The Subway Footlong scandal

I’m sure you have seen the ads for Subway’s Footlong sandwich. It’s impossible to miss them. Smiling happy people hold their hands out 12 inches apart, and a pair of arrows appears between them, indicating that the distance is “1 Foot.”

You can be forgiven for thinking that Subway’s Footlong sandwich is one foot long. But it isn't. In fact, most people are finding that the sandwich is only about 11 inches long.

It all started when an Australian man took a picture of his so-called “Footlong” beside a measuring tape. He uploaded the picture to Subway’s Facebook page, and the shock rippled through the worldwide community of sandwich lovers. The New York Post visited seven Subway restaurants in New York City and found that only four of them measured up to a full twelve inches.

You don’t often have cause to question the size of your food. The last time I can recall a scandal like this, it was when B.J. Novak brought two Cadbury Crème Eggs – one old, one new - onto Late Night with Conan O’Brien to demonstrate that they really have shrunk the Crème Egg over the years without telling anyone.

For its part, Subway has issued a press release explaining that the term “Footlong” does not mean what you think it means. They have helpfully explained that the term “SUBWAY FOOTLONG” is a registered trademark and a “descriptive name” for the sandwich, but that it is “not intended to be a measurement of length.”

Weasel words to the extreme. I wonder how long it will take for Subway to get hit with a class action lawsuit over this? Sure you can claim that “Footlong is just a name,” but how far is that really going to go in the courts? Also, I would like to introduce you to my new “FIRE IN A CROWDED THEATER” brand popcorn. If you want FIRE IN A CROWDED THEATER brand popcorn, just shout FIRE IN A CROWDED THEATER!

Image courtesy Flickr/Mr. Tea