Episode 78
The Fry Lie: McDonald's Fries for Better Or...
The Fry Lie: How McDonald's Fries Got Worse—Not Healthier
For years, McDonald’s fries ruled the world. They were golden, crispy, salty, and delicious. People called them the best fries ever made. But then something changed. Around the 1990s, fans noticed the fries didn’t taste the same anymore.
What happened?
Let’s dive into the real story of why McDonald’s fries lost their magic—and how the changes didn’t make them healthier. In fact, for a while, they actually made them worse.
Once Upon a Time… in Beef Tallow
Before 1990, McDonald’s cooked their fries in a special mix: 7% cottonseed oil and 93% beef tallow. That’s a fancy way of saying animal fat. This gave the fries a rich, savory flavor you couldn’t find anywhere else.
Why did they use beef fat? Because Ray Kroc, the man who built the McDonald’s empire, wanted fries to taste like the original McDonald brothers’ version. He nailed it.
But not everyone loved the fat.
Meet Phil Sokolof: The Fry Crusader
Phil Sokolof wasn’t a doctor. He wasn’t a scientist. But he was a wealthy businessman from Nebraska who had a heart attack. After that, he became a full-time food activist. Think of him like an early version of today’s online influencers—lots of passion, not much science.
Sokolof spent millions on full-page newspaper ads. His messages sounded scary:
“The Poisoning of America”
“McDonald’s: Your Hamburger Has Too Much Fat”
It worked. The public panicked. McDonald’s gave in.
In 1990, the company switched from beef fat to 100% vegetable oil.
Oops… Now with Trans Fats
At first, this seemed like a healthy change. But here’s what they didn’t tell you: the new vegetable oil was partially hydrogenated, meaning it was full of trans fats—the most dangerous kind of fat for your heart.
Trans fats increase your bad cholesterol (LDL) and lower your good cholesterol (HDL). They raise your risk of heart disease way more than saturated fat.
In trying to remove one bad fat, McDonald’s accidentally replaced it with something even worse. FDA, 2015.
They finally banned trans fats in the U.S. in 2018—but for almost 20 years, those “healthier” fries actually hurt people’s hearts more than the original version ever did.
Flavor Fail: Enter the Beef “Natural Flavor”
Customers missed the old flavor. So what did McDonald’s do? They added “natural beef flavoring” to the vegetable oil. Yep, they removed the beef fat… and then added beef flavoring back in.
This confused people. Some vegetarians and Hindus believed the fries were plant-based. They weren’t, leading to lawsuits and even more public confusion.
In the United Kingdom, McDonald’s fries are really vegan. But in the United States, that natural beef flavor still makes them off-limits to some groups.
The Steak 'n Shake Beef Tallow Comeback
Now fast-forward to today. Steak 'n Shake announced they were bringing back beef tallow for their fries, just like McDonald’s used to. This move caught the attention of RFK Jr., a well-known figure in politics and food activism.
He praised the change. But here’s the problem: RFK Jr. isn’t a doctor. He’s not a nutritionist. In fact, he’s never taken a college-level science course.
RFK Jr has a long history of pushing food myths and anti-science messages, just like early activists who helped ruin McDonald’s fries in the first place.
Let’s be clear: Beef tallow is not healthy. It’s packed with saturated fat and cholesterol, both of which increase the risk of heart disease. AHA, 2021.
Taste nostalgic—but nostalgia won’t protect your arteries.
So What’s the Lesson?
The story of McDonald’s fries teaches us something important:
👉 Because something is “natural” or “old-fashioned” doesn’t mean it’s healthy.
👉 Just because someone is loud about food doesn’t mean they know science.
👉 And just because something tastes good doesn’t mean it’s good for you.
Before you trust anyone’s food advice, check their credentials. Are they a doctor? A registered dietitian? Or just a loud person with a lot of opinions?
McDonald’s didn’t make their fries healthier in the ‘90s. They made them worse because they listened to fear instead of facts.
Sources / References
- FDA. Final Determination Regarding Partially Hydrogenated Oils. 2015. FDA.gov
- Chu M, Noh E, Lee KG. Analysis of oxidation products and toxic compounds in edible and blended oil during the deep-frying of french fries. Food Sci Biotechnol. 2024 Jan 17;33(10):2275-2287. doi: 10.1007/s10068-023-01494-9. PMID: 39145121; PMCID: PMC11319563.
- Nestle, M. (2003). Food politics: how the food industry influences nutrition and health. University of California Press.
Transcript
>> Dr. Terry Simpson: This episode is called the fries. Why McDonald's
Speaker:fries don't taste the same anymore.
Speaker:They were crispy, golden,
Speaker:perfect, the gold standard of fries. But
Speaker:Sometime in the 1990s, something changed.
Speaker:McDonald's fries just didn't taste the same
Speaker:anymore. So what happened? Was it the
Speaker:potatoes? A, uh, secret ingredient?
Speaker:Government overreach? A, uh, food activist with no
Speaker:medical training. Today, we dig into
Speaker:the story of America's most iconic fast
Speaker:food and the battle between flavor,
Speaker:fear, and facts.
Speaker:Today, we'll talk about fries, the
Speaker:legendary McDonald's fries, and what
Speaker:made them go from crispy perfection to,
Speaker:well, just. Okay.
Speaker:I am your Chief Medical Explanationist, Dr. Terry Simpson,
Speaker:and this is Fork U Fork University,
Speaker:where we make sense of the madness, bust myths, and
Speaker:teach you a little bit about food and medicine.
Speaker:Back in the day, meaning pre1990,
Speaker:McDonald's fries were cooked in a blend of
Speaker:7% cottonseed oil and 93%
Speaker:beef tallow. That's right, rendered
Speaker:beef fat. The flavor was rich,
Speaker:meaty, and unmistakably good.
Speaker:Why beef tallow? Well, Ray Kroc
Speaker:wanted his fries to taste like the ones at the
Speaker:original McDonald's in San Bernardino, and they
Speaker:did, for decades. Then
Speaker:came Phil Sokoloff, a, uh,
Speaker:Nebraska millionaire who survived a heart attack and made
Speaker:it his mission to rid America of saturated
Speaker:fat. But let's be clear. He
Speaker:wasn't a doctor, he wasn't a scientist.
Speaker:He was an early food activist, the kind
Speaker:who would have thrived, um, on Instagram with a handle like
Speaker:Artattackhero. Armed with millions
Speaker:of dollars, he took out full page ads in the New York
Speaker:Times, USA Today, and the Wall Street Journal with
Speaker:headlines like the poisoning of America or
Speaker:McDonald's your hamburger has too much fat.
Speaker:He scared the public, and, uh, McDonald's caved.
Speaker:In 1990, McDonald's switched to
Speaker:100% vegetable oil, claiming it was a
Speaker:heart healthy change. But here's
Speaker:the part they don't tell you.
Speaker:That vegetable oil was partially
Speaker:hydrogenated, which means it was loaded with something
Speaker:we call trans fats, which are
Speaker:considered worse for heart health than
Speaker:saturated fats ever have been.
Speaker:In trying to avoid saturated fat,
Speaker:McDonald's served up fries with stuff
Speaker:that actually clogs arteries and raises
Speaker:LDL cholesterol far more than
Speaker:saturated fat. It wasn't until
Speaker:2018 that trans fats were finally taken out of
Speaker:the United States food supply. So you don't have to worry
Speaker:about them in today's fries or vegetable oils.
Speaker:But for two decades, we were fed a, uh,
Speaker:healthier fry that was actually worse for our hearts.
Speaker:So much for progress. But let's point out
Speaker:who were the people that were opposed to trans
Speaker:fats. It was the doctors. We
Speaker:had been warning people from the 1950s
Speaker:on about how trans fats led to
Speaker:more problems than saturated fat.
Speaker:Doctors with careful research in peer review
Speaker:publications have been warning America, but
Speaker:America listened to a food activist.
Speaker:After the 1990s. Customers complained about the new bland
Speaker:taste and McDonald's added something called natural
Speaker:beef flavoring back in their french fries.
Speaker:So they removed beef fat, replaced it with
Speaker:beef flavor and this led to
Speaker:lawsuits from vegetarians and Hindus who
Speaker:assumed that fries were plant based.
Speaker:They weren't. Today, United States
Speaker:McDonald's fries still aren't vegan, but they
Speaker:are in the United Kingdom where they just use potatoes,
Speaker:oils and salt Today. Let's
Speaker:enter Steak n Shake who recently announced
Speaker:they were bringing back beef tallow for their fries
Speaker:and got a wave of free publicity from RFK Jr.
Speaker:Who applauded the move. Now, RFK
Speaker:Jr. Much like Phil Sokoloff,
Speaker:is another Froude crusader with
Speaker:exactly zero medical
Speaker:training. In fact, he's never taken a
Speaker:college level science course. But that doesn't stop
Speaker:him from weighing in on vaccines, food dyes, or
Speaker:apparently deep frying methods.
Speaker:Here's the inconvenient
Speaker:Beef tallow is not healthier
Speaker:than vegetable oil. It is loaded with
Speaker:saturated fat and while that may please your
Speaker:palate and your nostalgia, it does no
Speaker:favor for your arteries. This idea of
Speaker:switching back to beef tallow being somehow
Speaker:reclaiming a healthier past is fiction
Speaker:wrapped in fat. Just because something
Speaker:tastes like your childhood doesn't mean
Speaker:it's good for your future. So
Speaker:beware of the modern food babes, RFK
Speaker:Juniors, Paul Saladino's and other people
Speaker:who are trying to sell you something that isn't for your
Speaker:health.
Speaker:This podcast was written and researched by me, Dr. Terri
Speaker:Simpson, and references can be found on my substack
Speaker:channel@tsimpson.substack.com or
Speaker:yourdoctorsquarters.com and while I am a
Speaker:doctor, I am not your doctor. Before
Speaker:you make any changes to your diet, please consult a real
Speaker:Western trained physician and a registered dietitian, not
Speaker:a chiropractor and not some Eastern trained
Speaker:shaman. For Q is distributed by our friends at
Speaker:Simpler media and the pod God himself, Mr.
Speaker:Evotera, have a good week everyone.
Speaker:Hey Evo, what's your favorite fry?
Speaker:Before they ruined them or now that they're
Speaker:re beefing them?
Speaker:>> Speaker B: I never met a fried spud I didn't like.
Speaker:Oh, and I saw what you did with the whole, uh,
Speaker:inconvenient Truth thing there.
Speaker:Nice.
