Wendy's New Fries

Big news from the world of fast food:

Wendy's is revamping its fries to appeal to "foodies," those wanting "more natural foods."

With an eye toward appealing to foodies, Wendy's is remaking its fries with Russett potatoes, leaving the skin on and sprinkling sea salt on top.

The fast-food chain has been changing its menu to focus on "real" ingredients to win more fans.

...The new fries are slightly slimmer than the old ones, and crispier because they're smaller. They will have more salt, a medium size fry goes from 350 milligrams to 500 milligrams, and calories add 10 to 420. The selling price will not change, ranging from 99 cents to about $2. The fries will still come to stores frozen.

Wendy's is planning a marketing push, including national television ads airing later this month, to highlight the changes.

"We want every ingredient to be a simple ingredient, to be one you can pronounce and one your grandmother would recognize in her pantry," said Chief Marketing Officer Ken Calwell, who declined to say what the Dublin, Ohio, company was spending on the effort.

People want more natural foods and they want to know where they come from, he said. Having the skin on is a way to remind people that fries come from potatoes, he said. Testing showed that some people think restaurant french fries are processed foods, he said. The old recipe used a blend of potatoes, not always Russett, but the fries were 100 percent potato.

Sea salt is being increasingly used in fine dining and in mainstream eating. Lay's, part of PepsiCo Inc., uses sea salt in a version of its natural potato chips.

The new fries are also cooked in a different blend of vegetable oils.

Wendy's worked with its suppliers to grow more Russett potatoes, so the new recipe will only cost a fraction more to produce.

"Having the skin on is a way to remind people that fries come from potatoes."

What?

Does anyone eating Wendy's fries forget they're eating potatoes? Is the skin a necessary reminder? People inclined to forget aren't inclined to care.

If the fries taste better, terrific.

If customers like the changes, good for Wendy's.

But they're still fries. Promoting the new fries as a more "natural food" suggests that they're a healthier choice.

No.

A stick of Land O'Lakes butter contains sweet cream, salt, and milk. That's very natural, but having a large order of butter with your burger isn't a good idea.