Spain Tries to Remove Burger Ads

Spain's government was yesterday trying to stop the global fast-food chain Burger King advertising its biggest burgers on television as the health minister, Elena Salgado, warned of a growing obesity problem.

"They should remove it," she said of the latest Burger King advertisement. The "burger war" began last week when Ms Salgado complained about adverts for the chain's XXL burger which, her ministry claimed, carried about 971 calories.

Burger King then brought out advertisements for its Double Whopper with the punchline "Eat like a man!". It was, the minister said, breaking a voluntary agreement that chains would not push clients to eat ever larger portions.

Ministry staff said the burger chain might be taken to court. Felix Lobo, head of Spain's food regulatory body, said the case could be for "illegally failing to comply with a contract".

Burger King said it just reacted to client taste. It always worked "to reduce the risk of illness provoked by an inadequate diet and to promote a balanced ... diet".