Life McDonald’s Happy Meal resists decomposition for six months - Page 6

BIG_DADDY · 10-13-2010, 02:03 AM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot...for-six-months
Tue Oct 12, 1:54 pm ET
McDonald’s Happy Meal resists decomposition for six months
By Brett Michael Dykes

Vladimir Lenin, King Tut and the McDonald's Happy Meal: What do they all have in common? A shocking resistance to Mother Nature's cycle of decomposition and biodegradability, apparently.

That's the disturbing point brought home by the latest project of New York City-based artist and photographer Sally Davies, who bought a McDonald's Happy Meal back in April and left it out in her kitchen to see how well it would hold up over time.

The results? "The only change that I can see is that it has become hard as a rock," Davies told the U.K. Daily Mail.

She proceeded to photograph the Happy Meal each week and posted the pictures to Flickr to record the results of her experiment. Now, just over six months later, the Happy Meal has yet to even grow mold. She told the Daily Mail that "the food is plastic to the touch and has an acrylic sheen to it."

Davies -- whose art has been featured in numerous films and television shows and is collected by several celebrities -- told The Upshot that she initiated the project to prove a friend wrong. He believed that any burger would mold or rot within two or three days of being left on a counter. Thus began what's become known as "The Happy Meal Art Project."

[DIY: Make happier meals for your kids at home -- just don't forget one key tip]

"I told my friend about a schoolteacher who's kept a McDonald's burger for 12 years that hasn't changed at all, and he didn't believe me when I told him about it," Davies told us. "He thought I was crazy and said I shouldn't believe everything that I read, so I decided to try it myself."

[Did you know? Before the Happy Meal, there was the Fun Meal]

Some observers of the photo series have noted that the burger's bun appears at different angles, and therefore aired suspicions that the Happy Meal may not in fact be as "untouched" as the project's groundrules stipulate. Davies says there's a simple explanation for the mobile-bun effect. "The meal is on a plate in my apartment on a shelf," she says, "and when I take it down to shoot it, the food slides around. It's hard as rock on a glass plate, so sure, the food is moving."

Photo courtesy of Sally Davies
Davies' friend was the person who should have done the additional research. Wellness and nutrition educator Karen Hanrahan has indeed kept a McDonald's hamburger since 1996 to show clients and students how resistant fast food can be to decomposition.

As for Davies, she said that she might just keep her burger and fries hanging around for a while as well.

"It's sitting on a bookshelf right now, so it's not really taking up any space, so why not?" she said. It ceased giving off any sort of odor after 24 hours, she said, adding: "You have to see this thing."

In response to Davies' project, McDonald's spokeswoman Theresa Riley emailed The Upshot a statement defending the quality of the chain's food. Riley's email also blasted Davies' "completely unsubstantiated" work as something out of "the realm of urban legends."

"McDonald's hamburger patties in the United States are made with 100% USDA-inspected ground beef," Riley wrote. "Our hamburgers are cooked and prepared with salt, pepper and nothing else -- no preservatives, no fillers. Our hamburger buns are baked locally, are made from North American-grown wheat flour and include common government-approved ingredients designed to assure food quality and safety. ... According to Dr. Michael Doyle, Director, Center for Food Safety at the University of Georgia, 'From a scientific perspective, I can safely say that the way McDonald's hamburgers are freshly processed, no hamburger would look like this after one year unless it was tampered with or held frozen.'"

**Mr. Flopnuts** · 10-14-2010, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BIG_DADDY

There's a difference between up in arms and informed. I think a lot of peole have no idea what they are eating.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brock

I think a lot of people don't give a shit. That's why they weigh 400 lbs.

I used to like to claim that I just didn't know any better, and that's why I weighed almost 450lbs. It was a bullshit excuse. I knew fast food wasn't good for me, but I also knew a lot of people who ate the shit 3 times a day and weighed 200lbs. Ultimately, I have discovered that I just didn't give a shit.

I have lost 95% of my "fat sympathy". I'm still plenty fat myself, I weigh about 280lbs, but I just don't feel sorry for people who may not know what to do to lose weight. The fact is, they make consciously poor decisions every day when choosing what to shove down their gullet. Portion size in this country is out of control, but that is no excuse to keep expanding that balloon like stomach of theirs when they already need the damned cart to ride around in while shopping for all of that high fat content shit they eat every day. At some point, you have to take accountability for your decisions, or face the ridicule that comes with it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by arc

Sorry, man.

I used to eat those things back in college. I'm pretty sure they were a big part of the weight I put on during that time (long gone, thankfully).

Once in a blue moon probably doesn't do much damage (unless you can't have wheat, like me). Poison is dose dependent, obviously.

I wouldn't be sorry. You just did him a favor. I'll bet he agrees.

Carlota69 · 10-14-2010, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by InChiefsHell

I think it's because people's gut reaction is to feel like they are stupid if they eat it or whatever. It's like a personal insult. I guess I'm guilty of that, sometimes you don't know why it pisses you off.

Myself, I eat McDonald's. I like McDonald's. Some things I like better than others, but for the most part, I find it a good value and I think it tastes good. BigDaddy does not feel the same way, and he has good reason not to. But, I'm not giving up my McDonald's. If you LIVE off of it, of course it's friggin' horrible stuff. If you lived off of my wife's grandmother's cooking, you'd love it and you'd literally gain about 20 lbs in a month.

All things in moderation. Pass the Chicken McNuggets please...

You may be right.

I trip out when people literally get angry at me when my food choices come up in conversation. In fact, they freak out on me. And whats funny is, I could care less what other people eat. I really could. If you want to down 3 big Macs in front of me and a dozen chicken mcNuggets, rock the **** out. Enjoy it with all you got. I really dont care, nor an I offended by your food choices you know? But man, people get all pissed at me. So weird. They even get more angry when they ask why I make these choices. They dont like my answer becasue it forces them to rethink what theyre eating and they dont want to do that. I get it, but then dont ask and you wont have to hear what you arent ready to hear.

Its like if I got all pissed at you becasue you choose to drink gree tea instead of black tea. Wouldnt that trip you out if someone jumped all over you for drinking green tea instead of black tea? Who gives a rats ass what you drink right??

But I think youre point about it just being a form of projecting is pretty accurate..

BIG_DADDY · 10-25-2010, 12:03 PM

The 12 year old McDonalds burger. Can you toell if from the fresh one?

http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/...king-good.html

**gblowfish** · 10-25-2010, 12:35 PM

This morning I won a free frappe.

What the HELL is a frappe?

Otter · 10-25-2010, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BIG_DADDY

The 12 year old McDonalds burger. Can you toell if from the fresh one?

http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/...king-good.html

I'd have to go with the one on the left. Looks like the bun still has some soft to it.

Salt makes a wonderful preservative and those burgers are loaded.

Agent V · 10-25-2010, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

This morning I won a free frappe.

What the HELL is a frappe?

A satanic abortion of a coffee drink with a sweet caramel and/or chocolate flavoring.

. . . it's delicious.

**Bugeater** · 10-25-2010, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

This morning I won a free frappe.

What the HELL is a frappe?

I believe it's some snobby overpriced coffee-type thing.

BIG_DADDY · 10-25-2010, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bugeater

I believe it's some snobby overpriced coffee-type thing.

Well it would usually be Milk, espresso and ice blended, at Mickey D's, who knows.

eazyb81 · 10-25-2010, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carlota69

Right? When I tell people about the info I have they get all uncomfortable and pissed. And Im not even preaching--they ask why I gave up certain foods and then get pissed and offended as if I shit in their kitchen when I answer.

I think people get annoyed because you probably act like you have some amazing super secret info. In reality - which has been mentioned by a few posters in this thread - everyone already knows fast food is not good for you.

BIG_DADDY · 10-25-2010, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eazyb81

I think people get annoyed because you probably act like you have some amazing super secret info. In reality - which has been mentioned by a few posters in this thread - everyone already knows fast food is not good for you.

I think most people understand it's not good but I don't think most know that they are eating petroleum products in their food like lighter fluid. The anger comes from now knowing something they didn't before that's going to make them feel even worse every time they chomp down another McNugget. JMO

http://www.rense.com/general76/chk.htm Great book BTW, Omnivore's Dilemma.

**Rain Man** · 10-25-2010, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

This morning I won a free frappe.

What the HELL is a frappe?

I think it's something illegal you get after a massage.

**Dave Lane** · 10-25-2010, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bugeater

I believe it's some snobby overpriced coffee-type thing.

Not as good as a latte but better than coffee.

10-13-2010, 02:03 AM
BIG_DADDY THE RED MENACE Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Texas Casino cash: $2558410	McDonald’s Happy Meal resists decomposition for six months http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot...for-six-months Tue Oct 12, 1:54 pm ET McDonald’s Happy Meal resists decomposition for six months By Brett Michael Dykes Vladimir Lenin, King Tut and the McDonald's Happy Meal: What do they all have in common? A shocking resistance to Mother Nature's cycle of decomposition and biodegradability, apparently. That's the disturbing point brought home by the latest project of New York City-based artist and photographer Sally Davies, who bought a McDonald's Happy Meal back in April and left it out in her kitchen to see how well it would hold up over time. The results? "The only change that I can see is that it has become hard as a rock," Davies told the U.K. Daily Mail. She proceeded to photograph the Happy Meal each week and posted the pictures to Flickr to record the results of her experiment. Now, just over six months later, the Happy Meal has yet to even grow mold. She told the Daily Mail that "the food is plastic to the touch and has an acrylic sheen to it." Davies -- whose art has been featured in numerous films and television shows and is collected by several celebrities -- told The Upshot that she initiated the project to prove a friend wrong. He believed that any burger would mold or rot within two or three days of being left on a counter. Thus began what's become known as "The Happy Meal Art Project." [DIY: Make happier meals for your kids at home -- just don't forget one key tip] "I told my friend about a schoolteacher who's kept a McDonald's burger for 12 years that hasn't changed at all, and he didn't believe me when I told him about it," Davies told us. "He thought I was crazy and said I shouldn't believe everything that I read, so I decided to try it myself." [Did you know? Before the Happy Meal, there was the Fun Meal] Some observers of the photo series have noted that the burger's bun appears at different angles, and therefore aired suspicions that the Happy Meal may not in fact be as "untouched" as the project's groundrules stipulate. Davies says there's a simple explanation for the mobile-bun effect. "The meal is on a plate in my apartment on a shelf," she says, "and when I take it down to shoot it, the food slides around. It's hard as rock on a glass plate, so sure, the food is moving." Photo courtesy of Sally Davies Davies' friend was the person who should have done the additional research. Wellness and nutrition educator Karen Hanrahan has indeed kept a McDonald's hamburger since 1996 to show clients and students how resistant fast food can be to decomposition. As for Davies, she said that she might just keep her burger and fries hanging around for a while as well. "It's sitting on a bookshelf right now, so it's not really taking up any space, so why not?" she said. It ceased giving off any sort of odor after 24 hours, she said, adding: "You have to see this thing." In response to Davies' project, McDonald's spokeswoman Theresa Riley emailed The Upshot a statement defending the quality of the chain's food. Riley's email also blasted Davies' "completely unsubstantiated" work as something out of "the realm of urban legends." "McDonald's hamburger patties in the United States are made with 100% USDA-inspected ground beef," Riley wrote. "Our hamburgers are cooked and prepared with salt, pepper and nothing else -- no preservatives, no fillers. Our hamburger buns are baked locally, are made from North American-grown wheat flour and include common government-approved ingredients designed to assure food quality and safety. ... According to Dr. Michael Doyle, Director, Center for Food Safety at the University of Georgia, 'From a scientific perspective, I can safely say that the way McDonald's hamburgers are freshly processed, no hamburger would look like this after one year unless it was tampered with or held frozen.'"
Posts: 32,522

10-25-2010, 12:03 PM	#78
BIG_DADDY THE RED MENACE Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Texas Casino cash: $2558410	The 12 year old McDonalds burger. Can you toell if from the fresh one? http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/...king-good.html __________________ The diabolical genius of Marxism-Socialism is that it provides the emotional and intellectual road map for autocrats to persuade millions of people to support their own enslavement to government. ~Mark Levin April 15, 2019
Posts: 32,522

10-25-2010, 12:35 PM	#79
gblowfish Be Kind To Your Pets Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Glorious Independence, MO Casino cash: $16886178 VARSITY	This morning I won a free frappe. What the HELL is a frappe?
Posts: 41,016