Fast Food's Interference in Food Policy: A Case Study

Fast food corporations interfere in the advancement of health policy and health science at a variety of levels, from lobbying on national food and health policies to attempting local policies that limit fast food marketing. These fast food corporations spend millions each year lobbying elected officials, and billions more “lobbying” the public with savvy promotions used to trump the messages of health educators and to hook kids on unhealthy brands for a lifetime.

This presentation will focus on the influence of the fast food industry on public health policy and nutrition science. The presentation will draw from the experience of developing and passing the San Francisco Healthy Meals Incentive Ordinance as a case study for demonstrating the role the fast food industry takes in interfering with local policy.

Passed in November 2010, the San Francisco Healthy Meals Incentive Ordinance requires basic nutritional standards for the use of toy giveaways in restaurant meals. From lobbying elected officials to pressuring policymakers through paid media, the fast food industry spent tens of thousands of dollars to interfere in the Ordinance, attempting to change the language of the policy and attempting to stop its adoption entirely. Drawing from experience organizing educators, health professionals, and parents on the ground in San Francisco, the presentation will analyze the problem of fast food industry interference in passing the Ordinance and discuss how to safeguard against corporate interference in public health policies at the local level.