Jason’s Deli Owner: Restaurant Industry Should Remove HFCS From Its Menu And We’ll Lead The Way

Jason’s Deli becomes the first American restaurant chain to eliminate HFCS

Last year in my local Spartanburg, South Carolina neighborhood I saw a brand new restaurant go up (yeah, so what else is new these days, right?), but this one seemed a little different. It was a place called Jason’s Deli and I immediately tuned it out of my head because I thought all they served there was sandwiches. As a result, we didn’t try the restaurant out until last month when my church’s new choir director hosted a meet-and-greet social there with the choir members (Christine sings alto and I sing tenor in our church choir).

When I walked into Jason’s Deli, I couldn’t help but notice that is was indeed a rather unique dining experience unlike your typical restaurant of this type. While Subway, Blimpies, and the others in the “deli” category are doing their thing to distinguish themselves as a healthy alternative to typical fast food, Jason’s Deli took it even one step further. I was highly impressed by their commitment to remove trans-fats and MSG from their menu in 2005 in addition to offering fresh organic foods instead of the cheap stuff that seems to dominate the food industry in modern-day society.

That attention to detail that first caught my attention last month has been taken to an entirely new and exciting level that I’m pleased to share with you today. The Beaumont, TX-based Jason’s Deli officially announced today that they have completely eliminated high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) from its expansive menu in all of its stores nationwide. Did you hear that? NO MORE HFCS AT JASON’S DELI! This is huge, people, since high fructose corn syrup is in EVERYTHING these days (something Michael Pollan told us about in his outstanding book The Omnivore’s Dilemma).

Watch this two-minute video about what Jason’s Deli has decided to do:

Can you imagine the positive impact on weight and health that could happen if other restaurant chains would follow the bold and courageous lead that the owners of Jason’s Deli have undertaken today? Inconceivable. And yet every major shift in thinking has to begin with the first step…and here it is. Whether you realize how difficult a move this was for Jason’s Deli or not, let me tell you that it had to take countless hours of looking for new vendors for mundane, yet essential operating items such as bread, salad dressings, desserts (including their famous soft serve ice cream), as well as many more foods that they need in stock to run their business. As someone who has been involved in purchasing in the past, this is a minor miracle that they pulled this off!

With restaurants in 25 states and over 200 scattered across the United States serving 30 million people annually (boasting the title of the “fasting growing fast casual restaurant chain” according to the August 2008 issue of QSR Magazine), this will make a real difference in the lives of the customers who frequent a Jason’s Deli restaurant. I’d like to publicly applaud the leadership of this fine company for making the RIGHT decision to get away from HFCS and return to serving REAL FOOD again. Kudos for bucking the trend to go cheap as a means for making profit like everyone else does to ultimately screw the customer. This is the wave of the future and Jason’s Deli is on the cutting edge of this trend.

Co-Owner and Executive Vice-President of Jason’s Deli Rusty Coco said the time is right to return to the good old days before HFCS became so pervasive in our society pre-1970s because food has changed since that cheap and unhealthy sweetener invaded our food supply.

“I say with first-hand knowledge that food does not taste the same as it once did. Yet Jason’s Deli has taken a step today to change that,” Coco commented.

The days of families sitting at home for a meal together seem long gone, Coco added, which is why highly-processed foods have sadly become the “staples in our diets” rather than fresh homemade meals.

“Jason’s Deli can’t change the reality but we think we can help make a difference,” he stated.

Since they had already removed trans-fats and MSG from their menu previously, the logical next step was for Jason’s Deli to take on HFCS. And it comes at a time when the Corn Refiner’s Association is in the midst of an aggressive television ad campaign designed to quell fears about the negative health impact of HFCS. But there are tons of books being written on the role of fructose in obesity and disease that are backed up with solid research that can no longer be ignored. The truth is out there for everyone to see–HFCS is harmful and should be avoided like the plague.

Coco says he has no regrets about the decision his company made despite the cost in time and money to do this “enormous undertaking.”

“We found that removing HFCS actually makes food taste better,” Coco remarked. “We hope to remove HFCS from our carbonated drinks as well.”

While they probably will not be replacing the HFCS with a sugar alternative like Splenda or even stevia, it’s likely they will attempt to use real cane sugar instead although I’m not sure how they can pull that off without some major moves by the soft drink industry. That’s one of the reasons why they are asking their customers to vote on what they want to see happen and the information will be passed along to the beverage companies. We already know they are one of the biggest culprits in the HFCS fiasco we are experiencing today. I’d love to see Jason’s Deli take another step and remove artificial sweeteners from their diet sodas and replace them with natural alternatives, but first things first. This HFCS decision warrants our gratitude and support.

In the “Battle For Real Food” as Coco puts it, we need to put our money where our mouth is and send a message to the rest of the food industry that poor quality and cheap products just doesn’t cut it anymore. We demand great-tasting real food that is reasonably priced, are organic when possible, and are completely free of trans-fats, MSG, and HFCS. That’s not an impossible task as Jason’s Deli is showing. With a little effort, it can and MUST be done. Coco says the ball is now in the hands of the other restaurant chains to follow suit.

“We challenge the entire restaurant industry to eliminate artificial trans fats, MSG and HFCS in foods. Create ‘clean’ food because people can taste the difference,” Coco contended. “For me it’s about eating Mother Nature’s simple food without the unnecessary stuff put in it by humans. We hope you care, too.”

Won’t you join me in giving support for a restaurant chain that truly understands what health and nutrition is really all about? CLICK HERE to find a Jason’s Deli close to you and tell the manager you appreciate the move away from trans-fats, MSG and now HFCS. If you’ve never been to a Jason’s Deli before, then prepare to have your socks blown off of you! They offer a wide variety of fresh foods that you can enjoy on your healthy low-carb lifestyle with appropriate substitutions. And if you don’t want to leave your house, you can even ORDER ONLINE and have it delivered to your front door. COOL!

In fact, Jason’s Deli is so excited about their new HFCS-free menu that they wanted to give my readers (that’s YOU!) an opportunity to win some gift certificates just for trying them out! I have lots of $5 gift certificates to give away to some lucky winners, so pay close attention to the following to see what you need to do to get yourself one of these prizes.

1. Leave feedback about this decision in the comments section below.
2. Leave a comment about the above video at YouTube.
3. Leave a comment at Rusty Coco’s LoveBites blog.
4. Vote about what Jason’s Deli should do about beverages.
5. Send an e-mail to livinlowcarbman@charter.net with your full name and mailing address where I can mail your free $5 gift certificate.

This contest will be first come, first served. When I run out of the gift certificates, the contest will be over. GOOD LUCK everyone and show your support for what Jason’s Deli has done today!