Question Description

A number of overweight Americans filed a class action suit for deceptive trade practices and negligence against McDonald’s Corporation, the fast-food chain famous for its hamburgers, French fries, and chicken nuggets.

The class claimed that McDonald’s food is fatty and addictive and argued that the members of the general public have no idea how bad McDonald’s food is for their health. The attorneys for the class obtained copies of McDonald's food studies, which showed that the company was aware of the high fat content in its food but did not look any further into the possible health consequences on its customers.

Using the keywords Pelman v. McDonald’s Corp., 237 F.Supp.2d 512 (S.D.N.Y. 2003), search the Internet and read the complete case.

Analyze and discuss the following:

• Can McDonald’s be held responsible for causing obesity among its customers?
• Would proving that McDonald’s had added certain fat to its food that would make its products more addictive affect the suit? If yes, how? If no, why?
• What if small amounts of fat were added to make the food addictive but the fat would not be easily detected?
• If you were the CEO of McDonald's, how would you change your menu and marketing strategy in response to the lawsuit?