America is rightfully known as the birthplace of globalisation. Throughout most business sectors the US has been at the forefront of the drive to create an international presence, which includes the food and restaurant sector. However, the mode of this internationalisation process will determine the perception that people in other countries will have of the US industry sector as a whole. The concern is always whether that perception is positive or negative.
Using global perception as a focus, this short study focuses upon the globalisation of the US restaurant industry. In a global sense there is no doubt that McDonald's, KFC, Pizza Hut, Subway are amongst the most prominent US restaurant brands. All these names and many others are instantly recognisable as fast foods outlets in most countries throughout the world and, at the same time, intrinsically linked with the perception of the American food and restaurant industry.
In terms of statistics, the following is the global position and penetration of the four chains mentioned, according to their respective websites
1) McDonald - over 31,000 outlets in 118 countries serving 58 million people daily
2) KFC - More that 20,200 outlets in 109 countries serving 12 million people daily
3) Pizza-Hut - over 13,000 outlets in 97 countries (no customer details available)
4) Subway - Over 31,000 outlets in 90 countries (no customer details available)
In most cases these outlets are franchised. In terms of the customer, they can choose for from three meals methods, these being eat-it, take-away and drive-through facilities. The big question this global dominance raises is whether the proliferation of US originated fast food chains throughout the world is creating a negative image of America's restaurant industry and its culinary skills.
Fast food outlets have in recent years received a lot of criticism, particularly in relation to the potential health issues related to their food content. For example, scientific and other studies have suggested that many of the meals offered by these restaurants contain levels of cholesterol, fats and salts in quantities that reach or exceed the recommended daily intake. It is suggested that this is exacerbating the obesity rates that are proving to be a major health issue in many countries, particularly in the west. Furthermore, there have from time to time been concerns raised about the standards of hygiene and employment conditions within some of these outlets.
It is true that the US fast food industry is taking steps to address these concerns. For example, many of the chains are increasingly introducing healthier meal options, which have lower contents of fat and other harmful ingredients. Similarly, a greater level of healthier food options such as salads is also being added to many of their menus. However, the unhealthy image still remains.
One of the adverse effects of these issues and concerns is that it does, in the view of the author and others adds substance to the negative image of the American restaurant industry. This negative image is further fuelled by the fact that the US fast food sector is by far the largest promoter of American restaurants. In 2001 McDonald's spent over $1.4 billion on one campaign. With the franchise format providing enormous promotional budgets in every country where these brands are developed, it is not surprising that the image of American culinary delights in the global community is limited to the somewhat questionable quality and content of the Fast Food brands.
There is no doubt that the US restaurant industry contains a significant number of restaurants of a much superior quality that the fast food chains. For example, in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Las Vegas there are 111 restaurants that have been awarded the coveted Michelin star and this is just a small portion of America's quality and a la carte restaurant brands. The difficulty is that, without sufficient promotion and indeed the capital to be able to undertake marketing on a global scale, relatively few people outside of the USA get to know about the finer culinary delights on offer in this uniquely diverse country.