Spain Tells Burger King to Pull Ads

AP ^ | 16 Nov 2006 | AP

[FLOutdoorsman]

MADRID, Spain — Burger King Corp. should yank an ad campaign for its monster XXL burger _ the caloric equivalent of eating 10 fried eggs _ because it violates a Spanish initiative against obesity, the Health Ministry said Thursday.

The ministry said it had been asking the fast-food chain to abandon the campaign for more than a week because the commercials go against an agreement signed by the Spanish Federation of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs, of which Burger King is a member.

Under the agreement, members of the federation said they would refrain from promoting huge servings of food, the health ministry said.

An advertisement on Burger King's Spanish Web site features a photograph of the towering Double-Cheese Bacon XXL with the slogan: "It's awful being a vegetarian, right?"

The site describes the XXL as a Whopper "with two enormous portions of flame-broiled meat that will give you all the energy you need to take the world by storm."

Each sandwich has an average of 971 calories_ nearly 50 percent of the recommended daily allowance for an active teenager_ and 25 grams of saturated fat, the Health Ministry said. The numbers could be even higher if condiments like ketchup and mayonnaise were added to the burgers.

"In this campaign, we are simply promoting a line of burgers that has formed part of our menu in recent years," Burger King said in a statement. "Our philosophy can be summed up with the motto 'As you like it,' in which our customers' taste trumps all."

The company added that customers can always choose a salad over a Whopper and have the option to add or remove ingredients as they please.

An official at Burger King's press office in Madrid said the company had no plans to abandon the campaign.

Spain was home to Burger King's first European restaurant_ launched in 1975 in Madrid. In July the company inaugurated its 400th restaurant in Spain, located in the southern city of Seville.

[endthematrix]

After eating a monster XXL burger, Spain can pull my finger...

[FLOutdoorsman]

Sadly, Europe is more concerned with the Super-size than they are the threat of Islam.

[MissouriConservative]

This is just a small preview of what is coming to the United States.

[Lancey Howard]

Under the agreement, members of the federation said they would refrain from promoting huge servings of food, the health ministry said.

You can always look to places like France, Spain, Norway, Germany, Great Britain, and other mediocre nations of dying old Europe for a glimpse into the future as the Democrats would have it - - America turned into a fully unionized, secular-socialist welfare state.

[Petronski]

[FLOutdoorsman]

That made my day! Thanks

[Petronski]

It is an ancient Hindu text, quoted by a meaty monarch.

[durasell]

Gratuitously obscure quote from Oppie quoting Bhagavata

[Petronski]

Thanks! I like being gratuitously obscure.



I also enjoy being irritatingly pedantic. It's a hobby.






;OP

[freedom moose]

The company added that customers can always choose a salad over a Whopper and have the option to add or remove ingredients as they please.
No!!!!!! They must not have options and be able to choose for themselves.

The nanny state is gay,intrusive and stupid but I do have to say this is probably more about anti-American attitude than anything else. After all we are a country where consuming enormous amounts of meat often in an un PC way is a tradition. Check out for example the "chuleton" which is a rare steak usually starting around 1 kilo (that's like 2 lbs right?)

[durasell]

I prefer Feynman's quote a few moments later:

That's it, the thing.

[kinoxi]

:)

[freedom moose]

Oooops government losers....your plan backfired. Though i never would have bothered, this story has inspired me to go eat one for lunch today.
P.S. note to self...stop by the ministry of health before lunch and make sure I get an official stamp showing i've paid my large burger consumption permit tax.

[Jezebelle]

I agree that if BK wants to advertise the burger, there should be no government intervention.

However, I do wish the fast food joints would amp down the fat, calories and salt in the foods they serve. It isn't healthy at all, especially for kids. Combine that with the fact that these kids sit in front of TV sets and game boards all day and never move. My husband is a teacher. He says kids now are extremely lazy and don't want to play games that involve running or moving a ball. In fact, he says, they can't run or move a ball because almost all of them are too fat and too uncoordinated. They hate to move.

I saw a news piece tonight about all these people lined up for days to get into a SONY store to buy the new Playstation 3. It showed one of the games on the screen which was a basketball game. So, instead of going outside and actually playing basketball, these kids, along with their parents, are going to play it sitting on their ever-widening butts with a hand-held device and screen.

We need to knock off the bad food and the laziness. This country is going to hell fast in terms of our physical well-being. People should take responsibility for this as individuals for themselves and their family - for our health, longevity, productivity, medical costs, and so we don't have pushy government ramming it down our throats as they do in Spain.

The problem is that the fat and calorie dense fast foods have become a regular part of the American diet instead of just an occasional meal. If people would stop patronizing them so much, maybe some of them would shut down and we would continue making even better choices. It's better to go out and have a really fine steak once in awhile than to shove Big Macs swimming in mayonnaise with a half-gallon size of Pepsi or Triple Bacon and Cheese Whoppers down your throat three or four times a week.

/soapbox :>

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

MADRID, Spain — Burger King Corp. should yank an ad campaign for its monster XXL burger _ the caloric equivalent of eating 10 fried eggs _ because it violates a Spanish initiative against obesity, the Health Ministry said Thursday.

Oh, knock it off, you terrorist-fleeing pantywaists!

[Jaysun]

I dunno Jezebelle. Saying that we should exercise for our health is a bit like saying that you should drive the hell out of your car if you want it to last longer. It doesn't make sense. Besides, I rarely see a runner with a smile on his or her face - it looks painful.

So I'll stick to the notion that it's probably a lot healthier to simply lay down and take it easy. On the other hand, I hate Burger King. Their food is good enough but their mascot is a damned weirdo. Same thing with "Head On". I won't buy the stuff because of their commercials.

[FreedomCalls]

Burger King Corp. should yank an ad campaign for its monster XXL burger _ the caloric equivalent of eating 10 fried eggs

Luke: I can eat fifty eggs.
Dragline: Nobody can eat fifty eggs.
Society Red: You just said he could eat anything.
Dragline: Did you ever eat fifty eggs?
Luke: Nobody ever eat fifty eggs.
Prisoner: Hey, Babalugats. We got a bet here.
Dragline: My boy says he can eat fifty eggs, he can eat fifty eggs.

[Caipirabob]

[Bonaparte]

I gotta agree with you about the laziness. It's a scandal and must cease.

However, I grew up in the '50s and (trust me) we were engulfed in fat and calories -- burgers, shakes, fries, pizza, chicken deep-fried in pork fat, etc. I ate this stuff all the time. You wouldn't believe what a pork chop looked like back then. It was ringed with fat and sooo much tastier than the "new improved" lean chops we've got now.

But here's the thing -- I was lean throughout those years and I was a jock. In fact, I was just as addicted to competitive sports as I was to high-cal high-fat food. The kids who didn't care for sports found plenty of sendentary pursuits, such as building models or collecting stamps or insects or whatever they did. And if they weren't blessed with speedy metabolism, they got fat.

So what has changed? I think two things have changed.

Fathers -- they're not around as much anymore. When I came home from school, I grabbed my basketball or football or baseball glove and headed out immediately. Otherwise, Dad would have "chores" for me. I credit him with keeping me in top physical condition.

The other thing that's changed is the physical environment at school. Way too much emphasis on safety, on "cooperation," on "zero tolerance" for anything smacking of testosterone. No wonder nobody's interested in physical activity. You can no longer go in for the kill, not until high school and by then, you've been through 10 years of playing hop scotch and volley ball with girls. You see what I mean? We've raised a generation of castrati. They've been "fixed," or as the British say, "seen to." Of course all they want to do is play computer games and collect graphic novels. That's the only place they can have any adventure, danger, risk.

[PAR35]

Sadly, Europe is more concerned with the Super-size than they are the threat of Islam.

Of course they would want to ban this burger -- it has bacon on it.

[Bonaparte]

And even if it doesn't, it's been cooked on the same grill that has all that bacon grease still on it. I'm telling you, those Spanish social engineers are gonna make terrific muslims. They've already got the knack. The rest of Spain is gonna keep eating those jumbo burgers at BK. And BK is gonna keep making money, creating jobs and revenue for Spain in spite of its goofy socialist bureaucrats and their "lunch righteousness."

[dennisw]

Not so obscure quote of Oppenheimer quoting Bhagavad Gita

[durasell]

At this point Oppenheimer is obscure.

[FreedomPoster]

LOL! Perfect!

That guy is really, really frightening. I won't go in a Burger King because of him.

[Nasty McPhilthy]

http://www.subservientchicken.com/

[snowsislander]

Burger King Corp. should yank an ad campaign for its monster XXL burger _ the caloric equivalent of eating 10 fried eggs _ because it violates a Spanish initiative against obesity, the Health Ministry said Thursday.

So is the Spanish government also going to stop the sale of the traditional (and delicious) tortilla de patatas:

They are nothing except eggs and potatoes fried together. If Burger King's mere equivalent of lots of fried eggs is bad, then the real thing must be very bad?

[vamoose]

Can I get a fried Twinkie with that?

[Joe Boucher]

What they are really saying is the Spanish men and women are FAT enough already.

[Charles Henrickson]

Spain Tells Burger King to Pull Ads

The King responds:

¿Dónde está tu Dios ahora?

[Jezebelle]

Agree 100%. Also, kids walked and rode bikes to places. Now, somebody drives them, picks them up, etc.. They just do not move! With today's sedentary kids, those marbled chops, shakes, burgers and deep-fried everything that we ate have become a daily diet of fast food for many of them with a constant stream of junk food in between the fast food feedings. Yeah, when you and I were kids we ate the burgers, fries and shakes sometimes, but I'll bet you, like me, had a stay-at-home mom who cooked roasts, meat loaf, etc., with potatoes or rice and green vegetables for dinner, which is still a whole lot healthier than fast food. You probably had some cereal and juice in the morning, and a halfway decent lunch that included some fruit and milk. Each class had maybe one fat kid, who wasn't even all that fat. Now the thin kid is the exception. Portions were smaller then, too, and people, especially kids, did not tend to overeat as they do now. A burger was a burger. Now it's a double or triple with bacon, fake cheese made out of God-knows-what, and swimming in mayonnaise-based sauce with a huge side of fries and a Coke approaching two quarts. It's all completely saturated with sodium, which causes excess fluid retention and general sluggishness. Add lack of physical activity to all that and the combination has created a major epidemic of obesity in kids AND adults. It's an embarrassment to our country, and it's costly. Heart disease is the #1 killer in this country, much of it related to diet. Diabetes is way up, especially in kids, also mainly a function of diet. The obesity adversely affects kids' mental attitude, their academic achievement, and their behavior. The people in this country need to quit overeating and get moving again.

[Jezebelle]

Fine. Make fun of me if you wish. It's your funeral.

*SHRUG*

[6SJ7]

The ministry said it had been asking the fast-food chain to abandon the campaign for more than a week because the commercials go against an agreement signed by the Spanish Federation of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs, of which Burger King is a member.

Sounds like a conflict with the BK Stackers Union!

[Larry Lucido]

If the only meat in th world was Burger King meat, I'd have to explore vegetarianism.

That said, their superduper omelette, ham, sausage and cheese sandwhich is pretty awesome.

[chilepepper]

Each sandwich has an average of 971 calories_ nearly 50 percent of the recommended daily allowance for an active teenager

So active teenagers in Spain are on a starvation diet?

The typical calculation of the minimum daily caloric requirements for a boy between 1 and 18 is 17.5cal * Weight in kilograms + 651 and the resulting total multiplied by 1.4 for a sedentary kid, 1.7 more a moderately active teen, and 2.0 for a very active teen.

So the Spanish teenager is allowed ~1950 calories, while the above equation from a fitness website comes up with over 3000 calories for a moderately active boy weighing 140 pounds...

[Jaysun]

I wasn't making fun of you, just trying to be funny. Incidentally, the idea that eating fat = being fat is almost as absurd as the idea that eating fat will cause it to somehow end up in our pipes (although nothing else supposedly works that way, we don't have carrots or potatoes in our veins, causing heart attacks). Yet many people believe just that.

Our increase in obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, etc. coincides nicely with the "low fat" craze. A recent study of the French showed that they consume more fat and have higher cholesterol that we do and yet they don't have the supposed problems that come with it, like we do.

I don't see the fat as a problem. But the laziness is a huge problem. I think we need to eat more fat and do more physical activities.

[durasell]

Incidentally, the idea that eating fat = being fat is almost as absurd as the idea that eating fat will cause it to somehow end up in our pipes (although nothing else supposedly works that way, we don't have carrots or potatoes in our veins, causing heart attacks). Yet many people believe just that.




The mystery of fat in the blood explained. Please don't quote back sections out of context to me. I've posted this for your benefit. Read it or ignore it. http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fats.html

[Diddle E. Squat]

Good move, wrong reason. They should be banned simply for running the creepiest ad campaigns ever made!

[Joe 6-pack]

"Not so obscure quote of Oppenheimer quoting Bhagavad Gita." Was it Oppenheimer? For some reason I thought it was Teller(?)

[Constantine XIII]

LOL, bump

[megatherium]

The university where I teach replaced all the classroom desks. The new ones accomodate fat butts better.

My suspicion is that what you eat is less important than whether you burn enough calories to keep you lean. Physically active, lean people probably have the best odds of being healthy (low cholesterol, low risk of heart attack, etc).

[A knight without armor]

Good soapbox. You are right that we should move more and eat healthier. But the "but" part is look at your last sentence. Your terminology speaks volumes on your view of people and even money. You say one would "have a really fine steak" in a restaurant but "shove" cheaper fast food "down your throat". Don't you know you are shoving that really fine steak down the same hole as the Whopper and coke? I don't want to shock you but somewhere across town somebody is "having" french fries and a burger.

Ok. Time for me to get off my soapbox and shove coffee down my throat!

[JZelle]

Global Test

[dennisw]

oppie!

[Jezebelle]

Not quite - I'm saying don't buy (and eat) the crap food on a daily basis. Instead, once in awhile treat yourself to a real nice steak at a sit-down restaurant with a waiter/waitress and really enjoy yourself.

Contrary to what some people think, it is cheaper to eat at home than it is to buy fast food. The money saved by eating healthier, home-cooked food could be spent on a nice restaurant dinner once in awhile, and it would be an all around healthier diet.

[Tribune7]

LOL

[Jezebelle]

Yes, I think that's true.

[Xenalyte]

I thought it was Captain Marko Ramius. ;)

[Sam's Army]

I'm glad Spain has the right idea on which of these 2 threats are of greater concern:

[steveo]