The Associated Press reports that 99 year old billionaire J. R. Simplot died of natural causes after a life shunning cigarettes and alcohol. Although much of his $3.2 billion estimated net worth came from a deal he struck with McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) to supply potatoes for its french fries, he also made some money in semiconductors -- providing $1 million in capital for a 40% stake in Micron Technologies (NYSE: MU).

That Micron stake connects me -- however distantly -- to Simplot. That's because on June 22, 2006, Micron acquired Lexar Media, a maker of flash memory chips, for $850 million. I was an advisory board member of Lexar and received cash for my stake. Micron, which generates most of its revenues from Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) chips, thought that Lexar's flash memory would help boost its margins by expanding Micron's then-developing memory card business. Unfortunately, Micron's stock has lost 22% of its value since the deal.

But Micron was not the biggest part of Simplot's fortune. He left home in 1923 with $20 worth of gold coins from his mother and traded up. His businesses, still family owned, manufacture agriculture, horticulture and turf fertilizers; animal feed and seeds; food products such as fruits, potatoes and other vegetables; and industrial chemicals and irrigation products. He all but invented the first commercially viable frozen french fries in the world.

This morning, fast-food behemoth McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) reported that its same-store sales spiked 4.8% worldwide in April. Helping drive the sales growth last month, according to company officials, were the kid-friendly Happy Meal, breakfast items, and the new "Snack Wrap" menu offering.

On U.S. soil, same-store sales rose 3.5%. The figures rose 3.5% in Europe and surged 10.3% in the Asia/Pacific, Middle East, and Africa regions (this ties in with Zac's posting yesterday about the expanding waistlines among Japanese women). Total sales rose 9.6% across the globe and 4.2% in the U.S.

With the exception of its fries, and the Big Mac I crave about once every 18 months, McDonald's has never been my favorite, but it's inarguably a force to be reckoned with. And amid complaints from Morgan Spurlock and countless others, MCD has done its part to fight obesity - finding an oil free of trans fats for its french fries, for one, and introducing healthier menu options, such as veggie burgers and better salads.

The company's stock is also an exquisite performer. MCD has been trending higher since early 2003, more than quadrupling in value during the past four years. This month, the stock has eked above its November 1999 peak to peg a new all-time high.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

In 1970, dining out accounted for 34% of the average American household budget. Today it's 50%. Combine that with a more health-conscious American diet, and you wonder why Chef Thomas Keller, owner of California's famous French Laundry restaurant, serves Tartine du Jour and Croque Madame at his Bouchon Bistros with frozen fries delivered by Sysco Corp (NYSE:SYY).

He's not the only one. Mickey Mantle's Restaurant, a high-end sports bar, serves Manhattan clam chowder and vegetarian black bean soup prepared by Sysco. And award-winning Edgar's Restaurant at Belhurst Castle, according to Slate, pretty much "takes Sysco's Imperial Towering Chocolate Cake out of the box, lets it defrost, and then sprinkles it with fresh raspberries before serving it to diners."

Is Sysco -- which serves 400,000 diners, cruise ships and summer camps with instant, frozen gratification -- helping to accelerate America's bad-taste curve, or simply supplying a widespread demand for 36-count boxes of chicken Kiev that can be stored in a freezer for "up to 180 days?"

Founded and headquartered in Houston, Sysco claimed sales of $150 million in 1970. With $30.5 billion reported in 2005, and expanded second-quarter growth reported last month, the company now provides customers with, according to their web site, "everything they need for their operations, from sparkling front-of-the-house service ware to heavy-duty, back-of-the-house janitorial supplies and everything else in between." Which would include health care and medical products.

Which is great. But as Sysco's refrigerated empire expands, I think the main question is: Aside from pushing the thaw button, what is the guy with the white hat and the spatula actually doing back there? I'm not one to say. So leave it to Sysco founder John F. Baugh, who claims, according to their 35th anniversary brochure, "frozen foods taste better than anything I could grow in my garden."

B. Brandon Barker is the author of the novel Operation EMU.

McDonald's Corp. (NYSE:MCD) has gotten on the bandwagon against trans-fats.

The company told the Associated Press that its using a trans-fat free oil at more than 1,200 U.S. restaurant. McDonald's wouldn't provide any further details, which makes me think that fries cooked in the new oil don't taste as yummy as the current artery-clogging stuff though the company claims otherwise.

Ronald McDonald's parent got in hot water with public health advocates in 2002 for backing away from its pledge to create a new cooking oil, citing concerns about the taste of its fries.

Restaurants are under the gun because of trans-fats. New York City is banning artificial trans-fats effective July 1. Other cities, including Philadelphia are probably going to follow. Plus, Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE:YUM) has already gotten positive press for phasing out the bad oil at KFC and Taco Bell.

Now that the food police are winning this fight, you can bet that portion sizes will be next on their agenda. Look for warning labels on the double Quarter Pounder. Then McDonald's will have to certify that that its beef, chicken and produce came from organic farms. Finally, federal authorities will demand that anti-cholesterol drugs be added to the ketchup.

I am not against nutrition, but I do worry that we are becoming a nanny state. Where does it stop?