Japan's Epic Fast Food War

[Calliegirl]

I don't know what the obesity rate is in Japan, but with offerings like these, they can't be far behind, or possibly have already exceeded us in the US.
I wonder when the mission of fast food changed from a quick meal to help out families now and then, to kill as many people as you can with heart disease.

There's a marketing war going on in Japan's fast food industry. Everyone's trying to one-up each other amid intense competition.

In 2010, McDonald's and KFC had an all-out advertising war to win chicken-lovers across the nation. Wendy's couldn't handle the heat in 2009 and was forced to pull out. It didn't re-enter the market until the very end of 2011. International fast food titans have to deal with each other, plus, they have to compete with the many local chains, some of which are quite powerful.

Japan has had a recent interest in more sophisticated items, and as the chains keep pushing the envelope, you end up getting some pretty bizarre things on the menus.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/japan-s-epic-fast-food-war-inspired-these-crazy-menu-items.html

 

[K-II]

I'm pretty sure they can be far behind.

 

[Blobbenstein]

"Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die", should be McDonald's slogan.

 

[K-II]

"Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die", should be McDonald's slogan.

Shouldn't it be 'so that'?

Actually, while I'm sure it's not exactly healthy, there have been times where a meal at McDonald's was all I'd eat that day, for a week or so. Then I'd get some fruit juice stuff at a supermarket occasionally to avoid scurvy or whatever. This was in Canada though and a very slopey town where I lived outside and went everywhere with a bicycle, so I ended up getting thinner if anything. I wonder how long I could have done it for before missing anything vital.

 

[Second Summer]

Sounds pretty crazy. A lot of cultural phenomena tends to get pretty crazy there (e.g. movies, comics, music). I suspect it's a way to vent off steam that builds up in reaction to their crazy conformist working life culture.

 

[rainforests1]

I thought the Japanese live longer on average than any other country. Pictures can be misleading and may be in this case, but from pictures I've seen I don't think they have close to the obesity problem many countries have.

 

[RabbitLuvr]

Wasn't there a news story last year about some workplaces in Japan being strict about weight? I remember watching a video where people were having their waists measured in front of everyone else. (I recall it being promoted here as what will happen if the US were to get actual healthcare reform, lol.)

If that's true and common, I could see American fast food chains there feeling threatened and really amping up advertising and creating bizarre things to make their menu more attractive to consumers that may be cutting back on unhealthy American fast food.

 

[led.boots]

I think and hope that most Japanese people would think of McDonald's as an occasional "treat", not the diet staple it is in the standard US diet. As an American, I apologize to the rest of the world for our fast food spreading to your countries.

 

[Forster]

I think and hope that most Japanese people would think of McDonald's as an occasional "treat", not the diet staple it is in the standard US diet. As an American, I apologize to the rest of the world for our fast food spreading to your countries.

Meh, I don't know, maybe long term it will be good for everyone as the other countries might not take such a coddling position to the fast food industry and more information about diet and disease will come out.

 

[yakherder]

They've still got #1 for average life expectancy, and obesity is still a long way from catching up with the west. But keep in mind that their fast food generation is still pretty young and, as with China, despite the (mostly) skinny adults, I'm starting to see chubby little kids running around all over the place. KFC is big in Asia, and it's not the same as the ones in the US. It's more like McDonalds but with chicken burgers instead of the southernish menu.

 

[Digger]

As an American, I apologize to the rest of the world for our fast food spreading to your countries.

No need to apologize. They're not being forced to eat at these restaurants any more than we are.

 

[Pickle Juice]

No need to apologize. They're not being forced to eat at these restaurants any more than we are.

It's just that simple, but hardly anyone gets it.

 

[Moll Flanders]

A lot of cultural phenomena tends to get pretty crazy there (e.g. movies, comics, music). I suspect it's a way to vent off steam that builds up in reaction to their crazy conformist working life culture.