Opinions are split after the publication of a book arguing that food companies are engaged in a conspiracy to create irresistible food, which is the single biggest cause of obesity in Western societies.
My first thought was the rather flippant "I did not realise we were that good". If such strong habit-forming behaviour was so easy to create, our industry would be immune from financial hardship, and we'd be living in a world of legalised drug taking with people walking around on calorie-fuelled highs.
As Stuart Smith says in his excellent commentary in Marketing Week, the book's premise is scarily simple, depressing and so very wrong; people are not fit to think for themselves. The logical conclusion is that we all need a daily menu to be designed for us to ensure the right balance of nutrients is taken on board. Obviously crazy, but where do you draw the line if you accept some logic in the book's argument?
It's amazing really that both sides of this argument can hold such opposite views and defend them so vigorously. On the one hand, food technologists cynically formulate products with an irresistible mix of fat, sugar and salt to hook consumers and make addicts of them. On the other hand, technologists are simply creating products which appeal more than their competitors to consumers who are in the lucky position of knowing that all foods are fit for purpose and of good quality.
Stuart Smith's article was accurately subtitled "the politics of marketing". How very true.
Tags: the end of overeating, bliss point
I'm not sure whether it is an urban myth or not, but I think that certain foods need to have a certain number of calories to qualify as a 'meal'.
I think the big problem these days is portion size and obviously the bigger the portion the more calories (irrespective of how many calories a standard serve of the food contains).
I know that our local chippy's seem to equate great value with an enormous piece of heavily battered fish which tastes like it has been glued together with pancake mix and a kilo of chips! It tastes like c**p and is impossible to finish a portion but people seem to equate this with a good value meal opting for quantity rather than quality. It is frightening that this seems to be the norm now and we have completely lost sight of what a portion looks like.
Maybe retailers have a role to play in re-educating consumers as to what a portion should like. It may help to reduce food wastage, but perhaps this isn't in their best interests!