Day 283 - 21 Oct 96 - Page 23


     
     1
     2        Through the admissions of McDonald's own witnesses in the
     3        witness box, it is clear that McDonald's know that their
     4        food is high in fat, salt and sugar, low in fibre and many
     5        vitamins as well.  And in terms of whether they portray
     6        their food as nutritious, which is part of the fact sheet
     7        case, deceptively, they have admitted that they portray
     8        their food as nutritious.  In fact, I think Robert Beavers
     9        said that.  We will come to that later in the transcript of
    10        the evidence.  They have had to defend that with the most
    11        ludicrous line, which is nutritious means contains
    12        nutrients.  That is what, I think, Professor Wheelock
    13        said.  He is their nutritional consultant.
    14
    15        So, you know, I am not really being silly, I am not making
    16        cheap points.  I am trying to say that in terms of the
    17        allegations of malice against us of distributing lies,
    18        McDonald's themselves know the food is not nutritious, they
    19        know they portray it as nutritious and they know they have
    20        to think of a line of what that means if they are
    21        challenged because they cannot defend it.
    22
    23        As regard the links between diet and disease, we have heard
    24        that Professor Wheelock to a great extent accepted the link
    25        between diet and disease is relevant in this case.  And Dr.
    26        Arnott admitted that the text of the London Greenpeace fact
    27        sheet on that subject was a very reasonable thing to say if
    28        directed to the public, which of course it was directed to
    29        the public.
    30
    31        And as regards to what became a development during the
    32        hearing about whether people eat at McDonald's more than
    33        once in a blue moon, whether they are significant, which it
    34        was not our case but now the meaning has been set down, we
    35        have heard from Mr. Fairgrieve and David Green that
    36        obviously a staggering number of people eat at McDonald's,
    37        they do influence diet in general, but also some people eat
    38        at McDonald's not only once a week, but two, three, four,
    39        or five times a week and 6 percent of their staff were said
    40        to be eating there, in the UK, I think every day of the
    41        week.
    42
    43        We have also heard that something like three out of four of
    44        all their customers going into their stores in the USA are
    45        what they call heavy users, and that David Green, the head
    46        of Marketing, said that that particular year he gave
    47        evidence they were targeting those people to increase their
    48        regularity.  In their advertising campaign.  I am sorry if
    49        I am going a bit too fast.
    50 
    51   MR JUSTICE BELL:  No, that is all right.  Since you have paused 
    52        anyway, I am anxious not to interrupt you while you are 
    53        giving the overview more than is necessary, but you were
    54        going to give me in due course references to as many of
    55        these as you can, are you, in case I have not got them
    56        already.
    57
    58   MR. MORRIS:   Yes, I am going to also run through the evidence
    59        on each issue before, probably tomorrow or maybe this
    60        afternoon.  What I am trying to do here is say how they

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