Frightful Fiesta

Taco Bell debuted a new advertisement for their Fiesta platters during the 2008 Superbowl.

They are clearly going for the office lunch crowd.

The commercial features two cube buddies rushing to a meeting, fiesta platters in hand, only to be stopped by three mariachis who set up a small table for them in the middle of the cube farm, urging them to slow down and enjoy their meal.

The two employees proceed to happily chow down on chicken soft tacos, seasoned rice, refried beans, chips, and salsa.

The nutrition facts, however, aren't so funky dory.

Each platter adds up to:

1,060 calories
50 grams of fat
12 grams (60 percent of a day's worth) of saturated fat
1 gram of trans fat (remember, the recommendation is set at ZERO)
An astounding 3,420 milligrams (almost a day and a half's worth!) of sodium.

The thought of someone unknowingly consuming that much sodium in one sitting truly angers me.

The one question that comes to my mind is, "why?"

Why doesn't Taco Bell offer this product with 300 less calories, half the saturated fat, and half the sodium?

Well, I suppose I DO know why. Simple economics. Cost. It's cheaper to provide inexpensive processed food than to buy, store, maintain, and sell fresher items.

Sigh....