Rating: 
Summary: An eye opening, mouth closing, commercial thriller!
Review: John Grisham, take notice, the fast food industry is a fertile field for your genre of writing. As a self-made CEO of a large corporation, you might not expect to find me on the frontline of any anti-globalization rally, or lining up early to vote for Nader (and you'd be right), however, there are verticals within the USA's commercial juggernaut that need closer scrutiny and regulation. E. Schlosser makes a very good case that the fast food industry should be one of them. I think this book will be an interesting and worthwhile read for pretty much everyone (w/ exception of die-hard fast food burger fans). Whether you are personally offended by the violence in slaughter houses or concerned about the implications of a "cheaper, faster, cheaper" corporate production philosophy on the already low paid, high risk workforce; you'll no doubt be intrigued by the clear picture the author gives of the dilemna facing everyone (that includes those in the industry with a conscience). I still go to Taco Bell, and love it, but I don't think I'll ever order anything with meat at a fast food joint again...
Rating:
Summary: What we all knew in the back of our minds but ignored!
Review: Our family was not that bad... we had fast food from a chain perhaps once a week. However, upon reading this book, we swore off McDonalds and Burger King, Taco Bell and Wendys. That leaves Dunkin Donuts (not much opportunity for cross contamination there!) and KFC.
(After a visit to a chicken processing factory, I'm off KFC. I'll still eat all kinds of meat but no fast food!) What I found most fascinating was how 1 burger can contain meat from 20 different cows. That means if 1 cow is infected with something, thousands of people will get a little bit of that cow in their burger.
Pardon me for being so gross, but this is scary: the machines that grind the burger meat take 15 minutes to stop spinning. Occasionally someone gets sucked in. Now is that scary or what? The butchering facilities are disgusting. The cows stand in their own offal before being butchered. Any hunter will tell you adrenalin spoils the taste of venison: what about these cows? If they're all hyped up, it would make sense that the meat is going to be affected. Plus the workers are not discriminating about what parts of the animal get ground up. Burger King using a chemical to give that "flame-broiled burger" taste? Sure! And if a flavoring has anything natural in it, then it's not considered a chemical? You should read the list of ingredients on a BK strawberry shake, it's frightening. McDonald's french fries were for years fried in beef tallow. When that was no longer acceptable, they switched to vegetable oil with beef flavoring added.
The french fry grading machines (in factory) are run by robots: if they see a french fry (this is a camera!) with a rotten spot, or green cancerous stuff, a knife swoops down and cuts off ONLY THAT PART! GROSS! I realize that Arby's is not covered in this book. Aren't they using Tyson Chicken? Taco Bell is also not rated too poorly, except that they were mentioned as having underage workers using dangerous equipment, and that an employee said "everything comes dehydrated, just add water. The refried beans look like brown cornflakes." We since reading this book have made an effort to buy organic, or at least all natural, whenever possible. Read Spoiled, by Nichols Fox. Life is really all about choices. Going to a fast food place is a sensory overload: the bright lights, colored menu boards, smells... Personally I don't like the way that all works on your mind, and am content not to be numbered among the 99 billion served. Better to serve a few people with the best food, than the world with garbage. :-)
Rating: 
Summary: Heavy-handed
Review: I went in expecting to read an insightful accountof how fast food has effected our nation and the world. What I got instead was a heavy handed argument against development. I can respect the opinion of the author, as it well founded, but he dismisses the possibility that eh could be wrong, even finding surprise in the fact that there are people who could be happy with suburban growth. I had to throw this book down every few minutes in disgust. Just wading through the biased and self-satisfied jargon to the end was enough to make me want a burger.
Rating: 
Summary: nothing new here
Review: fast food unhealthy?
slaughter houses - bad places to work?
macdonalds job = low pay? if these sort of things surprise you then buy this book. if not, skip it.
don't expect alot of in depth information in this book, a very simple shallow investigation in the tradition of television journalism.
Rating:
Summary: For those who want to be informed
Review: An excellent review of American's eating habits. Very well thought out and researched.
Rating: 
Summary: Yikes!!
Review: I had no idea the fast food industry was this scary! I think I will think twice before ordering that burger at the place down the road!
Rating:
Summary: Of Cows and Men
Review: I read this book almost two years ago, but did not decide to review it until now. Many have already contributed eloquent reviews of the book and I felt there was little to add. However, the recent rise of mad cow reports and beef import fears and restrictions brought this book to mind again because of the warnings it issues about the beef industry. This book has once agin proven its value, it is fascinating and I cannot stress enough, to parents or anyone interested in a healthy diet the importance of this book. However, Schlosser discusses the socio-economic repercussions of the rise of fast food, and this is where the book really shines; in particular I found the chapters dealing with the beef industry, the extended hours and dangerous conditions, which lead to injuries on the job for the workers and nasty nutritional surprises for the eaters - anyone remember Jack in the Box? Schlosser also shows how the success of fast food purveryors has affected the quality and 'veracity' of much of the food all of us eat, fast or otherwise. The conglomerates dictate the terms by which the meat is selected and processed, even including dictating terms to potato growers. There are also interesting considerations about the working conditions and safety and viability - from all points of view - of fast food chains and franchises. Nevertheless, Schlosser does not advocate that everyone become a vegetarian necessarily - he is by admission not one. He admits to enjoying a good burger every once in a while, but the keyword is 'good', meaning paying a little bit more for high quality beef, whose source is well known. Ultimately the nutritional recommendation from this book is that you should it organic meat products.
The book also presents a brief history of the fast food industry from its origins just before the second world war in California to the multi-million dollar global business it's become today. I suggest reading this book along with the biography of Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart "In Sam We Trust" and Naomi Klein's "No Logo". Together these books present an interesting picture of big business conglomerates, their practices and how these relate to the resentment of 'globalization' around the world.
Rating:
Summary: Well done -- much more than about fast food chains
Review: This book surprised me because it wasn't just about fast food chains. It went into great detail about the processing of food in general. And it wasn't just about meat; he presented important information on issues such as "natural" and artifical flavorings in all of the convenience foods we buy. Furthermore, he brought to my mind the constant advertising that is pushed on our nation's children. The book was well researched. I found a few parts to be a bit dry due to the detail, but I would highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Vegetarian anyone?
Review: While I was already on the road to banning meat from my lifestyle, this book was the cementing factor for me to keep it up. This book brought to light for me that corporate farming is not just abusive to animals but to the human workers as well AND also to the consumer since we are getting unhealthy and inferior and possibly dangerous products. I found it particularly interesting to note that the lowest quality meat went to the military, and to children's school cafeterias.
Rating: 
Summary: just never thought...
Review: about the effects of the fast food society we live in. yeah i know about slaughterhouses, etc. but never really cared. Politcal views aside i thought the book was a little slow at times and on a mission to slam McDonalds. I don't eat fast food that much at all, and after reading this i'm switching to naturally raised cattle.
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