This post is part of a feature on companies and products that our bloggers think are in need of a makeover. See all 26.

McDonald's has been hit by one serious critique after another of food safety and nutrition. The company has gone from being a family chain to something only those desperate to save time or money want. There have been half-hearted efforts to modernize, but what McDonald's really needs is a complete menu makeover.

I'm not talking about changing away from hamburgers in all their infinite variety, either. But over the last couple decades the eating public has gotten a lot more picky and worried about getting fat or sick from mad cow disease or some contaminant.

There have been many serious critiques of their impact on worldwide nutrition. Eric Schlosser described in Fast Food Nation how mega-producer McDonald's uses butchering assembly lines. In an era of food safety concern, "a single fast-food hamburger now contains meat from dozens or even hundreds of different cattle." Morgan Spurlock examined in the movie Supersize Me and a related book what happens when an individual -- or a whole country -- eats too much McDonald's.

Of course, McDonald's is facing pressure from the other side, too. We want cheap food. Especially in a recession, people love the dollar menu. But McDonald's has just got to improve the food.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) will be soon requiring audits from the global food production facilities that make the plethora of house and private-label brands sold in its retail stores. Wal-Mart announced that it would become the first grocery retailer in the U.S. to adopt the 'Global Food Safety Initiative' standards on food safety for its own private brand products. Brands such as Great Value and Sam's Choice are included in that group.

After a disastrous 2007 that saw tainted food recalls from spinach to peanut butter, consumers are still wary of food safety even if a high-profile recall isn't in the works. Many people I've spoken with recently have even started to seek out organic alternatives after losing trust in many of the processed food manufacturers due to so many recent safety recalls.

What Wal-Mart must do here is market its position as the sole adopter of this standard in every grocery section of every store. The world's largest retailer has a bad habit of embarking on important initiatives that have great value to the consumer, but falling flat on marketing those initiatives to the consumer. It could go a long way towards winning even more customer loyalty if Wal-Mart will just get the word out this time. In addition to private-label brands, Wal-Mart said that it would also require suppliers to be certified by programs under the umbrella of the Global Food Safety Initiative.

This post was part of AOL Money & Finance's Best & Worst of 2007 feature. Voting has now closed and readers have chosen rising fuel prices as the most worrisome consumer trend. Be sure to let us know in the comments if you are pleased with this result.

The most Worrisome Consumer Trend of 2007 is ... whichever one you choose. The following is my analysis of four candidates -- ranging from can't sleep at night to minor complaint:

• China product recalls. 30 million Chinese products -- many of them toys -- have been recalled in the last several months. With the holiday shopping season in full swing, this has to be among the most worrisome consumer trends. It's not easy to find out if a product is made in China. This list of U.S. made toys might help, and this list of Made in America products might also be useful.
• Subprime and mortgage meltdown. The cost to society of the subprime mortgage meltdown could be as high as $4 trillion. Two million people are expected to lose their homes to foreclosure by the end of 2008. If you are one of these people, this trend is definitely costing you sleep. And since there's no way of knowing how widespread the damage will be, everyone in the world should be worrying about this one.