Fast-Food Dining Off Since Anti-Fat Ads, Survey Says
A significant number of consumers say they are patronizing fast-food restaurants less often since a series of newspaper ads appeared attacking the fat content of McDonald’s restaurant food, according to an Advertising Age/Gallup Organization survey published in Monday’s edition of the weekly trade publication.
Ad Age said 38% of about 1,000 people surveyed said they had cut back on visits to fast-food restaurants in general, although the critical ads were aimed at McDonald’s Corp. The survey was conducted in May--about a month after Omaha, Neb., businessman Phil Sokolof placed the third of his “poisoning of America” ads attacking the saturated fat content of certain foods commonly eaten by Americans. Sokolof has raised the ire of some food companies because his full-page ads cite brands and manufacturers by name.
McDonald’s criticized the validity of the survey. The survey asked if people were aware of the criticisms of a fast-food chain that “cooks its products in animal fat, which has an impact on the cholesterol level of users of its products?” A follow-up question asked if the claims caused people to increase or decrease their patronization of fast-food restaurants.
“It was a rather poorly conceived survey. The questions were written in a negative way that would result in a negative response,” McDonald’s spokesman Chuck Rubner said.
Sokolof’s campaign has had no impact on McDonald’s at the cash register where it really counts, he said. Company contacts with customers make clear that “they trust McDonald’s a hell of a lot more than some guy from Omaha who makes parts that hold dry walls together,” Rubner said.
Sokolof is a millionaire who owns several companies, including a building materials concern. He suffered a near-fatal heart attack more than 20 years ago and has since become a crusader against high cholesterol in the American diet. He immediately pounced on the survey to continue his attack. In an interview Monday afternoon, he said Part 4 of his series would appear in today’s editions of several newspapers, including the New York Times, USA Today and the Washington Post.
The latest ad is similar in tone to the April ad attacking McDonald’s. “McDonald’s didn’t respond to our request. However, the public did respond by choosing to reduce their intake of saturated fat in fast food restaurants,” the ad reads.
Sokolof again attacks McDonald’s by name, but less prominently in the ad he extends the attack on fatty french fries to Burger King and Wendy’s. He praises Hardee’s, a Rocky Mount, N.C.-based chain concentrated in the East. Hardee’s has introduced a new, lean hamburger and cooks its fries in vegetable oils that contain no cholesterol.
Following the April ad, McDonald’s warned newspapers against printing it again, but Sokolof said he had no trouble placing the latest ad. He said the ad won’t run in today’s Wall Street Journal only because he didn’t give the paper enough lead time. Sokolof is founder and president of the National Heart Savers Assn., but he said he pays for the ads with his own money. The association has no membership dues.
Sokolof said he doesn’t know what the series has cost him. “If it saves one life, it’s worth it,” he said.
