<p>Fast-food chain Arby's is taking on its much larger rivals by poking fun at McDonald's and Wendy's in a nationwide launch of TV commercials that began Wednesday.</p><p>In one ad, a young man in a suit stands before a boardroom with McDonald's trademark golden arches symbol on the wall.</p><p>"I propose McDonald's stop putting phosphates, salt and water into its chicken," he says. "Consider replacing your chicken ... with all natural chicken."</p><p>He is greeted with laughter. A caption at the bottom of the ad says McDonald's "Crispy Chicken Fillet" has up to 29.3 percent water, seasoning and sodium phosphates.</p><p>The new ads promote the Atlanta-based chain's new "Arby's Chicken Naturals" sandwiches, launched in February and only made from additive-free chicken. All the chicken served by the chain is 100 percent natural, Arby's officials say.</p><p>It's the first time Arby's has ever made fun of rival restaurants in ads, said Debra Mager, senior vice president of national advertising. Arby's, the country's 12th-largest chain by sales, is dwarfed by the competitors it lampoons in the ads. Ohio-based Wendy's is the nation's third largest hamburger chain while Oak Brook, Ill.-based McDonald's is the industry leader.</p><p>"We don't have the kind of budgets they have, we have to work harder to get noticed," Mager said. "There's a big market in chicken. We wanted our fair share and we didn't feel like we were getting it."</p><p>In another ad, the young man in the suit stands before a reception area that has Wendy's logo on the wall. He enters a boardroom and makes a pitch for Wendy's to use only chicken instead of fillers in its sandwiches before being ungraciously thrown out into the reception area.</p><p>Arby's officials declined to release sales figures for the new sandwiches but said in a statement that since the launch, sales of "promotional and regular chicken menu items have both increased."</p><p>The new ad campaign was launched to answer customers' questions about the difference between Arby's sandwiches and those of competitors, Mager said.</p><p>Mager said salt typically is used by other restaurants to enhance flavor and water is injected into chicken to make it look larger. Phosphates are used to bind the water to the meat.</p><p>"Without claiming that it's more healthy, it feels like it's better for you if it doesn't have things injected into it," she said.</p><p>McDonald's and Wendy's officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.</p><p>____</p><p>On the Net:</p><p>HASH(0x1cdcfb0)</p><p>HASH(0x1cdd058)</p><p>HASH(0x1cdeae0)</p>
