Currently browsing posts about: Food-marketing

Most people who eat enough calories get more than enough of the protein they need, so the current protein craze—putting pea, whey, and tofu into everything—doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.

It does sell products though.

It’s hard to choose from among the most entertaining protein-supplemented products.

• Coffee?
• Protein water?
• Pop-Tarts?

But this remains my current favorite.

We can—and should—ask: How Sound Is Broad Advice to Simply “Eat More Protein?”

Protein has become the centerpiece of popular nutrition advice. Grocery store shelves are lined with protein-enhanced everything. Social media influencers urge us to squeeze more protein into every meal. And now the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is offering broad advice: simply eat more protein.

And look at the effects of this trend:

America’s Protein Boom Is Outgrowing Its Supply: Demand for whey is soaring as more Americans seek out high-protein foods and GLP-1 medications reshape eating habits. Why can’t manufacturers simply make more?

And the USDA says Animal protein continues to be plentiful for U.S. consumers.

They don’t include dairy on this chart and I have not seen a similar one for plant proteins, but plenty of those are available too.

I wish everyone would stop worrying about protein.  It’s not a nutritional issue; it’s a marketing issue.

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Arriving Sept 8. For a 30% discount, pre-order here using code UCPSAVE30.

[First, a correction to yesterday’s post about peptides.  Peptides are injected, not consumed orally.  Therefore, they are not regulated as supplements.  I should have made this clear.  Sorry.]

I’ve been collecting examples of new foods coming on the market or already here, all of which raise the question: Do we need this?

• Salmon from spirulina? Israeli food tech company commercializes seafood alternative:  SimpliiGood by AlgaeCore Technologies recreates the taste and texture of salmon using algae and innovative decolorization and texturizing processes… Read more
• Study Shows Bamboo May Be a Superfood :Pandas may have been onto something all along. The bamboo-loving bears’ famously simple diet has long puzzled scientists, but new research suggests bamboo may offer a surprising range of health benefits—ones researchers are only now beginning to fully understand. Read More
• From baobab to rooibos: Premium and indigenous ice cream flavors fuel demand in Africa: As ice cream consumption surges across Africa, consumers are driving a shift toward premium products and culturally rooted flavors… Read more
• Global seaweed snack sales could double to $4.66B by 2030: North American and European markets are experiencing the fastest growth in seaweed snacks… Read more
• Are Aldi crystal clear frozen ice cubes ultra-processed?  No, Aldi crystal clear frozen ice cubes are not ultra-processed. They are merely ridiculous. Four cubes of frozen water: $5.
• Why weird works: The most left-field product launches of the past 12 months: Beef for breakfast, ketchup in a smoothie, crisps that taste like a battery – brands have spent the past year testing how far they can push consumers, and in some cases, finding they’ll go further than expected… Read more

And then there is food crime:

• KitKat heist sends urgent warning to CPG sector: Over 400,000 KitKats have vanished in transit, highlighting the increasing threat of cargo crime Read more

That’s the world we live in.  Enjoy!

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Pub date is September 8. Pre-orders through UC Press get a 30% discount. Use promo code UCPSAVE30.

Apparently so.  According to the New York Times, the city has banned ads promoting activities linked to high carbon emissions.  Meat is high on that list.

On May 1, Amsterdam became the world’s first capital city to ban ads for fossil fuel products and meat. It’s part of the city’s efforts to discourage consumption of goods linked with high carbon emissions.

Ads for airlines, cruises, and faraway destinations are no longer allowed because they implicitly promote the burning of fossil fuels. Ads for beef, chicken, pork and fish are also banned because of the environmental harms caused by animal agriculture.

…Amsterdam’s law applies to city-owned properties and public spaces, such as buses and bus shelters, benches, trams, trains and metro stations, and billboards. Advertising in privately owned stores and in media such as newspapers, radio and online formats is exempt.

Here’s why:

Will banning such ads encourage less meat consumption?  I hope someone is evaluating this possibility.

I received this e-mailed message from the Avocado Nutrition Center, sponsored by the Hass Avocado Board (a USDA-sponsored research & promotion—checkoff—program).

Indeed, the New Pyramid does highlight avocados.  What a gift to the Hass Avocado Board!

Comment: As I’ve pointed out repeatedly (see my previous posts on these guidelines), the new guidelines and pyramid have losers (ultra-processed foods, sugars, refined carbohydrates, and even whole grains) and winners (meat, dairy, beef tallow—and avocados.  The avocado board is not missing a chance to take advantage of this.  That’s its job!

The Consumer Brands Association, formerly the Grocery Manufacturers of America (about as Big Ultra-Processed Food as you can get) has announced a transparency campaign ostensibly to promote the safety, affordability, and convenience of food products.

I learned about this from an e-mailed anouncement.

National Consumer Transparency Week…is the cornerstone of the Consumer Brands Association’s ongoing effort to support the CPG industry’s efforts to provide consumers thorough information while also emphasizing the safety, affordability and convenience of their products. The initiative also includes TV and digital advertising, backed up by SmartLabel, Facts up Front, Food Processing Facts and the Truth About Ingredients website.

Consumer confusion or misconceptions around processed food could lead to decreased diet quality, causing consumers to miss out on vital nutrients, an increased risk of food-borne illness, greater food waste, stigmatization of cultural or critical foods such as fortified grains, dietary supplements, plant-based proteins or infant formula, and exacerbate health disparities.

Myth: Food processing is harmful.

Fact: Food “processing” helps turn fresh farm goods into consumable food products. Standard processing methods include fermentation, dehydration, preservation, pasteurization and the use of preservatives to slow or stop the growth of certain pathogens. These steps help make foods more nutrient-dense, allowing them to remain affordable, safe and shelf-stable when they reach stores. Learn more about food processing here.

Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest is “A national think tank on nutrition” in India, “consisting of independent experts in epidemiology, human nutrition, community nutrition and paediatrics, medical education, administration, social work and management.”  This group is calling for regulation of unhealthy  ultra-processed foods. 

This new report gives examples of food product ads, (50 of them) by method of appeal along with what information is concealed.  One example:

Take a look.  These are fun.  It’s terrific to see this kind of analysis coming from India.

Question of the day: What does a 30-second Super Bowl ad cost?

Answer: roughly $7 million (I’m not kidding—for 30 seconds).

Here is Statistica’s “Average cost of a 30-second Super Bowl TV commercial in the United States from 2002 to 2023.”

I have to confess to not being much of a football fan but I am riveted by the junk food content—and astronomical cost—of Super Bowl ads.

I first learned about this year’s collection from FoodNavigator—USA.

Super Bowl LVIII: The products, ads expected to make big plays during game dayWith the Super Bowl two weeks away, consumers are preparing their grocery lists and budgets for the big game day, as CPG brands ready their ads and promotions with the anticipation of receiving a volume boost the week after the game…. Read more

Here’s its prediction:

When it comes to what consumers will bring to Super Bowl parties, 72% said they will buy chips and dips, 44% pizza, 42% homemade appetizers, 35% side, and 33% pre-made appetizers.

Lesser purchased food items include fruit at 32%, cheese/charcuterie at 27%, and homemade desserts at 27%. Only 6% of consumers said they would bring nothing to a party.

Additionally, 47% of consumers said they are planning on purchasing alcoholic beverages, compared to 27% who said the same for non-alcoholic beverages.

However, 34% of shoppers under the age of 35, a demographic increasingly embracing a sober or sober-curious lifestyle, will be buying alcohol, compared to 72% of the consumers aged 55-64.

OK.  The Super Bowl is an occasion for junk food and alcohol.  Would you believe 1.45 billion chicken wings expected to be consumed during the game?

Brand Innovator lists the advertisers.  Here are some of the food and alcohol advertisers:

• Budweiser, Bud Light, and Michelob ULTRA
• Hellman’s Mayonnaise
• Pringles
• Doritos
• Reese’s
• Frito-Lay
• Nerds
• M&Ms
• Coors Light
• Popeyes
• Drumstick
• DraftKinds
• Starry
• Mountain Dew Baja Blast
• Oreo
• Molson Coors

Here are some summaries:

• The dairy ads
• The beverage ads

Enjoy the game, but watch those calories!

Addition: a reader sent this SuperBowl infographic with much more on its being the #2 eating occasion (after Thanksgiving).

A reader from Phoenix, AZ, Maria Zafonte, sends this from a local Safeway:

From her standpoint—and mine—this is a great way to encourage overeating.

As she explained, if she bought just one bag of chips, each would cost $5.99.

But if she bought four, the unit cost was only $1.97 each.

As she put it:

The problem is what am I going to do with four bags of Doritos?? The healthier choice is financially penalized. It is very frustrating!

Indeed, it is.

One of the hallmarks of ultra-processed food products is their enormous profitability.  You can bet that Safeway is not losing money on 4 bags at $1.97 each.

Even if this is a loss leader (a gimmick to get you into the store), it’s an incentive to overeat.

Caveat emptor.