
Maturaarbeit
Subject: English Delivery Date:
1. Introduction
Before I start writing about McDonald`s, I would like to say that my Maturaarbeit will be very critical. I did that intentionally because in my eyes it's important that not just the positive aspects are public but also the negative ones (which are - my opinion - much more important and which beat the positive points).
And I really have to say that my arguments aren't ONLY against McDonald's. I mean, also some small restaurants which aren't any Fast Food companies have the same conditions, but since McDonald's is such a famous Fast Food company and almost everyone knows it, my Maturaarbeit will be specific on McDonald's.
Myself, I haven't been eating at a McDonald's restaurant (and of course also all the other Fast Food companies) since spring 1999. At this time, a friend of mine told me what's wrong with McDonald's. And from this moment, I boycotted McDonald's, Burger King and every other Fast Food company. Here I have to say, that my Maturaarbeit is only about McDonald's, but it will be the same (more or less) for Burger King and all the others, too.
2. Preface
Every third hour a McDonald's opens somewhere2. From Peking to Arbon: More than 6 billions people get their food at a McDonald's and that's even more as if every habitant on earth gets one hamburger in a year.
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And if every hamburger, that has been sold in the McDonald's history, had been stacked, this "mountain" would be about 8000 times higher than the highest pyramid on earth, called Cheops-Pyramid4.
In 1970, the French population needed one hour to eat their lunch. And nowadays, it's approximately 27 minutes, and most of them are standing while they're eating. But the number of bistros were reduced from 200'000 (1960) to 20'000 (2000)5.
Every person in this world - except a few - have seen a McDonald's restaurant somewhere, or at least know the Golden Arch (that's the big, yellow M, which is the sign for McDonalds.).
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And in my eyes, it's important not just to consume somewhere, but also to look behind the curtain. Particularly nowadays, where almost all people don't think farther and just want to consume. So, I'll have a insight into the biggest Fast Food Company that has ever existed on the world.
A synonym for this kind of Fast Food is also called "Finger Food"7. It's called like that because you don't need any cutlery for eating it. As everybody knows, the French fries, the chicken nuggets, the hamburgers are all just eaten with hands. So the way of eating is still the same as a lot of years ago. I don't want to say that this is so bad, but today the production for such a meal is much bigger than ever, but the way to nourish is still the same native way. McDonald's is an important company for our economy, that's right. I'll show an example. In 1965, McDonald's became a corporation. And if someone had bought 100 shares at that year (1 share = 300$), he would have been a millionaire in 1993. The price of one share rose from 225$ to 300$ the first day8. Although it's great that McDonald's supports our economy (which is very important), there are still so many unknown shadows behind this Fast Food Company. So I think I am at a point to begin with my Maturaarbeit about "What's wrong with McDonald's".
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3. Fast Food
3.1 Health
Fast Food can't replace a normal meal. The duration of the saturation continues only briefly in contrast to a balanced meal. It isn't that unhealthy, but daily consumption may have devastating consequences. Important carbohydrate are hardly represented and roughage still less10. I don't have to mention that many other important pieces are missing. For example vitamin A and C, calcium, fol acid etc. But the biggest problem is the fat. In every hamburger is 53% fat11. This fat can't simply be balanced and therefore one becomes fast thick by this nourishment. The risk to get a heart condition or circulatory disorders increase again with overweight. Fast Food contributes also to the fact that diseases, which we actually already regard as defeated arise again. Many older and above all poorer people suffer for example from scurvy, since they can take simply only cheap food to itself, and to this also belongs Fast Food. McDonald`s takes the liberty even still the insolence, and writes in the advertisement: "McDonald's food is not only versatile, but also healthy, adequately and simple to nourish yourself12." Fast Food doesn't thus only have advantages but also considerable disadvantages in nutrition science. But no one can't imagine nowadays a life without any Fast Food. And I know, if someone has to work the whole day and has just a little break, it might be pleasant to stop at a McDonald's and save time by the way. But if this happens every day, it can have some horrible effects as I said above.
3.2. Environmental pollution
If you have a look at the pollution, you may notice that you see a lot of rubbish with the yellow M on it. Even if you don't look just around a McDonalds, also at a lot of other places. An example, in Arbon we've got a McDrive, and fortunately, this McDonald's stands a bit outside of our town. But anyway, some days ago, I went to the lake, and I saw there, between some swans and ducks, a lot of McDonald's rubbish. Not just one or two papers, no, not at all! It was really ugly and I felt very angry. Doesn't McDonalds see that they produce too much rubbish?
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Annually, tons of waste products made by McDonald`s are registered. Some examples: Each hamburger is packed specially with too much paper. Why so much packing? Why can't they reduce that? They certainly could. But they have a strict statement: All products, without any exception, must go over the sales counter in original McDonald`s packing, independently of whether the products are outside fed or in the restaurant. Once, a priest went to some McDonald's and wanted to have his burger unpacked. Every time he spoke with the managing director and they said all the same: it's not possibly to give out the hamburger without any packing. The priest went to the McDonald's at the rush hour and with his action, he always released some discussion about the rubbish14.
The fact that these packings are an enormous load for our environment is correct for sure. Many cities implemented this strong and fast environmental impact and raise the taxes to have a control on the one-way waste15.
Since 1988 McDonald`s uses FCKW free foamed packing16. In addition more than half of all McDonald`s in the whole world are equipped with a McDrive17, which produces additional burdening for the environment, since almost every human takes the car to drive to the close situated McDonald`s to get his food without doing too much.
A good Example is the McDonald`s in Arbon, which opened in October 2000. We all very strongly notice more traffic around the McDonald's.
4. Publicity
4.1 Child Influence
For the advertisement McDonald`s uses the clown Ronald McDonald. This "symbol" smiles from all advertising pillars and is hardly to be overlooked. Above all, it addresses children with its dear appearance, and influences them accordingly. In America Ronald is more famous than Santa Claus18 and the Christian cross19. Ronald visits also children's-hospitals and kindergartens. This strategy is obvious. The children, that are for example in the hospital, have pain. And if Ronald comes then and visits a person and gives her/him any gifts such as a tag etc., then this person always keeps the golden arch in good memory.
Even in schools McDonald's advertise. If the young people come into the obligatory road safety training, then at the conclusion as reward they get coupons for McDonalds (not in every country!)20.
That above all children are influenced by the child-friendly advertisements is because humans, who already ate as children at McDonald`s, will eat also later at McDonald`s. Except they think about this company and don't eat there, because it tastes so good, but they actually think about the consequences and about the company. And I hope that in the course of the years more and more people think deeper about all these Fast Food companies and refuse or boycott them.
Many children feel save with McDonald`s. If parents don't spend much time with their children, or if they have to work during the day (particularly in the lower classes), the children spend automatically their free-time at McDonald`s. This sounds actually completely okay, but the appearance is deceptive. What are the children doing at McDonald`s? That children can't resist any temptation is clear. And thus it is obvious that the children stuff themselves in the real sense of the word.
Another incentive is the so called ,,Happy Meal", in which a toy can be found (between French fries, hamburger and drink). All this is again packed in an enormous wrapping.
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The kids may spend there a lot of time, not just for eating, also for having "fun" which is very liked. They can celebrate their Birthdays at McDonald's. These parties have a strict expiry for the staff. First 15min preparation, then 10min greeting, 5min to note the order, 10min to fetch the order, then 15min eat with fun, 10min to play and for a store-tour and at last some minutes to say good bye22. Most kids who spend their anniversary at McDonald's don't go to school yet. And even if they aren't old enough to see "what's wrong", McDonald's shows them how to consume in such a Fast Food company. The staff doesn't hesitate to explain them that Fast Food is health and that they may come and play every time. Ronald lures the in the future customer with an imagination of a health world and with the kids' hope to get any presents. At the end, the children really get bottles full with toys. And so McDonald's stays always in good memories of the kids. At home they are so lucky that they want to go to McDonald's as soon as possible again. With this strategy more and more younger children with their parents (or alone) are consumers at McDonald's.
Ronald McDonald also visits a lot of kindergarten. I don't know in which countries it's like that, but my example refers on Germany. Some years ago, when McDonald's wasn't very known yet, they tried to make as much promotion as possible. Ronald went to hospitals, kindergartens, schools, and even political events. In 1988, kindergarten-kids' parents wrote to McDonald's and to the press, when they heard about this kind of advertise. They argued with the statement, that the adults were already in contact in an unbearable way with promotion everyday, so the kids don't need all this stuff too. All above not in this age. And this is an abuse of the children for economic purposes. Ronald just wants their hearts23.
But there are also some good institutions which have to be supported. One example is Geneva. There exist a very famous hospital for children who suffer from cancer. And this hospital is known in whole Europe, so there are a lot of children who don't live that close to Geneva. For this reason, McDonald's had build a house next to the hospital where the parents of these children can stay during the night. And I think institutions like this have to be supported.
5. The Third World
Although McDonald's has existed in third world countries for some years, there exist McDonald's restaurants in countries like Costa Rica, San Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, the Philippines etc. And this step of so called ,,civilisation" is the false one, in my eyes. Because with every McDonald's which is in a third world country they loose a piece of their own culture. I mean, it's absolutely ok that the people who live there may have a McDonald's too (and I would say they are also proud to have or even see such a restaurant), but in general it's not to be supported. I will explain that. Most consumers in McDonald's are children. And I would say that kids of a third world country have a lot of dreams or illusions of the so called civilised state America. With this imagination, the kids loose step by step their own culture. Another problem in those poor countries is the loss of many traditional small kitchens at the roadside. In the towns where are all the skyscraper and where are a lot of concrete houses, a lot of families had there at the roadside their own Fast Food tradition. About thousands of people were earning their money with this work. They had their sheet metal can which worked as a furnace. They sold ears of corn, all kind of were and much more food. It was a small family business. But concerns as McDonald's are destroying this family tradition. Because the hasty eater wants to eat for less money and spend less time, so the best way to eat with this two prerequisites are companies like McDonald's. Nowadays in San Salvador for example, one can see the Bacanas who sell their food outside. But if one is going to look for them in some years, no one will find them in the towns anymore. Also the young Bacanas are going to McDonald's and turn their back on their own culture. They are going to McDonald's just to have a look into the usually unattainable world of dreams24.
For example, once, family Coimbra possessed a piece of country in the middle of Brazil. But this time is over now. The whole family has to beg in the town now; they lost their country place, because they were driven away by big landowners. The owners cultivate now soy there. This has also something to do with Fast Food. Because the Fast Food companies all over the world use so much meat that they need to import fatten fodder for all the animals. An example for Germany: everyday about 700 cows are killed for McDonald's. They were standing in Bavaria, but they were eating in the third world. Because the cows get their soy as concentrated feed. By the way, cows need ten times more soy than a human. Most soy is imported from Brazil. So you can see the connection. Twenty years ago, soy wasn't known in Brazil at all. But nowadays, Brazil is the second biggest country that exports soy (after America). Almost 1/5 of the arable land is taken for soy. And 88% of the soy-cultivation is on country which was needed before the soy-invasion came for labor intensive food cultures like milk, potato, rice, beans etc. About 6 or 7 persons were needed for this production, but nowadays there works just one worker for planting soy. These are fates for a lot of people living there in Brazil. These are facts why about 40% of the rural population had to move from the county to the slums. Everyday, more than 10'000 people move from the south to the north by bus, because they hope to find there a better future. They are victims of an economic- politic, that produces abundance on the one, poverty on the other hand. And the winner are all Fast Food- and all other multinational companies25.
5.1 Rain Forest Destruction
The pasture and the livestock had duplicated in central America since 1950. And the forest had been reduced from 72% to 34% between the years 1950 and 1978. So you can imagine that the forest area is a lot smaller, because all the companies which are responsible for the forest destruction had their boom in the last 10 years.
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More than a third of Costa Rica became in the meantime pasture. The saddest thing is, that the population get hardly anything of this meat. And as you know, in third world countries most children suffer of hunger. As long as this injustice exists, this problem will never be solved. The beef which they export is determined to 70% for Fast Food companies. The rest of this beef processes to animal fodder. For example, an European or American cat eats during a week more meat than an average citizen from Latin America.
The European Union takes it's beef mainly from Brazil. As you know, the rain forest is also mainly in Brazil. At the beginning of the 1960's, one had the idea to use the unused rain forest as productive land. First, the government wanted to make a program for the resettlement of the population. But they failed. The state advertised big land-owner with a lot of capital, banks, inland and foreign concerns to buy a piece of this cheap soil, and they promised a reduction of taxes and subsidy (up to 75% of the investment-costs).
Between 1974 and 1984, a rain forest area as big as Germany was destroyed for cattle. Until 1987, the brazil government allowed more than 1,2 billion dollar taxes reduction and direct subventions, just because they wanted to boost the pasture business. Not just Fast Food companies possess pieces of land but also companies like Nestlé, VW, Mitsubishi and more.
They knew that they will have national privilege in Brazil, they weren't interested in cattle breeding at all.
The biggest part of Amazonian, which is used for cattle breeding, is about 380'000 square kilometers. That's as big as Germany and Austria together.
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And the rain forest area which is destroyed every year is as big as Great Britain28. This means, every minute, a field as big as a football pitch is destroyed. Add to this, that tribes are living in the rain forest. Every year, some tribes have to move to a town and they have to adapt their cultures and stuff to the other population.
The rain forest is very important for us living humans, because the trees and plants take the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and they give us the oxygen. And you know that carbon dioxide is a dangerous gas, and we have now already a much to big concentration of this carbon dioxide. That means, if they don't stop clearing the rain forest, we all will have our consequences. The effects that this high concentration of carbon dioxide have, is on the one hand the hothouse effect and on the other the change of the climate in general. This change of temperature will expand the dessert and a rose of the sea of 1 meter will make 8 million people to refugees.
Another fact is, that everyday between 50 and 80 different kind of plants and animal become extinct, and I think that's quite a lot, isn't it? It's not just sad because we lose so many plants/animals but with them a lot of automatic control loop are getting lost as well. So we definitely have to take care of the rain forest.
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The cow breeder are very powerful. They first let the poorer population clear the forest and then they take possess on this space for either a cheap price or with violence by Pistoleros (those are hitmen). The dispossessed farmer find hardly any work in the country because just one worker is needed for about 2'000 cows. And the conclusion is that the farmers have to move into the towns. Sad but true.
The pasture isn't that productive. Because on this very thin and nutrient-poor ground grows hardly any grass and the grass scar which is trampled by cows doesn't protect the ground for erosion anymore. Frequently it also rains very hard and so this rain washes away the ground. So the cows can only nourish for about 3-5 years on the same ground, after this period, new ground of the rain forest is needed. Only one cow (= 40 kilo meat) can nourish on one hectare rain forest (about 600 trees). And this only in the first three years. After this three years, this space nourish only ¼ cow. With other words, for one hamburger are used 5 square meters of the rain forest. Add to this that everyday about 140'000 hamburgers are eaten in Germany. Another fact is the consume of meat. This way of eating isn't that economic. If they would cultivate wheat on the land instead of breeding cows there, 15% of the world population would be full. If one ate as a vegetarian, 10 people more would be full.
6. Exploitation of the employees
Cheap wages, hard conditions of work, a democracy-hostile and authoritarian style of leadership of the enterprise, extraction of participation in the council30 etc. These are only some reproaches, which were submitted by different workers of McDonald's.
Who works at McDonald`s is visible at first sight. They are people, who are dependent on cash; they are glad about each coin they get, no matter how much it is. If they don't work at McDonald's, they wouldn't have ANY cash, so therefore they have to work there.
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Often the workers in this case are foreigners (above all women) or students. You also never see any people who work there more than 1 or 2 years.
If one has a look at a McDonald's where work about 100 people, just 1/3 of them have McDonald's as a full job32. And just 10% are fix employed33. As one can see, not many people bear it for a long time at McDonald's. The net income are often below the social welfare aid limit34. So, it's impossible for a human to feed himself or even a family with this poor wages. Thus, also if someone works there with a full job, they have to get another job. The workers in Germany earned about 11,04 and 13, 48 Mark in June 1999. But not enough, Thomas Heyell, the managing director of the employers' association said: "Nowadays, the cancellation go to zero in this sector and thus I except a stronger pressure on these amounts in the direction to 1800 Mark per month35." Another sad story about McDonald's: in some countries, the real wage is still the same as it was 20 years ago36.
McDonald's is a strict hierarchy. You can see that at the German example: the wages depend between 2933 and 4690 Mark per month37. But, the higher workers don't work much more or don't have so different work to do.
7. Animal Husbandry
Another problem is the animal husbandry. I mean, it's "normal" that for a company which is one of the biggest on earth, a lot of animals have to suffer. And sad but true, all the millions animals which are breeding daily for McDonald's can't be treated well.
Some years ago, exactly in the year 1997, a British court decided that McDonald's is blamed imprisonment for debt for cruelties at animals. The reason for this judgement is how McDonald's keeps the animals breeding. An example is the chicken husbandry. In America, the chicken which were breed for McDonald's have to live in a cage which is smaller than a A4 paper. They can't even spread their wings38.
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Due to this overstocking, almost every chicken suffers of different illness, suffocates or dies by cardiac infarct. Another cruel treatment is the pig's husbandry. Some of the breed pigs live their whole life on concrete, unable to walk, to turn around and even to lay down comfortably. I have to say that this depends on the country. I mean, the conditions aren't everywhere the same. In Switzerland it's not like that. I informed myself and I got the answer that Grieder AG (an operation of Coop-Bell), which is McDonald's beef-supplier, guaranteed that the beef is exclusive taken from cows which are nourished vegetarian and which are breed type-fairly40.
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Another problem is the way of killing animals. In America exists a minimum requirement which wants to protect the inhuman way of slaughtering animals. This minimum requirement says that an animal must be anaesthetised when one cut it's throat or decapitate it. But McDonald's didn't take the precautions to punish the butcher's which are killing animals without anaesthetisation42. And in my eyes, things like that are not justifiable.
But McDonald's is willed to change the terrible husbandry, at least in matter of the chickens. Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), a Royal Society for the prevention of cruelty to animals, gave it's support to the cruel husbandry of chicken. Peta made more than 400 demonstrations in 23 countries and they were successful, because McDonald's agreed to make improvement for the chicken's life. And this is an important step, because now, millions of animals may have a better life. But it isn't everything done yet. A lot must be done in the future. McDonald's are now changing the following situations:
- They don't buy eggs from providers anymore who let the animals live in a space which is smaller than 460 square cm.
- McDonald's just buys chicken and eggs there, where the owner doesn't clip the chicken's bill.
- They stop buying eggs, when the breeder doesn't give the animals to drink and to eat just to increase the production of eggs.
- Employees get financial incentive if they treat the chicken carefully and don't break their bones.
- McDonald's examines slaughtering and for the first time ever, they make separations from butchers who don't keep the human guidelines of slaughtering43.
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten 44
8. Stories
One hears a lot of rumours about McDonald's, especially about it's food. Some are certainly true, some aren't. I will present some examples.
A 9 years old Canadian girl found in her hamburger a rat's head. This head was baked in a BigMac with it's eyes, tooth, nose and whiskers. The girl's family demands now about 17,5 millions Canadian dollars. Because the girl has serious harms and will never eat in a Fast Food restaurant again45. This story is true. Because some weeks later, I heard about this story again and a Canadian guy who was working for McDonald's confessed that he did that. And he did that on purpose. It was a revenge on McDonald's, because he didn't earn as much as promised.
I don't think that the following story is really true. It sounds more like a Anti-McDonald's campaign, because in my eyes the images look so faked. It is more or less the same situation as above, it's just a different meal. This story depends on chicken nuggets. A woman found between all the others nuggets a really big one and she couldn't believe what she was holding in her hands: a whole chicken head.
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten 46
Last but not least I have got another story to tell you. A 11 years old boy from Detroit sued McDonald's for maggots in his cheeseburger. His sister saw how the maggots crawled in and around the mouth. The boy's lawyer demanded about 1 Million Dollars47.
9. Conclusion
Finally, I want to say, that I don't expect that anyone is going to boycott McDonald's after reading this Maturaarbeit. Neither I don't want anybody to do that. I just want people to inform themselves about companies like McDonald's. I don't want anyone to stipulate anything. I want the people to think about big concerns. And I hope that more and more people will think about what they eat or where they eat. Sure, I would be glad if I saw people who boycott McDonald's, but in my eyes it's not important to know that someone is boycotting McDonald's but it's important to know why someone is doing that.
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten 48
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten 49
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As shown on this picture, you have to judge for yourself what's right and what's wrong and the second thing (described with the shadow) is:
One Small Bite for Man - One Giant Problem for Mankind
List of Literature
Arlidge, John: One small bite for man, one giant problem for mankind. In: Focus, 11st February 2001, S.15
Behrend, Reinhard: Raubmord am Regenwald. Hamburg:Rowohlt Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH, 1990.
Honigstein, Raphael: Wie find ich das? "Kaufen Sie nichts!" In: Die Zeit, 23rd November 2000.
Kläsgen, Michael: Bon Appétit! In: Die Zeit, 16th November 2000.
Pater, Siegfried: Zum Beispiel McDonald's. Göttingen: Lamuv Verlag GmbH, 2000.
Sentker, Andreas: Der Ceasar des Fast Food. In: Die Zeit, 23rd February 1996.
Tenbrock, Christian: Party für die oberen 10'000. In: Die Zeit, 9th December 1999.
Wallraff, Günter: Ganz unten. Köln: Kiepenheuer&Witsch, 1985.
Internet
McDonald's-Kampagne bringt Hühnern grossen Sieg. http://www.peta.de/cmp/mcd/mcd.html
McLibel Photo Album. http://www.mcspotlight.org/cgi-bin/album.pl?53&show&6
Miljoenenclaim voor McDonald's. http://www.telegraaf.nl/nieuwslink/teksten/nws.haar.canadese.schrik.html, 28th March 2001.
Ullmann, Harald: Internationale Protestaktion gegen McDonald's angekündigt. http://www.peta.de/pn/news_9909/news_991015.html2000, 15th October 1999.
Maden krochen aus Cheeseburger. http://www.tol.ch/ops_includes/print_artikel.cfm?id=203715&vDest=Artikel, 4th July 2001.
Images
http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/gallery/global.html
http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/gallery/mcdonalds.html
[...]
1 One small bite for man, one giant problem for mankind, 1
2 Der Ceasar des Fast Food, S.1
3 http://www.mcspotlight.org/album/images/building.jpg
4 McDonald's - eine Esskultur, S.2
5 Bon appétit, S.1
6 I scanned this Golden Arch.
7 McDonald's - eine Esskultur, S.1
8 McDonald's - eine Esskultur, S.1
9 http://www.mcspotlight.org/case/case_pix/factsheet_cover_thumb2.gif
10 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.125
11 Wie find ich das? ,,Kaufen Sie nichts!", S.1
12 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.31
13 http://www.mcspotlight.org/album/images/litter.jpg
14 Zum Beispiel McDonalds, S.86
15 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.36
16 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.35
17 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.10
18 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.33
19 McLibel Photo Album, S.14
20 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.41
21 http://www.mcspotlight.org/album/images/kid_toy.jpg
22 Ganz unten, S.33
23 McDonald's will das Herz der Kinder, S.1
24 McDonald's - eine Esskultur, S.1
25 Fast-Food zerstört den Regenwald, S.1
26 http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/media_pix/cartoon_bulldozer_thumb.gif
27 http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/media_pix/parrots.jpg
28 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.107
29 http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/media_pix/cartoon_eating_thumb.gif
30 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.57
31 http://www.mcspotlight.org/album/images/workers_serving.jpg
32 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.58
33 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.59
34 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.59
35 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.60
36 Party für die oberen 10'000, S.1
37 Zum Beispiel McDonald's, S.59
38 http://www.peta.de/pn/news_9909/news_991015.html2000
39 Once, I found this picture in the internet, but I can't remember where it was.
40 McDonald's Swiss mailed me this information.
41 I found this one some years ago and I really can't remember where.
42 Möchten Sie Pommes dazu, S.1
43 McDonald's-Kampagne bringt Hühnern grossen Sieg, S.1
44 http://www.mcspotlight.org/album/images/verdict_press.jpg
45 Miljoenenclaim voor McDonald's, S.1
46 My Mother found these pictures but she didn't note the address.
47 http://www.tol.ch/ops_includes/print_artikel.cfm?id=203715&vDest=Artikel
48 I found this one on the back of a magazine, but I didn't note it's name.
49 More or less the same with this picture, I can't remember where I found it.
Häufig gestellte Fragen
What is the subject of this Maturaarbeit about?
This Maturaarbeit is a critical analysis of McDonald's, focusing on both positive and negative aspects, with a particular emphasis on the negative ones.
Why is McDonald's the primary focus of this Maturaarbeit?
While other fast food companies and even small restaurants may share similar conditions, McDonald's is chosen due to its global recognition and prevalence.
When did the author stop eating at McDonald's?
The author stopped eating at McDonald's and other fast food restaurants in the spring of 1999 after learning about the issues associated with the company.
What are some of the key issues discussed regarding McDonald's and Fast Food?
The Maturaarbeit covers topics such as health concerns related to fast food consumption, environmental pollution caused by McDonald's waste, the influence of McDonald's advertising on children, exploitation of workers, animal husbandry practices, and the impact of McDonald's on the Third World.
How does Fast Food affect health?
Fast food is described as lacking essential carbohydrates and roughage, while being high in fat, leading to potential health problems such as heart conditions and circulatory disorders.
What environmental issues are associated with McDonald's?
The Maturaarbeit highlights the significant amount of waste produced by McDonald's, including excessive packaging, and the environmental burden caused by McDrive locations leading to increased traffic.
How does McDonald's advertising influence children?
The use of Ronald McDonald is discussed as a way to target children, influencing their food choices and creating positive associations with the brand. The Happy Meal and Birthday parties are also mentioned.
What are some issues regarding McDonald's presence in the Third World?
The Maturaarbeit criticizes McDonald's for contributing to the loss of local culture and traditions in Third World countries and the exploitation of land for animal feed, leading to displacement of local populations.
How does the Maturaarbeit describe the treatment of employees at McDonald's?
The Maturaarbeit mentions low wages, difficult working conditions, and limited opportunities for full-time employment as common issues faced by McDonald's employees. It also discusses wage stagnation and the hierarchical structure.
What are the concerns about animal husbandry practices related to McDonald's?
The Maturaarbeit mentions cruel treatment of animals, particularly chickens and pigs, with specific examples of overcrowded living conditions and inhumane slaughtering practices, though it also acknowledges some positive changes being made.
What are the potential consequences of rain forest destruction?
The Maturaarbeit mentions that the effects of high concentration of carbon dioxide is on the one hand the hothouse effect and on the other the change of the climate in general. This change of temperature will expand the dessert and a rose of the sea of 1 meter will make 8 million people to refugees.
Does the Maturaarbeit encourage boycotting McDonald's?
No, the author states that the goal is not to encourage boycotting McDonald's but to encourage readers to inform themselves about the company and its impact.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Lisa Graf (Autor:in), 2001, One small bite for man - one giant problem for mankind - MC Donald`s, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/105564
