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Lifestyle

By Tom Heneghan, Religion Editor

PARIS | Thu Feb 18, 2010 12:25pm GMT

(Reuters) - A French fast food chain's decision to serve only halal meat in eight restaurants with a strong Muslim clientele has sparked a wave of criticism from politicians decrying the step as unacceptable.

A far-right leader said the 350-branch Quick chain was imposing "an Islamic tax" on its customers. A Socialist mayor has threatened a law suit for discrimination against customers who do not want to eat according to Muslim dietary laws. The uproar, like France's drive to ban Muslim face veils and its state-led debate on national identity, has come just ahead of regional elections next month even though Quick began what it calls a six-month marketing test in late November. The 5.5 billion euro ($7.46 billion) halal market in France is growing strongly, according to a survey in December 2009, citing increasing demand among young Muslims for halal produce. Marine Le Pen, vice president of the far-right National Front, launched the accusations on Sunday, saying clients "are forced because of halal meat to pay a tax to Islamic organizations" that certify the food was produced according to Muslim dietary laws. Socialist Mayor Rene Vandierendonck in Roubaix, a town near Lille with many Muslim residents, threatened a law suit. Lionnel Luca, a conservative parliamentary deputy, called for a boycott to restore "freedom of choice" in the Roubaix Quick. Agriculture Minister Bruno Le Maire told the daily Le Figaro: "When they remove all the pork from a restaurant open to the public, I think they fall into communalism, which is against the principles and the spirit of the French republic." Escalating her attack, Le Pen said on Wednesday that President Nicolas Sarkozy supported a "forced Islamization of France" because an arm of the state-owned savings bank, the Caisse des Depots et Consignations, held 99.63 percent of Quick's capital. HALAL MARKET GROWING STRONGLY At issue is meat slaughtered according to the dietary laws of Islam, which shuns pork. The U.S. fast food chain McDonald's, which has about 1,150 branches in France, does not serve halal meat. Another U.S. chain, Kentucky Fried Chicken, says it does. Abbas Bendali, director of the Paris marketing firm Solis, said Quick's decision simply responded to growing competition from smaller halal restaurants. France's five million Muslims make up about eight percent of the overall population. "Large companies have become aware of Muslim consumers and the market they represent," he told Europe 1 radio, adding that several leading food companies and supermarket chains had also added or expanded halal product lines recently. According to a Solis study, French Muslims will spend about 4.5 billion euros on halal food -mostly meat and cold cuts -- in shops and another billion euros on halal fast food this year. "The halal sector ... is a real growth factor in this crisis year," it wrote. Younger Muslims born in a baby boom in a growing Muslim community in the 1980s and 1990s were driving the demand, Solis said. Customers in Roubaix's Quick had mixed reactions. "I'm happy, I can come here with my Muslim friends," a teenager named Farid told Reuters. A woman named Pamela said: "It's good to have halal hamburgers, I'm not against that, but I'd still like to eat bacon burgers too." (Additional reporting by Pierre Savary in Roubaix; Editing by Louise Ireland)

A French fast food chain has decided to serve only halal meat in eight restaurants, sparking criticism from politicians that its menu discriminates

against non-Muslims. A Socialist mayor has threatened a law suit for discrimination against customers who do not want to eat according to Muslim dietary laws. The uproar, like Frances drive to ban Muslim face veils and its state-led debate on national identity, has come just ahead of regional elections next month. The 5.5billion euro halal market in France is growing strongly, according to a survey carried out last December, citing increasing demand among young Muslims for halal produce. Marine Le Pen, vice president of the far-right National Front, launched the accusations on Sunday, saying clients are forced because of halal meat to pay a tax to Islamic organisations that certify the food was produced according to Muslim dietary laws. Socialist Mayor Rene Vandierendonck in Roubaix, a town near Lille with many Muslim residents, threatened a law suit.

Lionnel Luca, a conservative parliamentary deputy, called for a boycott to restore freedom of choice in the Roubaix Quick. Agriculture Minister Bruno Le Maire told the daily Le Figaro: When they remove all the pork from a restaurant open to the public, I think they fall into communalism, which is against the principles and the spirit of the French republic.

Escalating her attack, Ms Le Pen said yesterday that President Nicolas Sarkozy supported a forced Islamisation of France because an arm of the state-owned savings bank, the Caisse des Depots et Consignations, held 99.63 per cent of Quicks capital. (Follow the money!) The U.S. fast food chain McDonalds, which has about 1,150 branches in France, does not serve halal meat but in Europe they do. Another U.S. chain, Kentucky Fried Chicken, says it does.
A French fast food chain's decision to serve only halal meat in eight restaurants with a strong Muslim clientele has sparked a wave of criticism from politicians decrying the step as unacceptable, reported Reuters.

A far-right leader said the 350-branch Quick chain was imposing an Islamic tax on its customers. A Socialist mayor has threatened a law suit for discrimination against customers who do not want to eat according to Muslim dietary laws.

The uproar, like France's drive to ban Muslim face veils and its state-led debate on national identity, has come just ahead of regional elections next month even though Quick began what it calls a six-month marketing test in late November.

The 5.5 billion euro halal market in France is growing strongly, according to a survey in December 2009, citing increasing demand among young Muslims for halal produce.

Marine Le Pen, vice president of the far-right National Front, launched the accusations on Sunday, saying clients are forced because of halal meat to pay a tax to Islamic organisations that certify the food was produced according to Muslim dietary laws.

Socialist Mayor Rene Vandierendonck in Roubaix, a town near Lille with many Muslim residents, threatened a law suit. Lionnel Luca, a conservative parliamentary deputy, called for a boycott to restore freedom of choice in the Roubaix Quick.

Agriculture Minister Bruno Le Maire told the daily Le Figaro: When they remove all the pork from a restaurant open to the public, I think they fall into communalism, which is against the principles and the spirit of the French republic.

Escalating her attack, Le Pen said on Wednesday that President Nicolas Sarkozy supported a forced Islamisation of France because an arm of the state-owned savings bank, the Caisse des Depots et Consignations, held 99.63 percent of Quick's capital.

HALAL MARKET GROWING STRONGLY

At issue is meat slaughtered according to the dietary laws of Islam, which shuns pork. The US fast food chain McDonald's, which has about 1,150 branches in France, does not serve halal meat. Another US chain, Kentucky Fried Chicken, says it does.

Abbas Bendali, director of the Paris marketing firm Solis, said Quick's decision simply responded to growing competition from smaller halal restaurants. France's five million Muslims make up about eight percent of the overall population.

Large companies have become aware of Muslim consumers and the market they represent, he told Europe 1 radio, adding that several leading food companies and supermarket chains had also added or expanded halal product lines recently.

According to a Solis study, French Muslims will spend about 4.5 billion euros on halal food mostly meat and cold cuts in shops and another billion euros on halal fast food this year.

The halal sector ... is a real growth factor in this crisis year, it wrote. Younger Muslims born in a baby boom in a growing Muslim community in the 1980s and 1990s were driving the demand, Solis said.

Customers in Roubaix's Quick had mixed reactions.

I'm happy, I can come here with my Muslim friends, a teenager named Farid told Reuters.

A woman named Pamela said: It's good to have halal hamburgers, I'm not against that, but I'd still like to eat bacon burgers too.

If you want to follow news on your mobile, click on http://dawn.com/mobile/ and download Pakistan's first mobile news application. Currently this application is for Nokia phones only Advantages of Fast Food The most evident advantage of fast food is that it saves time. In today's fast-paced life, there is nothing better than getting a ready meal. No matter how much the chefs praise the benefits of fresh food, at the end of a hard working day, when one returns home all tired and hungry, a pizza or a burger can be godsend. Besides the time an individual has to spend in the kitchen, cooking a meal also requires one to make a trip to the supermarket to buy the ingredients for the dish. Then there is the added effort and time consumed in washing and peeling the vegetables. All this makes eating fast food score more preferably over cooking a meal for a busy individual. Besides time, cost saving gives fast food an edge over the meal prepared in the kitchen. If one lives alone, then it is cheaper to buy a meal at the supermarket instead of cooking it at home. Also certain fast foods like fries and burgers come pretty cheap. Fast food does raise health concerns. However, if careful, you can find some options on the menu of a fast food restaurant that could be healthier. Salads are a smart choice. Go for bread products that are made from wheat bread. Opt for lean meat. If you could choose between the fried and boiled options, order the boiled preparation. Avoid ordering carbonic drinks when you are thirsty. Go for fruit juices, low-fat milk, diet soda. Is there anything better than plain water to quench your thirst? You could always resort to the 'make to order' option that certain fast food outlets offer, where you could restrict the use of ingredients that are not healthy. Disadvantages of Fast Food The greatest disadvantage of fast food is the adverse effect that it has on one's health. It is a fact that fast food is more unhealthy than home-cooked meals, as they contain higher amounts of salt, fats and calories. Fast food is an important contributor to obesity in the American population. Obesity in children is on the rise and a direct link is being cited between fast food and obesity in children. Given the sedentary lifestyle that we lead today, the excess fats and calories that we take in with fast food is not used up completely. The result is that these accumulate in our body as fat deposits that cause complications like cardiovascular diseases and other related diseases of the heart. With obesity come other problems like high blood pressure and diseases of the joints. It is like a chain reaction set off by fast food and carried forward by our unhealthy lifestyle. In fact, a recent study has shown that people who live within walking distance of a fast food restaurant are at 13% higher risk of suffering from strokes than those who live a considerable distance away. The greater the number of people at a meal in a fast food restaurant, the larger is the bill. Eating at fast food outlets is economical only for a single person. Going out to a fast food eating joint with family once in a while won't matter much. However, frequent visits to such restaurants with one's family can become quite an expensive affair, besides being unhealthy. Fast food joints are also being seen as a factor that is making a number of families spend less and less time together. Family meal time is something that is considered as an opportunity for all the members to come together and share their experiences. However, the fast food centers are quickly eating into this quality time. This is especially true about youngsters for whom a fast food center is a good place to hangout with friends and peers. Fast food is an invention of the modern times. Ready-made food being served fast and right in front of us is like a blessing after a hard day's work. However, like everything, it has its own pros and cons, advantages and disadvantages of fast food also exist. Citing a few points about the

advantages of fast food does not mean that I am denying its drawbacks. However, by making some smart choices while placing the order and also resorting to an active lifestyle, we can definitely minimize the drawbacks of fast food.

Use Fast Food to Your Advantage Fast food is easy, and as long as you can resist the tactics they use to encourage you to overeat, such as meal deals, super-sizing and two-for-one offers. It's advantages can help you to eat better.

You can practice portion control--choose small, regular, junior or single sizes. You can walk in, order and eat. No delayed meals or waiting at the table for food. You can make special requests to avoid hidden calories such as mayonnaise and "special sauces". You can split and share with no extra charges. No hard-to-resist high-calorie "appetizers" greet you at the table. Dessert is not a focal point of the menu. Nutrition information is available.

Avoid the Fast Food Disadvantages

The "more food for less money" pitch encourages overeating Large, extra large, big, jumbo, and double portions are the norm. High fat ingredients are plentiful? Cheese, fried chicken or fish, bacon, French fries, mayonnaise, and "special sauces" (which are usually made from mayonnaise). Vegetables can be difficult to find, aside from small salads, a few leafs of lettuce on a sandwich or, worst, vegetables that are fried, such as potatoes or onion rings. Fruit is not present other than as orange juice or between the crusts of baked or fried pies. You can reach your daily sodium intake (2,400 milligrams) in just one meal. And that's without any additional table salt. Much of the time fast food is looked upon as something to be avoided. It is not the healthiest lifestyle to actually eat fast food day after day or even a few times per week. For best health, having this food as rare as possible is seen as best. Even though there are some issues with it, there are also a variety of advantages to fast food today. First of all, it saves so much time. For many people who have both parents in the house working, buying a meal that is already prepared, cooked, and ready to eat is the easy alternative to cooking yourself. Part of the price that is paid is for the time that it took to cook this food so that it is hot and ready when you come to pick it up. For those who are busy, this will tend to be an option to choose more often than not. Certain foods are fairly cheap. If you like hamburgers, there are many on the $1 menu that would be hard to make at home for about the same price. Other dishes that you like might be difficult for you to make at home getting same deal on the foods just because the mass produced version can cut costs in places that you can't.

Today one huge advantage is that most fast food places have nutritional information. Getting fast food is not bad. Getting the wrong kind of fast food that is high in calories, sodium, and fats can be a problem. Many places who have been labeled as having unhealthy fast food over the past few years have improved the quality of the food. Just because it's fast does not mean that it has to be unhealthy anymore. This is not to necessarily encourage you to always go out and get this food because there is quite a bit that is not healthy. But you can do so in a responsible manner getting foods and saving time.
Fast Food Meals Fast food meals can be high in calories, fat, sodium, and cholesterol. See how easily these red-flag items can add up: 1. Burger Quater-Pound Cheesburger, Large Fries, 16 oz. soda (McDonald's)

This meal: 1,166 calories 51 g fat 95 mg cholesterol 1,450 mg sodium

Recommended daily intake: 2,000-2,700 calories No more than 50-80 g No more than 300 mg No more than 1,100-3,300 mg

2. Pizza 4 slices Sausage and Mushroom Pizza, 16 oz. soda (Domino's) This meal: 1,000 calories 28 g fat 62 mg cholesterol 2,302 mg sodium

Recommended daily intake: 2,000-2,700 calories No more than 50-80 g No more than 300 mg No more than 1,100-3,300 mg

3. Chicken 2 pieces Fried Chicken (Breast and Wing), Buttermilk Biscuit, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Corn-on-the-Cob, 16 oz. soda (KFC) This meal: 1,232 calories 57 g fat 157 mg cholesterol 2,276 mg sodium

Recommended daily intake: 2,000-2,700 calories No more than 50-80 g No more than 300 mg No more than 1,100-3,300 mg

4. Taco Taco Salad, 16 oz. soda (Taco Bell) This meal: 1,057 calories 55 g fat 80 mg cholesterol 1,620 mg sodium Recommended daily intake: 2,000-2,700 calories No more than 50-80 g No more than 300 mg No more than 1,100-3,300 mg

Food Pricing Strategies

By Laura Acevedo, eHow Contributor updated: September 21, 2009

I want to do this!
Food Pricing Strategies

Successful food merchants are able to maintain a strong turnover rate that decreases spoilage and contributes to higher sales. Whether you sell prepared foods, prepackaged goods or fresh fruits and vegetables, accurately pricing your food is key to increasing sales and maximizing profits. The most effective food pricing strategies are easy to maintain, encourage rapid sales and maximize prices through attention to customer decision-making processes and location dynamics.

Cost-Plus
1. Use a cost-plus method of food pricing if you need an easy and quick method of establishing prices. Calculate how much your overhead costs are as a percentage of your monthly sales. Overhead should include rent, utilities and wages, but not the cost of supplies or inventory. Establish how much profit you would like as a percentage and add it to the overhead percentage. This is your cost plus percentage. When you price your food, simply multiply your cost of the food by the cost plus percentage for your final price. You are assured your price will cover your overhead and result in a profit on every

item you sell. Consider adjusting the profit percentage if you see items are not moving quickly.

Location-Specific Pricing
2. Set your food prices based on your location and type of business. If you run a restaurant, consider pricing your food a little lower than your competitors to encourage customer traffic, but make up the difference by charging a higher price for your drinks. Customers typically review food prices more than drink prices. For a convenience location where customers make smaller purchases, price routine items like bread and milk higher than a grocery store. Customers looking for quick items are not as price sensitive for routine items. Encourage additional purchases by having competitive prices on non-routine items like candy and snacks. The goal is to price your products based on your customer's price sensitivity relative to your business type and location.

Good, Better, Best Pricing

3. Price your food based on a good, better, best strategy. Offer three different products, sizes or quality levels. Most customers will lean toward purchasing the better product, but will purchase the best offering when they feel like treating themselves. You may not sell many of the good items, but by having the product available, you will drive purchases of the higher priced goods. In a restaurant, offer three different size combos; in a retail environment, offer a generic good, standard good and prestige good. Offering three price points helps your customers analyze their purchase decisions, which will drive sales.

Categories
4. Create food prices based on different categories and have a different mark-up value for each. Some categories lend themselves to higher mark up values like high-quality pastries, specialty seafood items or items that are in high demand but have a small supply. Consider a mark-up value for drinks, meats, prepared foods, fruits and vegetables, snack items or any other categories of food you stock.

Bargain Pricing Strategy

5. Price all your food at a bargain price to ensure fast turnover. This strategy can work for a buffet, grocery store or for any location that needs fast turnover of food to prevent spoilage. Sell all food on a 1 to 2 percent margin and make your profits on high turnover. Consider offering add-on options such as special desserts, drinks or take home items that can provide additional revenue.

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References

Food Retailers' Pricing and Marketing Strategies Cost Plus Pricing Good, better, best approach works

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