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Why McDonald’s Happy Meal Items Will Not Rot
Several on-going experiments have shown that McDonald’s hamburgers stubbornly refuse to rot. Like ever! (Decades, people!) Ditto the fries. Does that make you think twice about offering your kid a Happy Meal (even if they skip the food — or is it “food”? — and go straight for the Happy Meal toy?
Riddhi Shah rounds up for Salon a few of the well-documented, independent tests going on right now regarding the long longevity of the popular food items.
For example, a 12-year-old hamburger that’s still looking edible (as far as fast-food hamburger edibility goes).
The Happy Meal Project is photographer Sally Davies art/science project documenting the decay of a McDonald’s burger and packet of fries. You can look at the slide show (day 94 is pictured above), but you won’t see much change. Those things aren’t even getting moldy and it has been, like, almost 150 days since she started.
Shah investigates the Cher-ish nature of the most famous meal on earth and we learn that it doesn’t have to be an abundance of artificial preservatives that keep the food from decay. Rather, it could be the high amount of salt and fat in the items. The fries are known to contain citric acid for preservation. But it’s the way they’re cut — thin for greater heat exposure, which kills bacteria and burns off water — and also the near 50 percent calories from fat. Fat repels water, so, again, no breakdown! Same, pretty much, for the beef patties.
The buns, which have also held up remarkably, are another story. They contain large amounts of sodium propionate and calcium propionate. Shah notes, importantly, that supermarket bread also lists the two ingredients. Really, it’s all the processing that will keep Davies project going well after the funding runs out (I made that up. I don’t know if her photography project is funded.)
Lesson? Processed food, salty food, fat food makes food seem scary and unnatural. So if this makes you chuck the Happy Meal (oh, I know, you’ve never bought one!), then perhaps you’ll need to chuck your kid’s PB & J as well (depending on the ingredients, of course).
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Photo: refinery29.com/happymealproject
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8 Comments
[...] Why McDonald’s Menu Items Will Not Rot [...]
5 Genius Tips for Getting Out the Door on Time | Strollerderby commented on Sep 02 10 at 5:21 pmLBD commented on Sep 02 10 at 11:23 pmEverything in moderation.
Rosana commented on Sep 03 10 at 12:59 pmhehehe!! Oh, that is what makes them delicious :)
nmcd commented on Sep 03 10 at 3:31 pmThis woman wants rot? She should photograph a big mac for 137 days… Seriously, I love critical pieces like these. I’m so sick of The Horror! The Horror!
brex commented on Sep 05 10 at 12:50 amAs someone with a number of on-going food experiments hidden throughout the house due to a toddler, I can let you know that once things like that lose their moisture, they do not rot. Fruit on the other hand does. I mean, come on, make a hamburger yourself in your own kitchen and just leave it on a shelf. If it’s well-done, you’ll likely see the same thing.
Janus commented on Sep 08 10 at 5:37 pmthe undead burger
bigfacebrian commented on Oct 13 10 at 12:43 pmIt’s really creapy how these burgers don’t rot. I could still go for a Sausage McMuffin right now though! Cool story, I featured this in my blog: http://no1equal.spruz.com/blog.htm
Jenna commented on Jul 26 11 at 2:17 amIs it bad how hungry this made me? I want some fries… like, now.
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