McDonalds is not having a very good month. First their mascot was set on fire and beheaded over absolutely nothing, now they find themselves being sued again. However, unlike former high-profile cases such as the spilled hot coffee or the high fat content causing, well, fatness, these cases (yes, more than one) involve the previous non-disclosure of the secret ingredients of their delicious french fries. Some merit might exist.
For years the fry recipe was a trade secret. The company recently announced they actually contain wheat and dairy components, kinda sneaking it out on their website. It's hard to sneak anything past a lawyer, though.
Surely the outcome of these suits could become landmark for the food service industry, even if these cases are simply nothing-to-lose grabs into Ronald's deep pockets. They might succeed in front of a jury since food allergies are medically recognized.
Depending on the outcome it's not hard to imagine the age of "secret recipes" coming to an end, but if so, is that not a rights infringement? Somehow the suits need to address that issue, since it seems to allow for a scenario where a jealous restaraunt owner could clandestinely pay an individual to file a suit against a staunch competitor predicated on a food allergy (real or imagined), just to learn their secrets or put a dent in their profits.
Now excuse me, I just got sick eating some KFC original recipe, think I need to call my lawyer...
No comments:
Post a Comment