San Francisco has done the unthinkable. Not win the World Series. It’s effectively banned happy meals.
In order to include a toy with purchase, these new, unhappier meals must meet a checklist of nutritional requirements (PDF):
• The meal can’t exceed 600 calories
• Less than 35 percent of the calories can come fat (nuts, nut butters, low-fast cheese excepted)
• It’s required to have a half cup of vegetables
• Breakfast meals are required to have a half cup of fruit
• Sodium limits
• A multigrain requirement
Does that sound like a happy meal you’ve ever eaten? This is a blow to happy meal toy enthusiasts everywhere. While happy meal toys have been getting crappier over the years, bans like these will surely hasten their decline as a mass cultural form. Inside the cardboard walls of happy meal box, soaked in grease, is where I got my first wind-up car, an army of tiny robots and sweet transforming figures. No more.
San Francisco clearly hates children. And happiness. [SF Weekly, Image: CC licensed from Jason Ippolito/Flickr]
The Gremlion
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 4:03 PMThis is the coolest thing I’ve read today
Daniel Weaver-Koenigs
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 5:13 PMThe vegetable thing doesn’t seem too kid friendly, but they already do healthy alternative happy meals in Australia.
A bag of fruit and plain milk with a flavoured straw.
blaze0041
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 9:23 PMBut how well has the healthy alternative happy meal sold, I wonder…? This is McDonald’s we’re talking about here! It’s meant to be unhealthy!
Nathan Holmes
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 11:29 PMThey are options. 95% OF Happy Meals are chips, cheeseburger and a coke.
Womp
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 11:45 PMI was under the impression that the potato was a vegetable, so the fries would be the half a cup of vegetables.
Limiting fats and salt I predict will simply result in more sugar or sacharin. Which is probably what the kids wanted anyway.
So a bag of sweet fries and a toy, even more appealing to children.
If they really wanted to help parents just force maccers to sell the toys without having to buy the meal.
Tegzilla
Tuesday, January 4, 2011 at 12:05 PMYou’ve always been able to buy the toys separately.
CaroKelly
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 7:06 PMI have already effectively banned happy meals in our household… and I dont hate children or happiness! But I do hate plastic junk.
I have a 2 yr old and a 7 yr old and after a recent spring clean of their toy room… managed to collect 4 green shopping bags full of mostly useless and/or broken happy meal toys. Admittedly there are a few favourites which we’ve kept… but nothing you cant find in a toy shop.
If that’s how much happy meal trash comes from 2 kids over 2 years – it irks me to think how much happy meal junk is accumulating out there in our homes and rubbish tips.
McDonalds food is a treat in itself ie occasional food… so when we do go now, they are just as happy with their burger and chips and some fun on the slides. They get a soft serve instead of a toy – instant smiles all round.
I think the San Francisco happy meal ban is a great idea and would love to see it implemented elsewhere… but in the meantime do it voluntarily – trust me the kids will get over it soon enough… and yes they’ll still be smiling.
Rod
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 8:46 PMWhat about Kinder Surprises? I hope they don’t ban them…….
dan
Wednesday, November 3, 2010 at 9:00 PMwell its about time…
tay
Thursday, November 4, 2010 at 7:03 PMLet people make their own choices
Joshua Ehmann
Thursday, November 4, 2010 at 11:47 PMpeople have proven themselves to be stupid
Smoker
Sunday, November 14, 2010 at 10:00 PMNo, that’s not how we do it. A mix of laws and education works best. That law is too much. If you wanna see really draconian food laws, visit communist Romania about 20-something years ago.