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---. "Is Fast Food Cheaper Than Cooking at Home?" Edited by Jennifer Ortiz. U.S. News, 28 Feb. 2023, money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/is-fast-food-cheaper-than-cooking-at-home. Accessed 20 Apr. 2023.

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Everyday many restaurants throw away leftover food that could easily be donated

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Try choosing a more sustainable option when you go out for fast food

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The reason why fast food is so convenient 

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Here is an infographic all about fast food:

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In order to solve the many problems of the fast food industry, several things must be done. Many companies, like Dunkin Donuts, throw away all the uneaten donuts at the end of the day. This is extremely wasteful, and can easily be fixed. One solution to lessen the major environmental impacts of fast food, is donating excess food to homeless shelters in an attempt to recycle food waste. Many fast food chains have already started to resolve other problems, such as wasteful packaging. Following the current trends in graphic design, Burger King and McDonald's have updated their packaging by placing more emphasis on reusable and compostable packaging, which is much better than the piece of paper that your hamburger comes in. “As of 2021, approximately 82.7% of our primary packaging materials, and 96.8% of our primary fiber packaging comes from recycled or certified sources, aiming for 100% certified, recycled or renewable materials by the end of 2025,” wrote McDonald’s in an official company statement. There are also many things that the individual consumer can do to help these problems. For example, one can limit the amount of fast food that they eat per week. If this is too unrealistic, try locating cleaner fast food restaurants with reasonable prices. Also, make sure to correctly dispose and recycle food packaging.

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Processed food and soda companies are involved in public health initiatives to promote public health, leading to the benefit of both companies and the government. Economically, the fast food industry has made a huge impact. In fact, by 2028, the estimated size of the global fast food industry is $1,467.04 billion, up from $972.74 billion in 2021. Overall, politics help determine whether the industry is successful. Fast food companies always target lower income customers. Because fast food is cheaper than healthier options, the health issues disproportionately affect people in poverty. A McDonald's McChicken, for instance, costs $1.74. There is simply no way that you're going to be able to make a chicken sandwich at home for a similarly low price. Even if it's just because chicken breasts usually come in a package, and you're paying for multiple chicken breasts rather than just one. The bread and some lettuce would also need to be purchased. Therefore, the cost to make one chicken sandwich would be estimated around $10.

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Fast food has a huge effect on the environment. In fact, 85% of food waste in the US belongs to the fast food industry. About 19% of the energy consumed in the US each year goes just toward producing food. A large portion of that belongs to the fast food business. Thanks to many irresponsible fast food chains, fast food makes up about 49% of the US’s litter. As a matter of fact, in 2018, McDonald’s reported that 153,000 metric tons of plastic packaging were used for cups, lids and utensils alone. Due to inhumane practices, meat and dairy emissions will most likely make up to 70% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Another huge environmental issue is deforestation. Many fast food corporations, including Burger King, import rainforest beef. Then, because of the high demand of beef, Amazon Rainforest deforestation happens. This is to clear space to raise more cattle.

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Fast food can cause many negative and positive effects on human beings. For example, PFAS, also known as per-and polyfluorinated substances, are found in fast food chains' packaging and can cause health effects such as cancer, liver damage, and weakened immune systems. Long term effects of eating fast food can include a higher chance of obesity, depression, digestive issues, heart disease and strokes, type 2 diabetes and even early death. Short term effects of eating fast food could be metabolism changes, and poor digestion. Fast food can be highly addictive. These foods are mainly made up of calories, cholesterol, fats and sodium which are dangerous when highly consumed. As a matter of fact, as many as 1 out of 3 people eat fast food every single day. Although there are many downsides to fast food, there are also many positives. For instance, fast food is responsible for providing more than 5,199,000 jobs, many to previously unemployed people.

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You may have wondered how the fast food industry came to be. In 1921, White Castle in Wichita, Kansas opened. This is known to be the first fast food chain. Near the end of World War ll, this industry started to flourish. Fast food establishments numbered close to 200,000 in just the United States at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Soon enough, businesses like McDonald's, Subway, and Starbucks expanded to thousands of individual stores elsewhere. In 2021, all American fast food establishments made more than $250 billion in revenue. The fast food chain has come a very long way since the early days. Now, instead of speaking directly to a person, you can order on a screen, or even through a speaker. Currently, websites like UberEats, GrubHub, and DoorDash, are allowing for much greater convenience than traditional means. Fast food is now very reliable. You can go almost anywhere, and find a cheap fast food source.