McDonald’s Fries Are Only To Pass Fat Test
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French fries from Burger King and Wendy’s fall short of requirements laid out in New York City’s ban on trans fats, according to a new study.
A report by the Center for Science in the Public Interest found that a large order of fries at Wendy’s contained 3.7 grams of trans fat, while Burger King fries contained 3.3. grams. The New York City ban, which takes effect in July 2008, requires restaurants to limit artificial trans fat to less than 0.5 grams a serving.
To complete their study, CSPI researchers bought large orders of French fries from five different McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s stores in Manhattan. McDonald’s was the only one to “pass” the test, when lab results found the fries contained only 0.2 grams of trans fat per serving.
In a statement, Wendy’s defended its French fries. While CSPI purchased fries from a limited number of outlets, the restaurant chain sampled fries from across the country and had the spuds tested in independent laboratories. Those tests showed that a large serving of French fries contained only 1 gram of trans fat.
“We are confident in these independent results, and stand by them,” the company said.
