Is this what it's coming to anymore in this country? I am specifically writing about the story I read about Kellog bowing to the will of advocacy groups to reformulate their LEGALLY distributed products like Frosted Flakes, Froot Loops, and Pop Tarts to meet more "nutritional" guidelines. To read the whole article go to Fox News:
I will be quoting here from the article.
The Battle Creek, Mich., company avoided a lawsuit threatened by parents and nutrition advocacy groups worried about increasing child obesity. Kellogg intends to formally announce its decision Thursday.
The company said it won't promote foods in TV, radio, print or Web site ads that reach audiences at least half of whom are under age 12 unless a single serving of the product meets these standards:
Remember this is AMERICA! When did minority advocacy groups in this country get this kind of power? American companies are becoming slaves bent to the whims of these lunatic groups who can use the court system to destroy companies and people who don't conduct legal business in a manner that these groups deem acceptable!! Twenty years ago if this happened, Kellogg would have laughed it off knowing that any judge in the country would toss a case like this out.
"By committing to these nutrition standards and marketing reforms, Kellogg has vaulted over the rest of the food industry," said Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest. "This commitment means that parents will find it a little easier to steer their children toward healthy food choices — especially if other food manufacturers and broadcasters follow Kellogg's lead."
Unbelievable! Parents will find it easier to STEER their children toward healthy food choices!? This is ridiculous. This Mr. Jacobson is assuming that we as parents in America have no control over what our kids eat and do not eat? Especially the younger than twelves? COME ON! I don't wake up on Saturday morning and see my kids eating Frosted Flakes and think to myself, "Gee...I sure wish my kids wouldn't eat that crap...sigh...but what can I do?" WRONG! My kids eat what I give them to eat. I do the shopping. I make the choices of what cereal goes in the cart, not the kids! There's no "steering" going on at my home.
I love to reward them once in a while with a sweetened cereal. It's been a family tradition that on your birthday as a kid you get to choose a cereal. You know...Cookie Crisp, Frosted Flakes, Fruity Pebbles, Lucky Charms etc. But on a regular day you see my kids eating oatmeal or Cheerios, or Grape Nuts, or Shredded Wheat. I'm not such a moron to feed my kids straight sugar all day long and then wonder why they are fat, and neither is the rest of America's parents.
Sueing companies like Kellog, KFC and McDonald's is not going to do one bit of a dent in this country's obesity problem. This country needs nutritional education! It's 2007 and we are still going by the USDA's food pyramid that's been around since the 1940s. Despite a few modifications over the years it's the same dang pyramid. Maybe it's time for a revaluation on our nutritional approach as a country. Forcing companys through litigation is not the answer here! What's next, Nintendo, Playstation, and XBOX? How about that for contributing to obesity? Let's sue the gamer industry next to put microchips in consoles that force them to shut off after a certain ammount of play time every day. Yeah, parents don't know what's best for their kids. Let's introduce a robomom and robodad while we're at it.
13 years ago
2 comments:
quote: When did minority advocacy groups in this country get this kind of power?
Why did the companies in the article feel it necessary to even respond to the groups? As you put it, these business are free to "conduct legal business" in whatever way they see fit.
You're sorta going out on a limb, in that you're painting these giant corporations as victims of the tiny, vocal minority groups. They're not. It's their choice, they don't have to respond or change their practices - but they do. Perhaps they thought that there is something to the complaints of the parents?
Another example: Christian parent groups complain when they see pornographic imagery and violence on the tube - television producers sometimes respond.
Anyhow, are you defending the nutritional content of products like Pop Tarts? They *are* sugar bombs. Could they be made healthier? You bet. Do the companies that make these products have to change them? Nope.
I'm with you, though - a few years ago, I stopped buying Cheerios and Pop-Tarts, and started buying the healthy equivalents at the local health mart. Made a noticeable difference.
I suspect that it's down to public relations and their fear of being presented by news media as contributing to the obesity problem in this country.
Cheers,
Kevin P.
Kevin,
Thanks for the feedback. I agree with you that Kellog was also probably making changes due to fear of public opinion.
If that's the case than GREAT! That's how it should work.
My point was that companies should not be sued for the marketing and selling of a legal product. It is the responsiblility of the consumer to make the choice between healthy and unhealthy foods.
I'm not defending the nutritious content of pop-tarts, but I"m pointing out that Kellog should be free to market pop-tarts without having to face litigation in the courts. Sure they can choose to fight the lawsuit, but given the climate of today's courts and jurys, who seem more than willing to award millions to plaintiffs, I don't blame Kellog for backing down.
Bottom line. The consuming public should be determining the availability of products by either buying them or not. If nobody was watching porn on the tube, they wouldn't be producing as much. If nobody was buying pop-tarts because they weren't nutritious, then Kellog wouldn't be making them.
I just don't like the idea of my Frosted Flakes not being so "Frosted" anymore. Let me make that choice for myself, not some parental lobbyist group making the choice for me.
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