Answer to Question #203945 in Management for TAM

Question

CASE STUDY : Burger King Case Study: Obesity Concerns Product Revamp

Burger King's primary target customers were families where both partners were working As the pace of American lifestyle increased people did not find enough time to cook their meals. Because most of the fast food was quite tasty, cheap, convenient and readily available, consumers preferred them to regular meals. Even children of up to 16 years of age played a major role and they were the secondary targets. They had the power to convince their parents to take them out to such fast food restaurants. They enjoyed specialized kids meals and were a key part of the dining experience for families. In 1990, an average of 997 commercials was aired during Saturday morning cartoon hours compared to225 in 1987. Two thirds of these advertisements promoted candies and fast food. Also, the 'super-size bags' and 'value meals become popular since consumers got a great quantity of food at a comparatively lesser price. Getting more for your money is ingrained in the American psyche. Consumers were getting accustomed to bigger and heartier meals as fast food was usually bundle priced i.e. a hamburger, fries and soft drink cost less if bought together than separately. A study undertaken by "Centers for Disease Control and Prevention" in 1999 revealed that 30% of US adults who were 20 years and older (59 million people) were obese and had increased their calorie and carbohydrate intake over the past 30 years Increase in this intake resulted in an average gain of 22 pounds per year for men and 11 pounds per year for women. Health problems like cancer, heart diseases, diabetes, asthma, high blood cholesterol, breathing problems and many more could rise from obesity. There was a transition from blaming individuals to blaming society and fast food industry in particular. Even among children, obesity was prevalent. It was found that 15% of children between 6 to 19 years of age were obese or overweight. Availability of fast and at school increases in the portion sizes were the major factors contributing to the rising levels of obesity among children. With the rate of obesity levels reaching alarming rates in America, fast food companies attracted consumer resentment on large scale. Like other fast food companies in the US, burger king was also sued for making Americans obese with its fatty. Although the lawsuits were dismissed later, the companies realised the importance of assuming a healthier" image. It initiated its efforts to makeover its menu by introducing a new line of low-fat-food items, It introduced its fresh baked baguette sandwich line with a value meal option of salad and bottled water. This grilled sandwich, topped with grilled vegetables contained only five grams of fat and 350 calories in comparison to the whopper with cheese which had 780 calories and 47 grams of fat. It also introduced a bun less burger: for the low carb dieter which was a healthier version of whopper hamburger omitting the bun and had 3grams of carbohydrates, compared with 52 for a regular whopper. In March 2004, burger king rolled out its new salad line, which included a pouch that kept the meat or seafood toppings hot. A nutrition information guide was also rolled out, both in-store and online. It also signed up celebrities like Chef Rick Bayless to endorse the new sandwiches. These strategies were adopted to reposition its brand image in the minds of the customer from a fast food high calorie manufacturer to a health food segment which helped them increase their revenues by 7.5% in 2004 compared to 2003. This took place after the reintroduction of the 1974 advertisement slogan "have it your way" that customized the items according to individual customer preferences i.e. micro marketing for individuals. This can also be called a 'one to one marketing' or 'customized marketing'. In comparison to Wendy's chicken sandwiches, diners indicated that burger king sandwiches (tendercrisp and spicy tendercrisp chicken sandwiches) were preferred. The consumers' reactions to fire-grilled salads were also positive and were rated better than the salads offered by McDonalcs and Wendy's. The selection of advertising agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky (who had relaunched the "have it your way" philosophy) was also producing solid results. It had also designed a new interactive nutrition guide that provided nutritional information in brochures and websites that allowed diners to access nutritional information on each menu item, a facility that was not provided by other competitors such as McDonalds, Wendy's or KFC. The critics also praised the company's initiatives to curb the growing obesity epidemic.

1. What are the ethical issues which emerge from the above case "Obesity Concerns: Burger Kings Product Revenges”? ( Please answer these issues in detail in points)
2. How would you handle these issues? ( Please answer in detail and give at least 8 points for this )

Answer 1

Dear TAM, your question requires a lot of work, which neither of our experts is ready to perform for free. We advise you to convert it to a fully qualified order and we will try to help you. Please click the link below to proceed: Submit order