Fast food

Fast food is a type of mass-produced food designed for quick service. It is made to serve busy people who need to eat on the go. In 2018, the fast-food industry was worth about $570 billion all around the world.

Some fast food is already cooked and only needs to be heated, so customers wait just seconds. Other places, like McDonald's and Burger King, cook fresh ingredients such as meat and fries right before serving.

Fast-food restaurants are often known for their drive-through windows. They can be small stands or larger restaurants. Many are part of big franchise chains that get their food from central locations.

Many fast foods have a lot of saturated fat, sugar, salt, and calories. Eating fast food often has been linked to health problems like heart disease, obesity, and other conditions. This connection stays strong even when looking at other lifestyle factors.

History

See also: Fast-food restaurant § History

The idea of ready-to-eat food for sale is tied to how cities grew. Homes in new cities often didn’t have space or tools to cook properly. Getting fuel for fires was also expensive and dangerous. Because of this, city people often bought food that was already cooked, like meats or breads, so they wouldn’t have to cook it themselves. This was especially helpful for people with very little time, like travelers or workers on short breaks.

After World War II, many Americans started earning more money and buying more things. Both men and women began working outside the home more often. Eating out, which used to be a special treat, became something many families needed to do because they were busy. Fast food made it easy for people to get a quick, inexpensive meal, whether it was lunch or dinner. As a result, families spent less time cooking at home. By 2013, women in the United States spent about 47 minutes a day preparing food, while men spent about 19 minutes.

Pre-industrial Old World

In ancient Roman cities, many people living in apartment buildings bought food from street vendors. They could get bread, baked goods, and cured meats from places like the Forum. In China around the 1200s, people ate fried dough, soups, and stuffed buns—foods we still enjoy today. In Baghdad, people bought ready-to-eat meats and processed foods to add to their meals. During the Middle Ages in cities like London and Paris, vendors sold pies, pasties, flans, waffles, and cooked meats. These foods were important for people who didn’t have kitchens in their homes, like travelers or those living alone.

United Kingdom

In areas near water, people in the United Kingdom often ate fast food like shellfish or seafood, such as oysters or eels, cooked right by the water. The mid-1800s saw the start of trawler fishing, which helped create the popular dish fish and chips. The first fish and chip shop opened in 1860. By 1910, there were over 25,000 fish and chip shops in the UK, and by the 1920s, more than 35,000. British fast food varied by region, with dishes like the Cornish pasty becoming local favorites. The UK also enjoys foods from other cultures, like pizza, doner kebabs, and curries. Healthier fast food options have also appeared more recently.

United States

See also: Fast food restaurant § North America

After cars became common following World War I, drive-in restaurants appeared. White Castle, founded in Wichita, Kansas in 1921, is known for being the first fast food restaurant and the first hamburger chain. They sold hamburgers for five cents each and let customers watch how the food was made. As the fast food industry grew, so did concerns about health, especially with rising obesity rates. Even during tough economic times, people in the United States still love fast food.

On the go

See also: Convenience food

Fast food places are places where you can get your food quickly to take home or eat there. Many have a drive-through where you can order and get your food from your car. Others have places inside or outside to sit and eat. With new technology, you can now order food from your phone to be delivered to your home.

Fast food is made to be eaten quickly, often without needing knives and forks, and is easy to eat with your hands. Common foods you can find at fast food places include fish and chips, sandwiches, pitas, hamburgers, fried chicken, french fries, onion rings, chicken nuggets, tacos, pizza, hot dogs, and ice cream. Some places also offer slower foods like chili, mashed potatoes, and salads.

Filling stations

Convenience stores at many petrol/gas stations sell ready-made sandwiches, doughnuts, and hot food. In the United States and Europe, many gas stations also sell frozen foods and have microwave ovens to heat them up. In Australia, gas stations sell foods like hot pies, sandwiches, and chocolate bars, which are easy to grab while traveling. These stations are often open long hours, making it easy to get food before or after regular shops are closed.

Street vendors and concessions

Main article: Street food

Street food can be found all over the world from small vendors selling food from carts, tables, grills, or small vehicles. Examples include Chinese rice soup, Middle Eastern falafel, New York City hot dog carts, and taco trucks. In the Philippines, Greek-style vendors are common. Street vendors often try to catch people's attention quickly by calling out prices, singing, playing music, or doing other fun activities to attract customers.

Cuisine

Modern fast food is often made from ingredients that have been processed many times and prepared in large factories. The food is then quickly cooked and served in places like restaurants or taken away in bags or boxes. This helps keep the cost low and makes sure every meal tastes the same.

Fast food restaurants focus on being quick, easy, and cheap. Because of this, the food is made to have a certain taste or texture and to stay fresh for longer. Different places have their own kinds of fast food. For example, in Western countries, Chinese takeaways are very popular. They often serve noodles, rice, or meat, sometimes letting customers choose what they want and how much they want. Sushi, which started in Japan, has also become very popular. It is usually rice with fish or other fillings, often wrapped in seaweed. Pizza is a common fast food in the United States, with many big chains offering delivery. Kebab houses, which come from the Middle East, serve meat shaved from a spinning spit and placed on flatbread with sauces. Fish and chips, where fish is battered and fried with potato strips, is popular in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Each country has its own special fast food dishes, like grilled chicken in Portugal or filled pastries in Poland.

Business

In the United States, people spent $160 billion on fast food in 2012, which was much more than the $6 billion spent in 1970. By 2013, the whole restaurant industry was worth about $660.5 billion. Fast food restaurants are facing competition from places that offer more expensive and varied meals, which has caused some big fast food companies to lose sales. Even though sales are dropping, more Americans are eating fast food at least once a month.

Unlike many other places, Americans spend less of their money on food. This is because the government helps make fast food cheaper and easier to buy. Fast food meals often have more calories and are made from ingredients like corn, soy, and beef, which are supported by government programs.

Australia’s fast food market is worth over 2.7 billion GPB and includes 1.4 billion fast food meals served at about 17,000 locations. The fast food market there grows by about 6.5 percent each year, making it one of the fastest-growing parts of the food industry.

Employment

Many people work in food preparation and serving, including fast food places. In the United States around the year 2010, about 4.1 million people had jobs in this area. Getting a diploma in Human Resource Management or Fast Food Management can help someone get a job in big fast food restaurants.

Globalization

In 2006, the fast-food market around the world grew by 4.8% and reached a value of £102.4 billion. McDonald's has restaurants in 126 countries and over 31,000 locations worldwide.

One example of how fast food spreads globally is McDonald's entering the Russian market. To make this American brand successful, it adapted to the local food customs of people in Moscow. McDonald's focused on where its food ingredients came from, which is important in Russian culture. On January 31, 1990, McDonald's opened a restaurant in Moscow and served a record number of customers on its first day.

The largest McDonald's in the world is in Orlando, Florida, United States. Other popular fast-food chains like Burger King, KFC, Subway, Wienerwald, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell have also expanded to many countries around the world.

Criticism

Main article: Criticism of fast food

Further information: Fast-food worker strikes

Fast-food restaurants often face concerns about health, animal care, and how they treat workers. Many people worry that eating too much fast food can lead to health problems, like weight gain. Some studies show that eating fast food often can increase the chance of becoming overweight, especially among young people.

To address these concerns, many fast-food places now offer more meals that are better for you. They are also trying to be kinder to the environment by using less waste in their packaging. However, some experts believe that fast-food companies still focus too much on advertising unhealthy foods to children, which can make young people want to eat these foods more often. There are also worries about how fast-food jobs affect teenagers who are still in school. Some books and movies, like Super Size Me, talk about how eating too much fast food can hurt health.