Warren Buffett may be a billionaire businessman in his 90s, but he eats like a child. The investor and Berkshire Hathaway CEO loves McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and Dairy Queen. Buffett says his indulgent diet has been key to his happiness and long lifespan. Loading Something is loading.
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Warren Buffett may be 92 and one of the richest people on the planet, but he still has a child’s taste for fast food, sugary sodas, and sweet treats.
The famed investor and Berkshire Hathaway CEO counts burgers, hot dogs, and ice cream among his favorite foods. He munches on McDonald’s for breakfast, guzzles five cans of Coke every day, and demolishes cookies and chocolates.
Fittingly, Berkshire owns See’s Candies and Dairy Queen, while Coca-Cola and Kraft Heinz are among the largest holdings in its $300 billion stock portfolio.
Buffett has defended his eating habits — and voiced his disgust at vegetables and other healthy options — during interviews, in his yearly letters to shareholders, and at Berkshire’s annual meetings.
Here are Buffett’s 11 best quotes about his diet, lightly edited for length and clarity:1. “I’ve gotten to 92 with the habits of a 6-year-old. So far, it’s working. Charlie’s 99 and he doesn’t eat any better than I do. I found everything I like to eat by the time I was six. Why should I fool around with all these other foods? If somebody told me I would live an extra year if I ate nothing but broccoli and a few other things all my life, I would say, ‘Take that year off the end of my life and let me eat what I like to eat.'” (CNBC)
2. “I think happiness makes an enormous amount of difference in terms of longevity. And I’m happier when I’m drinking Coke or eating hot fudge sundaes or hot dogs.” (CNBC)
3. “I’m one quarter Coca-Cola. If I eat 2,700 calories a day, a quarter of that is Coca-Cola. I drink at least five 12-ounce servings. I do it everyday. I have three Cokes during the day and two at night.” (Fortune)
4. “I checked the actuarial tables, and the lowest death rate is among 6-year-olds. So I decided to eat like a 6-year-old. It’s the safest course I can take.” (Fortune)
5. “I follow a very simple rule when it comes to food. If a three-year-old doesn’t eat it, I don’t eat it.” (“The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life”)
6. “Broccoli, asparagus, and Brussels sprouts look to me like Chinese food crawling around on a plate. Cauliflower almost makes me sick. I eat carrots reluctantly. I don’t like sweet potatoes. I don’t even want to be close to a rhubarb, it makes me retch. My idea of a vegetable is green beans, corn, and peas. I like spaghetti and grilled cheese sandwiches. I’ll eat meat loaf but wouldn’t order it in a restaurant.” (“The Snowball”)
7. “During the meeting, Charlie and I will each consume enough Coke, See’s fudge and See’s peanut brittle to satisfy the weekly caloric needs of a NFL lineman. Long ago we discovered a fundamental truth: There’s nothing like eating carrots and broccoli when you’re really hungry – and want to stay that way.” (2015 letter)
8. “There’s a lot to be said about being happy with what you’re doing. If I’d been eating broccoli and Brussels sprouts all my life, I don’t think I’d live as long. I would approach every meal thinking it’s like going to jail or something.” (2015 meeting)
9. “When I compare drinking Coca-Cola to something that somebody would sell me at Whole Foods — I don’t see smiles on the faces of people at Whole Foods.” (2015 meeting)
10. “I like eating the same thing over and over and over again. I could eat a ham sandwich every day for 50 days in a row for breakfast.” (“The Snowball”)
11. “I don’t eat any Chinese food. If necessary, serve me rice and I’ll just move it around on my plate, and I’ll go back to my room afterward and eat peanuts.” (“The Snowball”) (This was Buffett’s response when Bill and Melinda Gates asked what he liked to eat ahead of a group vacation to China. Buffett made sure to speak up after suffering through a disastrous sushi dinner a few years earlier, and was served hamburgers, french fries and Cherry Coke throughout the trip.)