Will Pasta Pass the Test? McDonald’s Menu Makeover

By MORRALL, Amanda

Nuggets and burgers — heart of the Happy Meal and prevailing champs for kids — have new competition.

As part of its ongoing health makeover, McDonald’s has put pasta on its children’s menu.

While being touted as "nutritious and fun", some nutritionists are questioning the health value.

The Pasta Zoo and Zoo Goo — a meal comprising doughy animal- shaped pasta, a dollop of tomato sauce and low-fat milk served with a chocolate-filled Sipahh straw — was unveiled in restaurants yesterday.

The filling inside the pasta pieces are said to contain a medley of roasted vegetables, including potato, peas, celery, carrot and corn.

Although touted as "nutritious and fun" (it comes with a tiny set of red pinchers) some nutritionists question the health value.

However, at least one nutritionist is warning parents to look beyond the hype.

"It appears to be a very carbohydrate-laden starchy meal without a lot of nutrients," said Bronwen King, a public health nutritionist with the Canterbury District Health Board.

King lauded McDonald’s for trying to offer healthier options, but said the meal fell short of its claims on several counts: the lack of any visible fresh vegetables, the portion sizes for the drink and overall shortage of vitamins and nutrients. "There is certainly room for improvement," she said.

In promotional material, McDonald’s breaks down the energy, fat, sugar and sodium content of the meal and compares it to other childrens’ meals like the ever popular peanut-butter sandwich.

By those measurements, it stacks up as comparable. But King said the chart failed to show nutrient and vitamin content, a more telling indicator of a healthy meal.

Mark Hawthorne, the country manager for McDonald’s in New Zealand, defended the new meal, adding it met the industry standard for labelling. He said the company’s research "showed it wasn’t of great importance to parents" to provide a breakdown of vitamins and nutrients.

The product was favourably reviewed by nutritionists and parents in terms of scoring low on saturated fats and having no artificial flavouring or colours. Children who sampled the zoo meals on debut day did not seem to mind either way. Nor did their parents.

"It (nutritious food) is not really why we come here," said Nerina Ransfield, mother to Sienna, two. "We are just happy if they eat something."

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