Why are the portions in US restaurants so big?
Have you ever noticed that the food on your plate at a restaurant is a lot more than you can eat in one meal? It turns out that restaurants haven’t always served so much food.
Following World War II, agricultural policy in the U.S. expanded. Farmers were able to grow food more cheaply by using fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides. In the 1970s, the government began subsidizing farmers to grow more food.
Over time, companies have increased their serving sizes to increase their profits, and we all caught on. Why have less when you can have more for only a little bit more money?
Back