Day 033 - 10 Oct 94 - Page 43


     
     1        from the body.  When the bile acids are manufactured in
     2        the liver and sent down through the bile ducts and end up
     3        in the digestive track, fibre adsorbs them and absorbs
     4        them and brings them out with the waste.  If there is
     5        insufficient fibre in the diet, the bile acids can be
     6        turned back into cholesterol and enter the circulation
     7        once again.
     8
     9   Q.   Moving on to page 16:  Are you an expert in advertising?
    10        A.  No, I am not.
    11
    12   Q.   What are you saying about the McDonald's Corporation and
    13        its promotions in that case?
    14        A.  Well, March in the United States every year is called
    15        National Nutrition Month; the idea being that good,
    16        nutritious information will be produced for the benefit of
    17        American public.  In March of 1993 the McDonald's
    18        Corporation  -----
    19
    20   Q.   Before we go into that detail -- we all have a copy of
    21        that; it is in the documents served today - OK, let us
    22        look at that first then.  It is No. 10 in the
    23        miscellaneous supplementary list, cancers.  I can give you
    24        a copy to look at.  (Handed)  Sorry, would you just give
    25        the background again and then refer to the document?
    26        A.  Yes.  In March 1993 the McDonald's Corporation began
    27        to market at its restaurants small plastic toys for
    28        children.  There were four of these toys, one of which was
    29        a miniature plastic steak, beef steak, with, as you can
    30        see in the illustration, wearing sunglasses, having a
    31        moustache, big muscles and looking strong and fit.  Along
    32        with this plastic toy, which is about may be three inches
    33        high or thereabouts  -----
    34
    35   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  What has he got beneath his nose, is that a
    36        moustache?
    37        A.  Yes, your Honour.
    38
    39   Q.   So he is wearing a school cap and a moustache, is he?
    40        A.  That may a baseball cap to show what a sporting chap
    41        he is. Along with this toy which, I believe, was given
    42        free along with the so-called Happy Meal came a booklet,
    43        and the booklet said -- I believe that the text in
    44        question is on this page -- it says:  "Foods in the meats
    45        and proteins group give your body the tools it needs to
    46        help you grow and build healthy muscles.  Eating two
    47        servings a day of these foods can make it easier to do
    48        things like climb higher and ride your bike farther."
    49
    50        We wrote a letter to Mr. Mike Quinlan, the Chairman of the 
    51        Board of McDonald's Corporation, and also made a complaint 
    52        to the Federal Trade Commission of the US government to 
    53        point out that there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever
    54        that eating meat makes it easier to do things like climb
    55        higher and ride your bike farther; that, in fact,
    56        encouraging children to eat such items would be doing
    57        these children no favour at all and that, in fact, it may
    58        be doing them long term harm.
    59
    60        I would add the caveat that in what we call the meat

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