Fast Food or Good Food Quickly? It's Up to You, Not the Government

You may now consume fast food without the guilt (well, almost):

Wendy's completes zero trans-fat cooking oil switch

DUBLIN, Ohio - Wendy's is now cooking with oil that has zero grams of trans-fat per serving at its 6,000 U.S. restaurants.

"Wendy's has kept its promise to its customers," said Wendy's interim chief executive Kerrii Anderson. "After two years of research and development, we said in June that we would convert to the new cooking oil by the end of August. We're proud to announce that this process is now complete."

With the move, Wendy's becomes the first major quick-service restaurant chain to switch to non-hydrogenated cooking oil for its french fries and chicken items.

Wendy's breaded chicken sandwiches, nuggets and strips now have zero grams of trans-fat. Depending on the serving size, trans-fats in French fry offerings will range from zero to 0.5 grams. Kids' Meal nuggets and fries will have no trans-fat.

(Full story...)

What's noteworthy about this story is that the folks at Wendy's took this step on their own. They didn't need another Draconian federal law or an executive decision from an unconstitutional agency like the FDA to take trans fat off their menu. They saw a need in the market and moved to meet that demand. Isn't capitalism great?

Contrary to what the defenders of the nanny state will tell you, America's economy isn't as free as it could be - which is to say that it isn't as free as it should be. We don't need more "safeguards" forced on us by the government. If anything, we need less. The market will adjust to meet public demand. What do you think people did before the FDA came along?

More freedom, however, means that we would have to exercise more responsibility. Rather than relying on the government to tell us what we can and can't eat, we would have to start using our brains to decide what goes into our stomachs.

For example, you don't need the government to tell you that even though Wendy's is now using a healthier cooking oil, you still want to watch what you consume. It really doesn't take much mental exertion to realize that the regular soda still contains high fructose corn syrup and the diet soda uses potentially harmful artificial sweeteners; the Frosty dessert is still loaded with sugar and the sandwich buns, fries, and breaded chicken add a significant amount of starch to your meal.

But, then again, it's your call, not the government's. What you eat is between you and your fast food restaurant...okay, and maybe your spouse, but I won't get into that here.