With a population becoming ever more aware of the importance of losing weight and making healthy food choices, fast food retailers are having to up their game. Many of them are now offering healthier alternatives to the more fat-laden items on their menus.
Three major chains in particular have announced serious changes to their menu. McDonalds is now offering a yolk-free version of their usual Egg McMuffin breakfast food, while Burger King has unveiled a turkey meat burger which the food industry has hailed as a ‘game changer’. Cracker Barrel, which currently provides hearty family favourites such as macaroni cheese and fried chicken, with unknown calorific contents, has now started rolling out a lower calorie menu with meals containing fewer than 600 calories.
Is this sudden surge of healthy food motivated by conscience on the part of the retailers? Are they suddenly so concerned for your wellbeing that they make wellness a priority over profits? The simple answer is – no. The fast food industry has simply seen the enormous money-making potential of saddling itself with some healthy credentials.
Although these healthy dishes are not expected to sell well (who goes to fast food restaurants to eat healthy food, after all?), and historical precedent shows that people will almost always choose flavour over health, the companies still benefit from the kudos and good reputation associated with being seen to make an attempt to provide a healthier offering.
If customers think of the restaurant as healthy, it will decrease the amount of guilt associated with visiting and make them more likely to choose that particular restaurant to visit. By association, people think of the rest of the menu as healthier purely because they have heard about a healthy offering produced by a particular restaurant.
Even those who visit the restaurant with the aim of eating a healthy item from the menu are often lured by something less healthy once they are inside the venue and confronted with the choice.
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