Hindus, vegetarians sue McDonald's over frying process

Sam Skolnik / Seattle Post-Intelligencer 2may01

[ McDonald's Apologizes ]

A claim by McDonald's that its famous french fries are cooked in "100 percent vegetable oil" is being challenged by a Seattle lawyer representing Hindus and vegetarians.

The fast-food chain stopped frying fries in beef fat 11 years ago -- a move that was hailed by health groups across the country.

But now several consumers have filed suit, claiming McDonald's has admitted that "beef flavoring" is used in the making of the salty potato strips.

A class-action suit filed yesterday in King County Superior Court contends McDonald's "intentionally failed to publicly disclose its continued use of beef tallow in the (french fry) cooking process under the guise of 'natural flavor.'"

"This is pretty outrageous behavior," said attorney Harish Bharti, who filed the suit. "Hindus and vegetarians all over the world feel shocked and betrayed by McDonald's deception and ultimate greed."

Hindus regard the cow as a sacred animal, and as a general rule do not eat beef.

Officials at McDonald's headquarters in Oak Park, Ill., could not be reached for comment yesterday.

There are three named plaintiffs in the suit: two Hindus who live in Lynnwood and Seattle, respectively; and a non-Hindu vegetarian from Seattle. Bharti said he wants the class to include the estimated 1 million Hindus and 15 million vegetarians who live in the United States.

Bharti is relying in part on a recent e-mail from a McDonald's official to a concerned Hindu man that appears to confirm that beef extract is in the fries.

"For flavor enhancement, McDonald's french-fry suppliers use a miniscule amount of beef flavoring as an ingredient in the raw product," wrote Megan Magee of McDonald's Home Office Customer Satisfaction Department. The e-mail was sent March 28 to Hitesh Shah, a Los Angeles software engineer.

Although beef is not listed as an ingredient in McDonald's fries, it is part of what is described by the company as "natural flavor," according to the suit.

After the raw potatoes are shipped to McDonald's distribution centers, the suit says, the spuds are cut into strips and blanched in beef tallow.

The suit seeks unspecified damages for violations of the Washington Consumer Protection Act and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

French-fry flap spurs McDonald's apology

Company says it's sorry for 'confusion' over beef flavoring

Scott Sunde / Seattle Post-Intelligencer 25may01

McDonald's, which gave the world the Big Mac and Hamburger University, is apologizing for beef.

The fast-food giant faces lawsuits in Seattle and elsewhere in North America and protests in India over using beef products in its french fries. Now it's offering an explanation and contrition on its Web site.

"McDonald's USA is always sensitive to customers' concerns. Because it is our policy to communicate to customers, we regret if customers felt that the information we provided was not complete enough to meet their needs. If there was confusion, we apologize," the company's U.S. Web page says.

A Seattle lawyer who has sued McDonald's over its fries was unimpressed with the statement. "Apologies are good if they are sincere. But halfhearted apologies don't work," Harish Bharti said.

The company said it adds "a small amount of beef flavoring" to potatoes as they are being lightly fried at a processing plant. McDonald's then freezes the fries and ships them off to its U.S. restaurants, which cook the potatoes in vegetable oil, the company said.

The company switched to vegetable oil for restaurant cooking of fries in 1990 to please cholesterol-conscious customers. The move attracted the attention of newspapers around the country.

But Bharti says the 1990 announcement was deceptive.

He sued McDonald's in King County Superior Court earlier this month over its continued use of what he believes is beef tallow in the processing of fries. He sued, he said, on behalf of his 1 million fellow Hindus in the United States and the nation's 15 million vegetarians.

Bharti said he has filed similar lawsuits in the San Francisco Bay area and British Columbia.

Word of the Seattle lawsuit became big news in India, whose Hindu population does not eat beef for religious reasons. Indians held anti-McDonald's protests, vandals hit one restaurant, and some radical Hindu groups called for the fast-food chain to leave the country.

McDonald's said almost immediately that it didn't use beef or pork products in its french fries in India. It also said it doesn't use pork or beef products in any vegetarian meals in India.

In fact, the company said it has tried to comply with local dietary customs, following Islamic rules, for example, in the Middle East.

In India, the company introduced Maharaja Macs that have "two all-lamb patties," rather than the beef Big Mac popular in the United States.

In the United States, the company's beef additive to fries falls under "natural flavor" in the nutrition information that customers can pick up at restaurants. A company spokesman did not respond to a request for comment about why the company didn't list beef flavoring by name or what the flavoring consists of.