PESTLE Please Include PESTLE Analysis: Fast Food

PESTLE Please include PESTLE analysis: Fast food industry Political The recent backlash against unhealthy eating could prove to be difficult for the fast food industry. There are calls to limit the marketing of fast food products to children and to limit the sale of fast foods in schools. Given that children are such an important driver of sales, this could curtail the efficacy of many fast food campaigns, particular those with tie-ins to children's films and television shows.

Campaigns like Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" campaign underline the importance of healthy eating and eating minimally processed foods. Although President Obama and the First Lady have been photographed eating burgers and they say that they are not against all fast food, the overall emphasis on the administration has been on restricting access to 'junk food' (Michelle Obama loves fast food, 2010, Slashfood). Economic The economic uncertainty in America has proved to be salutary for fast food restaurants.

Customers are dining at casual sit-down restaurants like Applebee's less often but they are not cooking more: rather, they are switching their consumption patterns to favor fast food restaurants for inexpensive convenience meals. McDonald's, Domino's, and KFC saw their profits soar during the height of the credit crisis and 2008 recession.

"Penny-watching consumers are turning away from conventional restaurants and slobbing out on the sofa at home, not with a bowl of hearty, homemade soup, but with a whopping great bucket of fried chicken or a calorie-laden pizza" (Fast food nation: The sequel, 2009,The Guardian). Customers have grown up in a culture where cooking is not a part of their daily routine. More women are working, and parents are working longer hours. Combined with afterschool activities, going through the drive-in is an easy compromise to have dinner quickly.

Also, the popularity of 'dollar menus' at most fast food establishments have seduced customers with the allure of dining for pocket change, in an economy in which food is growing increasingly expensive. Social Although the economic conditions are currently salutary for the fast food industry, the social conditions are less so. Many schools are calling for bans on junk food because of fears of the rising childhood obesity epidemic.

A study in the American Journal of Public Health found that even when controlling for the economic status of students, students who attended school near fast food restaurants had a greater risk of being obese than students who did not (David & Carpenter 2009). Proximity fostered a tendency to overindulge. There has also been a rise in interest in cooking, thanks to the Food Network and other popular culinary shows and books. Consumers are more willing to try new flavors, rather than stick to the traditional offerings of burgers and pizza.

In response, fast food chains have been trying to offer healthier options and more innovative products, such as products with Asiago cheese and artisan breads. Quasi-fast food establishments like Panera Bread now offer more 'real foods' to compliment more traditional fast food offerings like sandwiches and Subway has made healthy eating a cornerstone of its marketing campaign, which features 'Jared,' a young man who lost weight eating Subway's diet subs.

Technology Technology has been a boon to the fast food industry, most notably in the ability of products to be premade and then reheated on-premises. This ensures consistency of the product. For fast food establishments which promise higher quality, however, there must be a balance between speed and taste. Starbucks was forced to shut down and entirely retrain its staff in new procedures for making espresso because the quality of its expensive beverages had gone down and its price structure is not strictly budget-related.

It decided to go back to a slower method of making espresso that produced a higher-quality product (Starbucks shuts down 3.5 hours for training, 2008, ABC News). The ability to order online and have food waiting for you at the restaurant during office hour lunchtimes or to order so food is delivered to your home online has proved popular for many restaurants. Online technology also enables customers to research where their favorite dishes come from, the calories, and ingredients.

This may provide some customers with more security about eating fast food and sticking to their diets on one hand. On the other hand, some customers may be dismayed with the calories in their favorite fast food orderings. Legal Many fast food restaurants have been fighting regulations demanding that they post known calorie counts on-site, which is intended by the government to encourage customers to make more informed choices. The restaurants fear this might dissuade customers from eating there, although the evidence is mixed if this actually influences customer choices.

Links to obesity rates and proximity to schools have raised the call for zoning ordinances to limit where fast food establishments can be located (David & Carpenter 2009). In the past, some schools have allowed fast food to be sold in.