Taking the Deep Fat Out of the French Fry

By Tim Larimer

Chocolate bars and ice cream aren't the only products getting makeovers to please the growing carb-avoiding public. The all-American French fry is being retooled to overcome its unwholesome image--and perk up its sagging sales.

Product developers at major fast-food chains are tinkering with cooking methods that mimic the mouth-watering taste without all the artery-clogging fat. Producers J.R. Simplot, ConAgra Foods and Canada's McCain Foods are secretly developing oils for a healthier fry and introducing products like frozen wedges roasted in olive oil, rosemary and garlic. Even if those don't catch on, McDonald's and other chains are trotting out alternative side dishes like rice and yogurt. And as a last resort, there are faux fries concocted from rice flour or cornmeal.

Experimentation sometimes produces disasters, like the chocolate-and cinnamon-flavored fries introduced and quickly shelved by Heinz last year. But for food purveyors, taking risks has become essential as weight-conscious and fry-fatigued consumers abandon the deep-fried spud. Americans ordered 900 million fewer servings of fries over the 12 months ending in May, a sharp 10% drop compared with the previous year, according to research to be published in October by the NPD Group, a market-research firm that has been charting American eating patterns for 18 years. That's a lot of taters, and it represents a huge loss of business. In 2002 Americans ate on average 28.5 lbs. of fries. "It may be people are finally getting the message about obesity," says Harry Balzer, author of the NPD report. "But what drives eating patterns is what's new and different. What's new about fries?"

For the past half-century, not much. Ever since the McDonald brothers perfected a method for deep-frying julienned potatoes and an Idaho researcher figured out how to freeze and refry the potatoes for mass consumption, fast-food chains, where some 40% of the U.S. potato crop ends up, have been serving the same basic burger accoutrement. After health concerns about the high fat content of fries were raised more than a decade ago, McDonald's switched in 1990 from a blend of beef tallow and cottonseed oil to pure vegetable oil in its deep fryers. Now McDonald's and the others are scrambling to respond to concerns about trans-fatty acids.

To save the French fry from culinary oblivion, drastic changes are in the works. "To say they are panicking out in Idaho is a gross understatement," says Joseph Hotchkiss, chairman of Cornell University's Department of Food Sciences. Potato growers and the processing companies that make fries held a summit in July to figure out how to rev up potato sales. Manufacturers were reluctant to reveal what they have in the pipeline, but growers want to aggressively promote a more healthful potato. No wonder. The price of a 100lb. bag of russets has dropped to $2 from $8 a year ago.

Jim Tiede, a third-generation potato grower in American Falls, Idaho, is worried that his crop is getting a bad rap. "Potatoes are healthy if you don't load them up with oil or sour cream or cheese," he says. Tell that to Carmel, N.Y., high school student Natalie Fleming, who skipped the fries during a visit to McDonald's last week. "They used to come with everything you ordered, so you ate them," she says. "But now--I don't know--I just never eat them." Maybe rosemary and garlic will win Natalie back. After a half-century of the same old fry, it's time for a change. But as food consultant and author Anthony Zolezzi warns, "People won't sacrifice taste. So if it doesn't taste good, they'll stop eating fries forever." --By Tim Larimer