414 lines
21 KiB
Plaintext
414 lines
21 KiB
Plaintext
Date: 10/31/94
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OUTLINE: The Ninth & Tenth Weeks Of The Trial
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BACKGROUND OF THE MCLIBEL TRIAL
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DR. NEAL BARNARD Diet & Chronic Diseases: Dr. Barnard, President
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of the US Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine and an
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expert on nutrition and health, came from the USA to give evidence
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over 4 days on behalf of the Defendants.
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LEGAL MANEUVERS OF MCDONALD'S
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PETER COX - Marketing and Health: Peter Cox, former marketing
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consultant, and also former Chief Executive of the Vegetarian
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Society, gave evidence for the Defense as an expert on the marketing
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of food.
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Credibility Gap
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Expansion and Subversion
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Japan
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Australia
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DR. ERIK MILLSTONE - Food Additives & Safety: The Defendants
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called Dr. Erik Millstone, an expert on food additives safety
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policy issues.
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Doubts over the safety of additives
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Sunset Yellow (E110)
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Amaranth (E123)
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Sodium Nitrite (E250)
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BHA (E320) & BHT (E321)
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Carrageenan (E407)
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Monosodium Glutamate (621)
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Potassium Bromate (924)
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Styrene
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MCLIBEL TRIAL COMING UP (eleventh week) -
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CAMPAIGN NEWS
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======================================================================
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BACKGROUND OF THE MCLIBEL TRIAL
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After several years of pre-trial hearings, the McDonalds libel case against
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two environmentalists - who were allegedly involved in distribution in
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1989/1990 of the London Greenpeace leaflet "What's Wrong With McDonalds" -
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finally began at the end of June.
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A total of approximately 170 UK and international witnesses will give
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evidence in court about the effects of the company's advertising and the
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impact of its operating practices and food products on the environment, on
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millions of farmed animals, on human health, on the Third World, and on
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McDonalds' own staff. They will include environmental and nutritional
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experts, trade unionists, McDonald's employees, customers and top
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executives.
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McDonalds have claimed that wide-ranging criticisms of their operations, in
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a leaflet produced by London Greenpeace, have defamed them, so they have
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launched this libel action against two people (Dave Morris & Helen Steel)
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involved with the group.
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Prior to the start of the case, McDonald's issued leaflets nationwide
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calling their critics liars. So Helen and Dave themselves took out a
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counterclaim for libel against McDonald's which will run concurrently with
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McDonald's libel action.
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Helen and Dave were denied their right to a jury trial, at McDonalds'
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request. And, with no right to Legal Aid in libel cases, they are forced to
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conduct their own defense against McDonald's team of top libel lawyers.
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The trial is open to members of the press and public (Court 35, Royal
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Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2) and is set to run until at least
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April 1995.
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THE NINTH & TENTH WEEKS OF THE TRIAL
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Weeks beginning 10 Oct. and 17 Oct. were taken up with defense witnesses on
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diet & chronic diseases, marketing & health, and food additives & safety.
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DR. NEAL BARNARD - Diet & Chronic Diseases: Dr. Barnard, President of
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the US Physicians' Committee for Responsible Medicine and an expert
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on nutrition and health, came from the USA to give evidence over 4
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days on behalf of the Defendants.
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He said "many products sold at McDonald's are high in fat and cholesterol,
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and low in fiber and certain vitamins", and as a result these products
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"contribute to heart disease, certain forms of cancer and other diseases"
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(including obesity, diabetes, and hypertension). The links between diet and
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these now epidemic diseases (described by the World Health Organization as
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"the commonest cause of premature death in developed countries") are, he
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said, "established beyond any reasonable doubt", and were causal in nature.
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He said that heart disease is linked to a high fat diet, particularly to
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high levels of saturated fat as found in animal products. "Saturated fat
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stimulates the liver to make more cholesterol", increasing people's blood
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cholesterol levels. He added that "on average, every 1% increase in the
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amount of blood cholesterol raises the risk of a heart attack by 2% or
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more". He stated that blood cholesterol levels can be raised or lowered
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over a matter of only a few days.
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He reported that official bodies estimate that "more than 30% of cancers
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are linked to foods", especially breast, colon and prostate cancer. He
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pointed out that, in addition to the general problem of consuming too much
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fat and too little fiber in the diet, there is also increasing concern in
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the US about the carcinogenic mutagens which form on the surface of grilled
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and fried meat. He referred to a large body of evidence showing that
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vegetarians almost always have a lower incidence of the chronic diseases
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mentioned; furthermore, a vegetarian or vegan diet had been found to help
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in the treatment of many such diseases. He stated "that McDonald's
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products clearly contain significantly more fat than government guidelines
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and health authorities recommend". Evidence had shown that "fatty foods
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tend to be habituating" and "increase the likelihood of continued high fat
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intake". "McDonald's food remain part of the problem, rather than part of
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the solution".
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It was essential that people had the full information when choosing what to
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eat. But McDonald's advertising had been misleading - one example was the
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company's promotion during US National Nutrition Month in 1993 which
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claimed that food from the meat group "can make it easier to do things like
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climb higher and ride your bike farther". He said "the concept that high
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protein foods are essential for endurance" had been discarded a hundred
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years ago and there was "no evidence whatsoever" to back it up. He said a
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more accurate description of the effects of frequent meat-eating would note
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its links to some chronic diseases. He quoted the director of a major study
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into heart disease, Dr. William Castelli who said "When you see the Golden
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Arches you're probably on the road to the pearly gates."
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LEGAL MANEUVERS OF MCDONALD'S- Before the case began, McDonald's had
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conceded part of the Defendants' case by making a formal admission that
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"there is a considerable amount of evidence of a relationship between a
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diet high in saturated fat and sodium [salt], and obesity, high blood
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pressure and heart disease." They denied any association between diet and
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cancer, and claimed this damaging allegation was at the core of the case -
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the resolution of which would be so complex that a jury would not be able
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to understand the arguments. But, during Dr. Barnard's evidence, Richard
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Rampton QC (for McDonald's) conceded that "we would all agree" that there
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is a link between a high fat, low fiber diet and cancer of the breast and
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colon.
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Later, the Defendants complained to Mr. Justice Bell that McDonald's had
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now conceded virtually the entire Defense position in this [diet and
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disease] section of the case, and accused the company of deliberately
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prolonging matters to justify McDonald's pre-trial application against a
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jury. Following this, Richard Rampton QC dropped his questioning of Dr.
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Barnard and then canceled his further cross-examination of the Defense
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cancer experts, Professor Crawford and Geoffrey Cannon due the following
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week.
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McDonald's are now trying to shift the goal posts by applying to change
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their Statement of Claim (the basis of the legal action, issued in
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September 1990) to say that the Defendants should now have to prove the
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statement (not contained in the London Greenpeace Fact sheet) that
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"McDonald's sell meals which cause cancer and heart disease in their
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customers".
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PETER COX - Marketing and Health: Peter Cox, former marketing
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consultant, and also former Chief Executive of the Vegetarian
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Society, gave evidence for the Defense as an expert on the marketing
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of food.
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He said that McDonald's promotional material was "one-sided", sometimes
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"deliberately misleading", containing significant omissions and even
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"weasel words" which "while ... implying one thing, actually say something
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else", as a result ultimately "confusing" and "misleading" the reader. This
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was particularly true of their nutritional information and advice which
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failed to alert customers to health implications of eating products high in
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fat, saturated fat, salt and sugar, and low in fiber and certain vitamins.
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Yet at the same time, the company, he said, clearly "set themselves up as
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nutritional consultants" and therefore had an "overwhelming responsibility
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... to tell people the truth" about these matters.
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Mr. Cox referred to a company document from 1985 (not available in stores)
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which made it absolutely clear that the company was aware even then of the
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links between diet and diseases - it specified heart disease, cancer,
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diabetes and obesity. It was his opinion therefore that the effect of the
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company's efforts to promote their products as "good, nutritious food" over
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the years was "to debase the concept of 'healthy eating' to no more than a
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cynical sales promotional ploy".
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Credibility Gap - Mr. Cox said their main products were generally
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"unhealthy". If they genuinely wish to provide nutritious food, he would
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expect to see more emphasis on a choice of vegetable products and fruit
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etc. He pointed out that even their salads (still only available in some
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stores) had a "ludicrously high" fat content (over 50% calories from fat).
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The company's claim to be concerned about healthy eating was not borne out
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by the products sold. Mr. Cox told how the company were now promoting their
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newest menu item - the "Mega Mac" which comprises 4 meat patties and
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contains huge amounts of fat and saturated fat. He said there was a huge
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"credibility gap - the difference between the image portrayed ... and the
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reality of the food sold". He believed that the few positive steps made had
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been taken "perhaps rather grudgingly" as a result of public pressure.
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He was concerned that "gimmickry" was being used to promote unhealthy food
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to children. He quoted Ray Kroc, McDonald's founder and President until
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1984, from his autobiography: "a child who loves our TV commercials and
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brings her grandparents to McDonald's gives us two more customers. This is
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a direct benefit generated by advertising dollars". Mr. Cox stated that the
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use of ads to promote "pester power" is outlawed by UK advertising
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authorities. However, this doesn't cover general sales promotion such as
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the use of toys and clowns.
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Expansion and Subversion - He said McDonald's were "redefining ... the word
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'meal'". He also quoted from "Behind the Arches", a book authorized by
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McDonald's in 1987, as evidence that McDonald's were engaged in "a strategy
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of subversion" by trying to alter the dietary preferences of whole nations,
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"very often for the worse". Mr. Cox read the following quotes from "Behind
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the Arches":
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In Japan, McDonald's faced "a fundamental challenge of establishing beef as
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a common food". Their President, Den Fujita, stated "the reason Japanese
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people are so short and have yellow skins is because they have eaten
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nothing but fish and rice for two thousand years"; "if we eat McDonald's
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hamburgers and potatoes for a thousand years we will become taller, our
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skin become white and our hair blonde". The book says that Fujita "aimed
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virtually all his advertising at children and young families", and that he
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stated "we could teach the children that the hamburger was something good".
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The company also changed eating habits in Australia. Peter Ritchie
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(McDonald's Australian president) said he "attributes that change to the
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influence McDonald's has on children". The book concludes that rather than
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adapt to local tastes and preferences "McDonald's foreign partners made
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major changes in marketing in order to sell the American system".
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Peter Cox said it was clear that their strategy of expansion is to "change
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culture to suit the product" by "conducting unethical marketing and
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attempting to disguise the fact". He described the company's marketing as
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"ruthless", "unethical" and "unacceptable". McDonald's, more than any other
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company, has succeeded in "manufacturing an almost entirely artificial
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image and boosting that image by continual and huge amounts of advertising
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dollars".
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DR. ERIK MILLSTONE - Food Additives & Safety: The Defendants called Dr.
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Erik Millstone, an expert on food additives safety policy issues.
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McDonald's uses dozens of food additives in its products and the company
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has made a formal admission that, in order to achieve the "uniformity of
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their products throughout the world ... they have set formulae and
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specifications for menu items and use a number of additives". Dr.
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Millstone referred to concerns about the safety of nine of these additives
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[Note: there followed three days of scientific evidence and this report is
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only a short summary with few direct quotes.]
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Dr. Millstone said that as regulatory bodies judged the safety of
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additives, and consequently their regulatory status, largely by reference
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to tests on animals, they should be consistent in interpreting results and
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any adverse effects shown should be taken seriously. However in several
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cases where additives had produced adverse effects (including cancer) in
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animals, the additives were nonetheless permitted for use (including many
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of the 9 additives in issue). Regulatory bodies had discounted those
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tests, stating that animals were not always reliable models for humans and
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that doses given were higher than humans would consume. Dr. Millstone said
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that in contrast if an additive did not produce adverse effects in animals
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it was officially assumed it would be harmless to humans. He described how
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the results of animals testing were sometimes contradictory (and often kept
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secret), and it was hard to relate the results from small groups (usually
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50) of genetically uniform animals in a uniform environment to genetically
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and environmentally diverse and complex human populations of millions of
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people. Furthermore, animals could not indicate intolerances or allergic
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or hyperactive reactions.
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Dr. Millstone believed that where there were doubts over the safety of
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additives the benefit of the doubt should be given to the consumer, not to
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the compound or the industry. Policy decisions were supposed to involve a
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balance of safety and need, but in his view artificial colorants and
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flavorings in particular were not necessary at all - they were usually used
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to compensate for processing and marketing problems. He said "if the
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object of the exercise was the protection of public health rather than
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helping companies negotiate their way through regulatory hurdles" then the
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approach he advocated would be adopted.
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In addition to the possible risks of cancer and other long term chronic
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effects, there was a significant body of anecdotal and other evidence that
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additives could provoke allergies and intolerances in some consumers (he
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believed this could affect between 1-5% of the population) and
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hyperactivity in children.
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Dr. Millstone referred to many scientific papers as he explained his
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concerns with the following additives:
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Sunset Yellow (E110) - synthetic colorant; unnecessary; can provoke
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allergic reactions and hyperactivity; increased incidence of tumors in
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animals; it is banned in Norway.
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Amaranth (E123) - synthetic colorant; unnecessary; can provoke asthma,
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eczema and hyperactivity; caused birth defects and fetal deaths in some
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animal tests, possibly also cancer; banned in the USA, Russia and at least
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5 other countries.
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Sodium Nitrite (E250) and Potassium Nitrate (E252) - Preservatives and
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color fixatives; useful but other methods of preservation available; may
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provoke hyperactivity and other adverse reactions; potentially
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carcinogenic; their use is severely restricted in many countries.
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BHA (E320) & BHT (E321) - synthetic antioxidants, used to prolong
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shelf life of fats & oils; may trigger hyperactivity and other
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intolerances; serious concerns over carcinogenicity; BHA is banned in
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Japan; in 1958 & 1963 official committees of experts recommended that BHT
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be banned in the UK, however due to industry pressure it was not banned;
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McDonald's had eliminated BHT from their US products by 1986.
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Carrageenan (E407) - stabilizer and thickening agent; several
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different toxic hazards have been identified in relation to carrageenan
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(including ulcers and cancer), the most serious concerns relate to degraded
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carrageenan, which is not a permitted additive. However, native
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carrageenan, which is used, may become degraded in the gut.
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Monosodium Glutamate (621) - flavor enhancer; unnecessary; causes
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intolerant reactions; can effect chemistry of the brain.
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Potassium Bromate (924) - used as flour improver, banned in 1989 as a
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dangerous carcinogen; previously widely used in bread products, including
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McDonald's buns.
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Dr. Millstone's view was that the additives listed should be banned
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because of doubts over their safety, but in the meantime it was essential
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for additives to be properly labeled. He said he could see "no particular
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difficulty at all for the company [McDonald's] in providing comprehensive
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ingredient listing" on the packaging.
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Styrene - Previous witnesses had testified that styrene can leach from
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polystyrene packaging (widely used by McDonald's) into food and drinks and
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so be ingested by consumers. Dr. Millstone said official bodies had
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recognized that styrene can be metabolized into styrene oxide in the body,
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and this compound had been officially evaluated as "probably carcinogenic
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to humans".
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----------------------------------------------------------------
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MCLIBEL TRIAL COMING UP (eleventh week) - ADVERTISING
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Monday 31st October: John Hawkes (McDonald's UK - Chief Marketing
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Officer)
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Tues. & Wed, 1st & 2nd November: David Green (McDonald's Corporation -
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Senior Vice-President, Marketing Services)
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Friday 4th November: Ken Miles (McDonald's witness - Director-General of
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Incorporated Society of British Advertisers)
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The trial is open to members of the press and public, 10.30am daily -
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Court 35, Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London WC2 (Temple or Holborn
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underground stations).
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---------------------------------------------------------------
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CAMPAIGN NEWS - October Month of Protest Against McDonald's UK 20th
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Anniversary Celebrations
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Operation "Send-It-Back" launched - On 14th October, following nationwide
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leafleting of the company's stores the previous Saturday, McDonald's
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headquarters was picketed by 50 demonstrators for 2 hours while employees
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were going home. The demonstrators with placards and banners (one reading
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"20 years of McGarbage") handed out "What's Wrong With McDonald's" leaflets
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to passers-by, and returned 30 sack-fulls of the company's litter picked up
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>from the streets. This was the launch of Operation "Send-It-Back", an on-
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going campaign designed to pressure McDonald's to eliminate or re-use its
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packaging.
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National March Against McDonald's - On 15th October, about 500 protesters
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marched through Central London to highlight McDonald's exploitation of
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people, animals and the environment.
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Protests around the World - 16th October was the 10th consecutive Worldwide
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Anti-McDonald's Day (UN World Food Day) which was the focus of independent
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protests all over the UK and the world. For example: 7 benefit concerts
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were held in various cities in Australia; a Ronald McDonald was put in the
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stocks outside the largest McDonald's in Wellington, New Zealand; and 80
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demonstrators took to the streets in Lisbon and handed out leaflets.
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CAMPAIGN STATEMENT: The McLibel Support Campaign was set up to generate
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solidarity and financial backing for the McLibel Defendants, who are not
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themselves responsible for Campaign publicity. The Campaign is also
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supportive of, but independent from, general, worldwide, grassroots anti-
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McDonalds activities and protests.
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Please distribute this information far and wide.
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Previous updates are available at Nick Fiddes page at
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http://anthfirst.san.ed.ac.uk/
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***************************** IMPORTANT ********************************
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There is now a McLibel mailing list.
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To continue to receive updates subscribe to the list
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The McLibel mailing list is for news about the McDonalds' libel suit to silence
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environmentalists David Morris, Helen Steel and others in England, and also for
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news about McDonalds' nefarious activities generally, and the corporate influence
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on legal systems world-wide.
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To subscribe send:
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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to: majordomo@world.std.com
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subject: <leave blank>
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body: subscribe mclibel
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Guidelines:
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This is primarily a news service, so if possible please limit your submissions to
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news-type items about McDonalds and corproate influence on the Law. Traffic on the
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list will be low.
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To subscribe send:
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subject: <leave blank >
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