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Funny you should mention fast food restaurants specifically.Advertisements are misleading by nature. That's why a real Big Mac looks like a pile of shit when you order it, compared to what is advertised on TV. Shit, that's why they have athletes promoting that garbage, when in reality, they would never touch it. You have to think for yourself in this world.
McDonald’s and Wendy’s win false advertising lawsuit
US District Judge Hector Gonzalez ruled that Wendy’s and McDonald’s food images “are no different than other companies’ use of visually appealing images to foster positive associations with their products.” He also said that disclaimers listed on the chains’ websites were “prominent” and gave “objective information about the weight and caloric content of those meals.”
Major fast food chains, including Burger King, Arby’s and Taco Bell, have all been targets lately for lawsuits that allege they’re misrepresenting food in their marketing. The explosion has been largely driven by the efforts of a handful of lawyers arguing that food in ads appears more bountiful than what customers actually get.
“We saw a record number of food litigation lawsuits filed from 2020 to 2023, with hundreds of new suits every year,” Tommy Tobin, a lawyer at Perkins Coie and a lecturer at UCLA School of Law, recently told CNN. “Food litigation is a fast-growing area of law,” he added.
In response, the fast food chains deny the accusations. Burger King, for example, said about a similar lawsuit that “reasonable consumers viewing food advertising know” that food in ads “has been styled to make it look as appetizing as possible.”
I have to admit though, at least when the Japanese do it with their food it actually looks like what you'll get if you order it almost all the time. The difference between what you see and what you get at North American fast food restaurants is why I almost never eat at them. That's an individual choice, however, and I agree with the judge in this case.