..Book Reviews..

In 1970 Americans spent about $6 billion on fast food. In 2000, we spent over $110 billion. We spend more money on fast food than on higher education, personal computers, computer software, or new cars. We spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos, and recorded music--combined. On the average day in the U.S., 25% of the adult population eats fast food (facts taken from page 3). Welcome to a fast food nation.

Eric Schlosser explores the fast food industry, from stockyards and potato fields to your paper-lined tray, including everything in the middle from the underpaid employees to the roots of the industry, to the lack of cleanliness and federal oversight in the slaughterhouse. And it's not a pretty picture. You'll think twice the next time you order a reheated burger, wondering about the abuses occurring at every level of production, and you'll wonder if it's really worth it.

Schlosser especially focuses on the workers involved in the industry, and how the fast food companies discourage employee retention in order to reduce the effectiveness of unions, save on increasing wages and unrealized benefits, and capitalize on federal programs designed to reward companies for hiring untrained workers. Fast food employees basically get the shaft. And it's not just the teenagers behind the counter, it's workers at every level, including the slaughterhouses. Modern production methods also put workers at a disadvantage by allowing them to learn only one aspect of production, minimizing the cost of training and the worker's ability to advance.

And that's just one example, never mind the effect of fast food advertising on children, or the overall effect of fast food on the nation's health. Fast Food Nation is a must-read. It's extremely well-researched and well-written, including interviews from people at every level of the industry.

The next time you pull into the drive thru, ask yourself who is being oppressed so can you have a burger, fries and a drink for $2.99.