March 22nd, 2015

Lynsi Snyder
CEO
In-N-Out Burger
4199 Campus Drive, 9th Floor
Irvine, CA 92612

Dear Mrs. Snyder,

When beginning the project of opening a new location in Albuquerque, New Mexico we
must ensure we hold a good standing with the local community. Expanding In-N-Out Burger has
been a well thought-out process from the time when your grandparents started their first
restaurant. It is important that we do comprehensive research on our target community to
ascertain how consumers will receive a new In-N-Out location. Recently, fast food restaurants
have been blamed for obesity trends in the U.S. In this paper I have provided reputable sources
proving that the fast food industry is not the cause of the obesity epidemic. Our target community
will particularly appreciate that relative location to fast food does not directly correlate to obesity
statistics. Research has shown that unhealthy diets, independent of fast food options, are the
major cause for rising obesity rates. Additionally, most fast food companies offer alternatives to
support healthy lifestyles. Our marketing analysis and consideration of potential road blocks
indicate that local investors and the surrounding community will be enthusiastic to the opening
of store number 309 in East Albuquerque.
I look forward to beginning development on our newest location. In order to reduce the
amount of negativity toward our company and the fast food industry, the distribution of this
research should be maximized. If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact me.
Thank you!

Taylor Fisher
Location Development Manager

Fast Food Being Blamed for Obesity Epidemic

America: freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, and the ability to order two
Baconators and a large Diet Coke. Rising obesity rates and the search for a direct cause has left
the public with a bad taste in their mouths from the fast food industry. Public opinion
increasingly blames fast food for the obesity epidemic in the U.S. as rates have doubled since the
1970s (Ogden et al., 8). Today the fast food industry continues to grow. According to The
Statistics Portal there are over 233,000 fast food establishments in the U.S. With such an
availability of fast food it is easy to scapegoat this industry. There have been many public attacks
on fast food companies most notable the film, Super Size Me. This documentary follows
how Morgan Spurlocks health was impacted when he restricted his diet to strictly McDonalds
for 30 days. As with most things in life, moderation is key. A thorough review of research
conducted on the subject, and looking into the American diet will indicate that the fast food
industry is not to blame for the obesity epidemic. Public opinion is important to In-N-Out and the
goal of presenting this research is to maintain local investors and gain the support of local
communities when expanding to Albuquerque.
America theLarge?
Fast food is nothing new to the United States. White Castle is considered to be the first
fast food restaurant, opening in Wichita, Kansas in 1921. The popularity of quick, convenient
food was made mainstream through the assembly-line system the McDonalds brothers used in
their redesigned restaurant in 1948. So what has changed and why is it that obesity rates in the
United States have more than doubled since the 1970s? Many adversaries would lead you to

believe that the fast food industry is entirely to blame. With convenient locations, large meal
options, and speedy delivery it may be easy to blame fast food as the apparent culprit. Before
taking a bite out of this highly debated topic some basic facts about the obesity epidemic should
first be reviewed.
Some of the most surprising statistics are that In 2011-2012, 16.9% of 2- to 19-year olds
and 34.9% of adults aged 20 years and older were obese, (Ogden et al. 8). To put this in
perspective, you could fill the most populous city in the world, Tokyo, three times using only
obese adults from the United States! Not only has the percentage of obese people increased, the
average weight of individual obese persons has also increased in the past decade (Beydoun,
Wang). These numbers are frightening because it is well known that obesity leads to many health
issues. The increasing obesity statistics show that as a population children in the U.S. are not
being introduced to, or taught to, lead a healthy lifestyle. Lack of early education is setting our
future generations up for failure. Next is a look at the arguments from the greasy finger pointing
at the fast food industry.
A Large Blame Game
It would be one-sided to say that fast food cannot make a person overweight or obese, but
clarification is needed. High calorie counts and the abundance of locations are the typical
arguments used to place blame on the fast food industry for the rising obesity rates. A short drive
on any major interstate can prove the plethora of options available. With approximately 233,000
fast food restaurants in the US, the facts speak for themselves regarding the abundance of fast
food chains in our country. The startling number of fast food restaurants compared to the land
mass of the United States equates to less than twelve miles traveled in any direction before

running into some form of fast food. A study based on this theory was conducted to see if school
or home location within proximity to a fast food business has any relationship to obesity rates.
We find that 9th grade children with a fast food restaurant within a tenth of a mile of a school is
associated with an increase of about 1.7 percentage points in the fraction of students in a class
who are obese relative to the presence of a fast food restaurant at .25 miles, (Currie et al. 2).
While this does signify that a schools proximity to fast food does show some change in obesity
rates, the difference falls off at distances greater than .25 miles. Among pregnant women, we
find that a fast food restaurant within a half mile of a residence results in a .19 percentage points
higher probability of gaining over 20 kilograms/44 pounds, (Currie et al. 3). The significance to
this finding is that pregnant women are more likely to obtain unhealthy and high caloric food
during pregnancy within .25 miles of residence. While initially this study may seem unrelated to
obesity rates, weight gain affiliated with proximity to fast food locations must be appreciated in
order to insure market success.
Most fast food restaurants have Drive-Thrus to make it even more convenient to get a
quick bite to eat. Worksites, schools, and urban neighborhoods all benefit from having the
convenience of fast food restaurants. Additionally, there is a discernable difference in obesity
rates from the average working age to retirement age. According to a National Health and
Nutrition Examination Survey from 2007-2010, adults age 20-59 that are obese consumed 29.2%
of their daily calorie intake from fast food, while adults age 60 and over that are obese only
consume 7.7% of their daily calorie intake from fast food (Fryar et al. 4). This data supports the
position that as an individuals weight increases, so does their reliance on fast food to supplement
calorie intake. In addition, these statistics show that the working man eats fast food much more
often than do older individuals. As stated at the beginning of this topic, fast food can increase

the rate at which an individual become obese. However, fast food is not solely to blame. A
natural follow-on to these statistics is the question of whether the typical American Lifestyle is
to blame for the obesity epidemic, and not the fast food industry.
Would You Like Fries With That?
There is no simple way to explain the cause of an obesity epidemic, but many Doctors,
Nurses and dieticians have summed up the obesity issue as a direct result of The American
Diet. General consensus agree on one thing about the American Diet: too many calories.
Perhaps its time to stop talking about fatty foods and admit that we simply eat too many
calories. Twenty-five years ago, the average American consumed about 1,850 calories each day.
Since then, our daily diet has grown by 304 calories (roughly the equivalent of two cans of soda).
Thats theoretically enough to add an extra 31 pounds to each person every year, (Woolston).
Perhaps instead of blaming the fast food industry for making America fat, we ought to look at
some other factors. Things such as overeating, unhealthy snacks, high fatty foods, and lack of
exercise all culminate into the obesity epidemic we face today.
A study conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention found that only
20.9% of adults 18 and older completed recommended amounts of aerobic and muscle strength
training for the 2013 year (CDC. 222). Without proper exercise, even a moderately healthy diet
can only maintain ones weight. The lack of physical activity is just one missing piece of the
puzzle. High calorie snacks, lack of self-control, and unhealthy lives are other pieces which
contribute to the obesity problems facing the U.S. population.
Youre Lovin It Too Much!

There is a larger picture to the obesity epidemic than the scope aimed at the fast food
industry. In the same National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 2007-2010
mentioned earlier, researchers found that, adults consumed an average of 11.3% of their daily
calories from fast food, a decrease from 12.8% for 2003-2006, (Fryar et al. 1). This leaves an
average of 88.7% of daily calorie intake coming from other high fatty foods and snacks. For
example, one microwave meal on average contains more calories than a regular sized meal from
most fast food restaurants (Poti et al. 2). George Washington once quoted, It is better to offer no
excuse, than a bad one. The excuse that an independent and free company has forced anyone
into being obese implies a lack of control on the part of consumers. Many fast food businesses
offer an abundant selection of healthy alternatives. These menus are utilized more and more
every year. With most fast food establishments actively taking steps to increase the American
well-being; the rest of America must start doing its part, and stop holding fast food responsible.
The fact that 16.9% of children ages 2-19 are obese is disheartening. Not only are many
children unable to elect which foods they eat, at the same time, these children are being shown
how the rest of their lives are to be lived. The Harvard School of Public Health sums it up
perfectly, Families influence childrens dietary choices and risk of obesity in a number of ways,
and children develop food preferences at home that can last well into adulthood, (Harvard T.H.
Clan). Children that grow up consuming unhealthy diets not only have more health risks, they
also have the potential to pass these risks onto their children. This risks the future of everyone. If
we dont overhaul the entire American Lifestyle, then we will surely end up as the Disney
movie, Wall-E envisioned; living in chairs, too fat to walk or hold our children.

We Can Fix This

Instead of accusing fast food companies of making the U.S. fat, it is time to take the
spoons out of our mouths, look in the mirror and take a step onto the scale. Each of us must be
responsible for our own lifestyle choices. There are dozens of references, research studies, and
analogies provided to demonstrate the fast food industry is not to blame for the obesity epidemic
facing U.S. citizens. To promote a healthy lifestyle, one must live a healthy lifestyle using
moderation and good research to lay a solid foundation for themselves and their children. The
freedom that makes the United States so great is also a primary source jeopardizing the health of
American citizens. Fast food is a freedom and any freedom can be abused. Blaming fast food
companies for what an individual consumes is illogical. A review of the references provided
throughout this paper, combined with personal initiative and a sharing knowledge are key to
changing the perception of fast food. This epidemic can be stopped; the first step is to stop
blaming and start learning.

Works Cited
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health, United States, 2013 With Special Feature
on Prescription Drugs (2013): 222. Web. 6 Mar. 2015.
Currie, Janet, Stefano DellaVigna, Enrico Moretti, and Vikram Pathania. "The Effect of Fast
Food Restaurants on Obesity and Weight Gain." American Economic Journal: Economic
Policy 2.3 (2010): 32-63. Web. 24 Feb. 2015.
"Fast Food Industry." Statista. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2015.
Fryar, Cheryl, and R. B. Ervin. "Caloric Intake from Fast Food Among Adults: United
States." National Center for Health Statistics 114 (2013): N.p., Web. 24 Feb. 2015.
Ogden, Cynthia, Margaret Carroll, Brian Kit, and Katherine Flegal. "Prevalence of
Childhood and Adult Obesity in the United States." Journal of the American
Medical Association 311.8 (2014): 806-14. Web. 24 Feb. 2015.
Poti, Jennifer, Kiyah Duffey, and Barry Popkin. "The Association of Fast Food
Consumption with Poor Dietary Outcomes and Obesity Among Children: is It the
Fast Food or The Remainder of Diet?" The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
N.p., 15 Jan. 2014. Web. 24 Feb. 2015.
"Total Population by Child and Adult Populations." KIDS COUNT Data Center. U.S.
Census Bureau, July 2014. Web. 6 Mar. 2015
"Toxic Food Environment." Obesity Prevention Source. Harvard T.H. Chan School of
Public Health, n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2015.

Washington, George. "An Admonition to His Niece." Bartleby.com. N.p., 30 Oct. 1971. Web.
22 Feb. 2015.
Wilson, Tracy V. "How Fast Food Works." Howstuffworks. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Mar. 2015.
Woolston, Chris. "What's Wrong With the American Diet?" Health Day. N.p., 11 Mar. 2014.
Web. 6 Mar. 2015.