Quantcast
Channel: Womens Digital Online Magazine | VIVMag » Da Capo
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 4

Snackers Beware: The Devious Tactics Food Marketers Use to Hook You by josie

0
0
sugarsaltfatlong by josie

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Michael Moss looks at how processed food giants use marketing, and even science, to keep us hooked on their products.

The same day I received a box of natural snack chips to review, I also received a copy of Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us (Random House, 2013), the new book by Michael Moss, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter for The New York Times. While waiting for co-workers to share their opinions on the Way Better Snacks, I opened Salt Sugar Fat and began reading, and was immediately captivated by Moss in-depth revelations about the lengths to which corporations go to make sure consumers crave and consume their products, no matter how unhealthy the ingredients are.

Moss begins by describing a rare, top-secret 1999 meeting of corporate food executives from competing companies (Nestlé, Kraft, Pillsbury, Coca-Cola, General Mills and Mars, among others) to discuss the implications of the rise in obesity among Americans, particularly children. Kraft exec Michael Mudd made a presentation that demonstrated why the companies might want to pull back on salt, sugar and fat and re-examine their marketing. But when the head of General Mills stood up and stated that consumers want taste, not nutrition, the meeting — as well as any hope for change in processed foods — ended. (Mudd retired in 2004 and has since been vocal about the need for food industry reform.)

Inside stories, like this one, that Moss was able to get from disillusioned former food-giant executives make this book riveting — and disturbing. With tons of research, marketing shrewdness and a headlock on federal regulators, the processed-food giants have successfully increased profits and warded off criticism. Their marketing expertise comes directly from the tobacco industry: R.J. Reynolds bought Nabisco in 1985 and again in 2000, and Philip Morris purchased General Foods and Kraft. (Incidentally, Phillip Morris purchased Nabisco in 2000 and merged it with Kraft Foods, which it no longer owns.) As consumers have become more savvy about cutting back on harmful ingredients, the marketing teams have responded swiftly with devious new ways to convince people that what’s bad for them is actually good.

For instance, when Kellogg’s was criticized for the sugar in its cereals, the company reacted by dropping the word “sugar” from the cereal names. “It de-sweetened the name of its leading brand, Sugar Frosted Flakes, by changing it to, simply, Frosted Flakes,” writes Moss. “The other manufacturers quietly dropped the word sugar from their brand names too.” Kellogg’s also created an ad claiming that added vitamins and antioxidants in Rice Krispies could bolster childrens’ immune function, and another that implied that kids who ate Frosted Mini-Wheats for breakfast did better in school.

Another example: When packaged sliced bologna began to fall out of favor, Oscar Mayer developed Lunchables, plastic packages of food items (modeled after the TV dinner) that are full of fat, sodium, sugar, preservatives and coloring — called a “nutritional disaster” by one doctor — but touted as being healthy. Kraft Lunchables were a hit in spite of heavy criticism, Moss says.

Frito-Lay, which bitterly fought federal regulation regarding salt and curbs on TV advertising to children, did reduce the salt in Lay’s potato chips, down to 170 milligrams per ounce. But at the same time, the company created a slew of “flavored chips and other snacks whose sodium reached much higher,” writes Moss. Their 2nd Degree Burn Fiery Buffalo Doritos contained 380 mg of sodium per ounce! Moss discloses the chip companies’ marketing plans for every segment of society, from kids to baby boomers.

Moss’s fascinating book does offer glimmers of hope. One is the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), which fights false advertising and other misdeeds of the food industry. (Moss notes CSPI forced “PepsiCo to change the labeling of its Tropicana Peach Papaya Juice to reflect the facts that it has neither peaches nor papaya and is not a juice.”) Another glimmer is that research shows people can successfully wean themselves from too much salt, sugar and/or fat.

To me, the real evidence for nutritional hope is that Salt Sugar Fat has gotten so much attention. The more information that gets out about what the food giants are trying to do to America’s food, the more we’ll know how to make better choices.

And there are alternatives. While it’s always good to be wary of “natural” snacks (especially from the big brands mentioned in the book), my officemates gave most of the varieties of Way Better Chips a big thumbs-up for flavor and crunch. The nutrition labels say they’re made with a lot of organic ingredients including sprouts and seeds, and contain 80­–100 mg of sodium (depending on the variety), 7 grams of fat and no sugar per 11 chips. Also check out the recipe for Tequila Lime Chicken from You Won’t Believe It’s Salt-Free! (Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2012) in our Recipes section of the website.

While the food villains of Moss’ book are in the title, check out whether the war on gluten, GMOs and other buzzwords are worth waging in “Recipe for Trouble” in the latest issue of VIVmag!

Share


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 4

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images