--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whatever replaces the fast food industry…" description: "\"“Whatever replaces the fast food industry should be regional, diverse, authentic, unpredictable, sustainable, profitable--and humble. It should know it..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fa0/eric-schlosser-3894_fast-food_whatever-replaces-the-fast-food-industry_912180.png" --- # Whatever replaces the fast food industry should be… ![“Whatever replaces the fast food industry should be regional, diverse, authentic, unpredictable, sustainable, profitable--and humble. It should know its limits.” quote by Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fa0/eric-schlosser-3894_fast-food_whatever-replaces-the-fast-food-industry_912180.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fa0/eric-schlosser-3894_fast-food_whatever-replaces-the-fast-food-industry_912180.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fa0/eric-schlosser-3894_fast-food_whatever-replaces-the-fast-food-industry_912180.png) > ““Whatever replaces the fast food industry should be regional, diverse, authentic, unpredictable, sustainable, profitable--and humble. It should know its limits.”” [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A future food system must be locally rooted, varied, genuine, adaptable, eco‑friendly, financially viable, and modest, recognizing its own boundaries. **In simple terms:** Future food should be local, varied, real, sustainable, profitable, and humble. Key Takeaway Design food systems that respect local culture and limits. Themes sustainability localism authenticity economics humility Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type prescriptive inspirational When to use this quote - urban planning - restaurant startups - community gardens - policy making - consumer education Key Concepts regional diversity authenticity unpredictability sustainability profitability humility Questions to Reflect On - How can businesses stay humble while scaling? - What limits should a food system recognize? A Different Perspective Balancing profit with humility can be difficult in competitive markets. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fast food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fast-food/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Food industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food-industry/) ## Related quotes > [“The management no longer depends upon the talents or skills of its workers---those things are built into the operating systems and machines. Jobs that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-management-no-longer-depends-upon-the-talents-or-skills-of-its/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [The executives who run the fast food industry are not bad men. They are businessmen. They will sell free-range, organic, grass-fed hamburgers if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-executives-who-run-the-fast-food-industry-are-not-bad-men-they/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Future historians, I hope, will consider the American fast food industry a relic of the twentieth century--a set of attitudes, systems, and beliefs that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/future-historians-i-hope-will-consider-the-american-fast-food/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [The fast-food industry is in very good company with the lead industry and the tobacco industry in how it tries to mislead the public,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-fast-food-industry-is-in-very-good-company-with-the-lead-industry/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [“Future historians, I hope, will consider the American fast food industry a relic of the twentieth century — a set of attitudes, systems, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/future-historians-i-hope-will-consider-the-american-fast-food-2/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Annual earnings in the fast-food industry are well below the income needed for self-sufficiency, and fast-food industry jobs are also much less likely than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rolf/annual-earnings-in-the-fast-food-industry-are-well-below-the-income/) [David Rolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rolf/) > [Speaking of competition in the fast-food industry. This is rat eat rat, dog eat dog. I'll kill 'em, and I'm going to kill 'em…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kroc/speaking-of-competition-in-the-fast-food-industry-this-is-rat-eat-rat/) [Ray Kroc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kroc/) > [The fast-food industry is notorious for employing millions of Americans at poverty wages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rolf/the-fast-food-industry-is-notorious-for-employing-millions-of/) [David Rolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rolf/) > [People were always pointing the finger at the fast food industry. And I was a big fan of personal responsibility - you know, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-spurlock/people-were-always-pointing-the-finger-at-the-fast-food-industry-and/) [Morgan Spurlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-spurlock/) > [We are spending millions, if not billions of dollars every year on programs to fight the childhood obesity epidemic while giving almost $2 billion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-kucinich/we-are-spending-millions-if-not-billions-of-dollars-every-year-on/) [Dennis Kucinich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-kucinich/) > [This is rat eat rat, dog eat dog. I'll kill 'em, and I'm going to kill 'em before they kill me. Speaking of competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kroc/this-is-rat-eat-rat-dog-eat-dog-i-ll-kill-em-and-i-m-going-to-kill-em/) [Ray Kroc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kroc/) > [I don't like being in the service industry and having to deal with people yelling at me all the time. McDonald's was the hardest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-hanna/i-don-t-like-being-in-the-service-industry-and-having-to-deal-with/) [Kathleen Hanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-hanna/) > [Those externalized costs have always included labor. It is only the decline over time of the minimum wage in real dollars that's made the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/those-externalized-costs-have-always-included-labor-it-is-only-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Those of us who think about what we eat, how it's grown, those of us who care about the environmental impact of food -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-lappe/those-of-us-who-think-about-what-we-eat-how-it-s-grown-those-of-us/) [Anna Lappe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-lappe/) > [You do need some dispensation for local farmers, because the fast food industry will promote the unsanitary conditions of farming. With vegetables, you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-waters/you-do-need-some-dispensation-for-local-farmers-because-the-fast-food/) [Alice Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-waters/) ## More by Eric Schlosser > [Twenty years ago, teenage boys in the United States drank twice as much milk as soda; now they drink twice as much soda as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/twenty-years-ago-teenage-boys-in-the-united-states-drank-twice-as/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [So for everything I do, I'm very clear about what I'm doing, and I tell people what it's about. They get a sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/so-for-everything-i-do-i-m-very-clear-about-what-i-m-doing-and-i-tell/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [I never consciously set out to model myself after Upton Sinclair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/i-never-consciously-set-out-to-model-myself-after-upton-sinclair/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [“The medical literature on the causes of food poisoning is full of euphemisms and dry scientific terms: coliform levels, aerobic plate counts, sorbitol, MacConkey…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-medical-literature-on-the-causes-of-food-poisoning-is-full-of/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [A public outcry usually masks a private obsession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/a-public-outcry-usually-masks-a-private-obsession/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Very few people realize that the U.S. government does not have the power to order the recall of contaminated meat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/very-few-people-realize-that-the-u-s-government-does-not-have-the/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Fast food is popular because it's convenient, it's cheap, and it tastes good. But the real cost of eating fast food never appears on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/fast-food-is-popular-because-it-s-convenient-it-s-cheap-and-it-tastes/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [The Golden Arches are now more widely recognized than the Christian cross.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-golden-arches-are-now-more-widely-recognized-than-the-christian/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Different people, in good faith, can look at the same fact and interpret it differently. But that's where an interesting conversation begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/different-people-in-good-faith-can-look-at-the-same-fact-and/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [The current fast food that we have is inexpensive when you buy it, but the long-term costs of eating it and the long-term costs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-current-fast-food-that-we-have-is-inexpensive-when-you-buy-it-but/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [“The cable and the X-unit both had female plugs. Somehow the cable had been installed backward. It would take a couple of days to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-cable-and-the-x-unit-both-had-female-plugs-somehow-the-cable-had/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [A generation ago, three-quarters of the money used to buy food in the United States was spent to prepare meals at home. Today about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/a-generation-ago-three-quarters-of-the-money-used-to-buy-food-in-the/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [I think there could hardly be a more important subject than health and nutrition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/i-think-there-could-hardly-be-a-more-important-subject-than-health/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [I hate the word "inevitable" because I feel like things don't have to be the way they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/i-hate-the-word-inevitable-because-i-feel-like-things-don-t-have-to/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [There's a real strong link today between soda consumption and obesity among children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/there-s-a-real-strong-link-today-between-soda-consumption-and-obesity/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) [Explore all 120 Eric Schlosser quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) ## More Fast food quotes > [By eating many fruits and vegetables in place of fast food and junk food, people could avoid obesity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-h-murdock/by-eating-many-fruits-and-vegetables-in-place-of-fast-food-and-junk/) [David H. Murdock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-h-murdock/) > [“10. Calories count in New York City. The Big Apple recently adopted a law that requires fast-food restaurants with at least fifteen outlets in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-h-thaler/10-calories-count-in-new-york-city-the-big-apple-recently-adopted-a/) [Richard H. Thaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-h-thaler/) > [Star Trek' is the McDonald's of science fiction; it's fast food storytelling. Every problem is like every other problem. They all get solved in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gerrold/star-trek-is-the-mcdonald-s-of-science-fiction-it-s-fast-food/) [David Gerrold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gerrold/) > [Cheating is like eating fast food. You do it, you enjoy it, and then you end up feeling like shit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/cheating-is-like-eating-fast-food-you-do-it-you-enjoy-it-and-then-you/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [I'm a southern boy raised in Gainesville, Georgia, so it's natural for me to want fast food and sweet tea, but those are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deshaun-watson/i-m-a-southern-boy-raised-in-gainesville-georgia-so-it-s-natural-for/) [Deshaun Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deshaun-watson/) > [What I've been developing is a vegan fast food chain and vegan food markets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-mills/what-i-ve-been-developing-is-a-vegan-fast-food-chain-and-vegan-food/) [Heather Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-mills/) > [I did software development for a while, and I also spent several years directing a nonprofit in San Francisco that did computer education for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-autor/i-did-software-development-for-a-while-and-i-also-spent-several-years/) [David Autor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-autor/) > [Annual earnings in the fast-food industry are well below the income needed for self-sufficiency, and fast-food industry jobs are also much less likely than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rolf/annual-earnings-in-the-fast-food-industry-are-well-below-the-income/) [David Rolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rolf/) > [When I wrote 'Fast Food My Way' in 2004, I hoped that my friends would prepare my recipes. Now, more people cook from that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-p-pin/when-i-wrote-fast-food-my-way-in-2004-i-hoped-that-my-friends-would/) [Jacques Pepin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-p-pin/) > [I had a list of about 35 restaurants, 25 of which were fast-food joints all around Los Angeles and I didn't get a quarter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-farrell/i-had-a-list-of-about-35-restaurants-25-of-which-were-fast-food/) [Colin Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-farrell/) > [For me, it's all about moderation. I don't kick things out of my diet, like carbs. But I'm not going to eat fast food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-flay/for-me-it-s-all-about-moderation-i-don-t-kick-things-out-of-my-diet/) [Bobby Flay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-flay/) > [Fast food is popular because it's convenient, it's cheap, and it tastes good. But the real cost of eating fast food never appears on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/fast-food-is-popular-because-it-s-convenient-it-s-cheap-and-it-tastes/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [I wouldn't go in a fast food outlet even to use the toilet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonny-wilkinson/i-wouldn-t-go-in-a-fast-food-outlet-even-to-use-the-toilet/) [Jonny Wilkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonny-wilkinson/) > [The current fast food that we have is inexpensive when you buy it, but the long-term costs of eating it and the long-term costs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/the-current-fast-food-that-we-have-is-inexpensive-when-you-buy-it-but/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Fast food may appear to be cheap food and, in the literal sense it often is, but that is because huge social and environmental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prince-charles/fast-food-may-appear-to-be-cheap-food-and-in-the-literal-sense-it/) [Prince Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prince-charles/) [Browse all 440 Fast food quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fast-food/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Whatever replaces the fast food industry should be regional, diverse, authentic, unpredictable, sustainable, profitable--and humble. 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