tag:theconversation.com,2011:/fr/topics/food-marketing-32598/articlesFood marketing – The Conversation2023-07-23T12:37:45Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2097242023-07-23T12:37:45Z2023-07-23T12:37:45ZSchool-approved Cheetos? Why we must protect school food from corporate interests<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/537811/original/file-20230717-129345-mp356k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C271%2C4031%2C2746&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Artwork created by public school students about the availability of healthy foods in schools.
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Sara Kirk)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/school-approved-cheetos-why-we-must-protect-school-food-from-corporate-interests" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Universal access to healthy school meal programs is <a href="https://cps.ca/en/documents/position/school-nutrition-support">essential for children’s well-being</a>, but Canada lags behind its peers in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxac052">providing nutritious food to children</a>. </p>
<p>While the federal government committed to a <a href="https://www.healthyschoolfood.ca/post/federal-budget-2019-announces-a-national-school-food-program">national school food program in the 2019 budget</a>, it has not funded its implementation. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/federal-budget-pledges-a-canadian-school-food-program-but-recipe-requires-funding-112789">Federal budget pledges a Canadian school food program but recipe requires funding</a>
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<p>A <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/programs/school-food/consultation-school-food.html">report on the 2022 consultations</a> on a national school food policy will soon be released. It’s likely that the food industry will have made their corporate interests heard, and industry-affiliated corporations are known to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12992-022-00842-4">lobby Canadian policymakers to influence federal nutrition policies</a>. </p>
<p>Public engagement is key to building inclusive and accessible public policy. The consultations heard from provincial, territorial and Indigenous governments and community organizations about the value and role of healthy school food. It also heard from the food industry — and this is problematic. </p>
<p>The food industry uses <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.982908">policy consultations</a> to advance competing corporate industry interests to the detriment of public health. </p>
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<img alt="A group of people, mostly women, sit around a table. most are smiling." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538301/original/file-20230719-27-vsufa7.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Social Development Minister Karina Gould’s roundtable consultation on the development of the National School Food Policy at the University of Guelph in January 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(University of Guelph)</span></span>
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<h2>Food industry lobbying</h2>
<p>We have good reason to sound the alarm about the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12992-018-0336-y">power of the food industry in shaping diets and health</a>. The food industry regularly borrows from the political playbook of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0009.2009.00555.x">tobacco</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(12)62089-3">alcohol</a> and other health-harming industries. They do this to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(22)00185-1">protect their commercial interests</a>.</p>
<p>The federal government has not yet ruled out a significant role for the food industry in the creation of a national school food program. This openness to industry influence or interference is cause for concern due to the <a href="https://www.ijhpm.com/article_3940.html">profit-driven mandate</a> of businesses that make or process unhealthy and unsustainable foods.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://doi.org/10.15353/cfs-rcea.v8i3.483">current patchwork of school-based meal programming across Canada</a> also creates an unhealthy and unsustainable reliance on volunteers and charitable giving. Food companies have been free to strategically position themselves as <a href="https://groceryfoundation.com/pages/toonies-for-tummies">key players in food security through philanthropy</a>. </p>
<p>If Big Food becomes even more involved with school food, who will really benefit? Our children, or shareholders? </p>
<p>The development of a national school food program will be attractive economically to the food industry as multi-national food companies will see it as a way <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2016.06.013">to increase sales and introduce their brands to children at a young age.</a> </p>
<p>By subtly <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/09581596.2013.878454">positioning their products in schools, the food industry exerts its power to establish its credibility</a>. We saw this with the infamous <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/07/school-lunch-conference-cheetos/">“school-approved” Cheetos</a> in the National School Lunch Program in the United States. </p>
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<img alt="A young blond child finishes what's left of a Cheeto." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/538166/original/file-20230719-17-c6fftb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Cheetos were once approved in a school lunch program in the United States.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Flickr)</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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<h2>Burnishing reputations</h2>
<p>At a time when food companies are attempting to engage in <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/grocery-ceo-ottawa-1.6771887">reputational management</a> in the face of soaring food costs, being seen as the solution to food insecurity might help their image. </p>
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<p>In fact, the food industry promoting itself as being “<a href="https://www.ijhpm.com/article_4138_d04df8b8b99788d0c6cb82046afcdaec.pdf">part of the solution</a>” represents an evolution of non-market tactics that are designed to effectively manipulate public and political perspectives, including regulatory decisions, to favour industry interests over others. This includes children’s health. </p>
<p>There are three steps the federal government must take to prevent corporate influence in the development of a national school program:</p>
<h2>1. Define the role of the food industry</h2>
<p>In collaboration with the provinces and territories, the government must define the role of the food industry and commercial entities in providing food to schools. Schoolchildren must be protected from marketing campaigns and efforts to make junk food more readily available.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.180037">Ultimately, food companies and their charitable foundations should not have a seat at the table</a> in the development of a national school food program or its governance.</p>
<h2>2. Invest in the school food program</h2>
<p>The government must <a href="https://www.healthyschoolfood.ca/proposals-for-a-national-school-nutritious-meal-program">properly fund a national school food program</a>. This will allow Indigenous governments, provinces and territories, along with local school communities, to tailor and customize their food programming free from the influence of corporate charitable giving. </p>
<p>Although the level of investment to make a national program a reality is likely to be significant, relying on the corporate sector to offset these costs should not be an option.</p>
<h2>3. Pass protective legislation</h2>
<p>The federal government can make <a href="https://www.parl.ca/legisinfo/en/bill/44-1/c-252">Bill C-252</a>, the Child Health Protection Act, a government bill and increase the chances of its speedy adoption. </p>
<p>It’s currently a private member’s bill tabled by Liberal MP Patricia Lattanzio to amend the Food and Drugs Act and prohibit food and beverage marketing directed at children.</p>
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<p>Bill C-252 isn’t perfect, and regulations would need to be drafted. But it could provide an additional layer of protection to prevent corporate entities from marketing to children while they’re attending school.</p>
<p>Developing and implementing a national school food program can help build the foundations for a healthy population over the long term. The federal government must limit the influence of the food industry on a national school food program to protect the health and well-being of Canadian children and youth.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209724/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sara FL Kirk receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Public Health Agency of Canada. She is a member of the Coalition for Healthy School Food, a board member of Velo Canada Bikes, a not-for-profit that promotes everyday cycling in Canada, and an academic member of Obesity Canada, a national obesity charity, made up of health-care professionals, researchers, policy makers and people with an interest in obesity.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amberley T. Ruetz co-Chairs the Canadian Association for Food Studies' School Food Working Group, which is a member of the Coalition for Healthy School Food, and is a member of Farm to Cafeteria Canada's Advisory Council. Ruetz has received funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Prowse receives funding from Canadian Cancer Society, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and Health Canada.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Steve Machat does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>An effective national school food program can help build the foundations for a healthy population. That’s why Ottawa must limit the influence of the food industry on a national school food program.Sara F.L. Kirk, Professor of Health Promotion; Scientific Director of the Healthy Populations Institute, Dalhousie UniversityAmberley T. Ruetz, Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, College of Medicine, University of SaskatchewanRachel Prowse, Assistant Professor, Nutrition and Dietetics, Memorial University of NewfoundlandSteve Machat, PhD Candidate, Interdisciplinary Studies, Dalhousie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2003362023-02-23T23:40:03Z2023-02-23T23:40:03ZClear nutrition labels can encourage healthier eating habits. Here’s how Australia’s food labelling can improve<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511873/original/file-20230223-2314-y3xpfj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=83%2C845%2C7856%2C4452&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/VHMvdS720Hc">Unsplash/Atoms</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In your trips to the supermarket, you’ve probably come across the <a href="http://www.healthstarrating.gov.au/">Health Star Rating</a> on the front of some foods. You might even be one of the <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/publications/Documents/Consumer%20label%20survey%202015/consumerlabelsurvey2015.pdf">70%</a> of Australians who say they read the detailed nutrition information on the back of product packaging.</p>
<p>Nutrition labelling is designed to help people make informed food purchases, and encourage shoppers to select and eat healthier options. </p>
<p>But Australia’s food labelling system is under-performing. Here’s how we can make it more effective. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-is-dragging-its-feet-on-healthy-eating-in-5-years-weve-made-woeful-progress-192393">Australia is dragging its feet on healthy eating. In 5 years we've made woeful progress</a>
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<h2>Labels help us choose healthier options</h2>
<p>Nutrition labelling has been <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30573335/">shown</a> to lead to small but important improvements in the healthiness of what people eat. </p>
<p>A recent <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/07439156231158115">review</a> concluded that food labels tend to encourage people to consume higher amounts of healthier foods. But most food label formats aren’t very effective in stopping people from selecting unhealthy foods.</p>
<p>While the effects of food labels may be small, such changes on a large scale can lead to healthier eating habits <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21079620/">across the population</a>.</p>
<h2>Which labelling format works best?</h2>
<p><a href="https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/2339cf79-2f25-11ed-975d-01aa75ed71a1">Studies</a> show people favour having front-of-pack nutrition labels in addition to the more detailed back-of-pack information.</p>
<p>People tend to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0950329322001665">understand</a> simpler, colour-coded labels more easily than more complex, monochrome labels. And they consistently <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1003765">prefer</a> “interpretive” labelling, like Australia’s Health Star Rating, that provides clear guidance on how healthy a particular product is.</p>
<p>Recent <a href="https://iris.paho.org/handle/10665.2/52740">evidence</a> indicates warning labels, such as those indicating high amounts of particular nutrients, are <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/07439156231158115">likely</a> to be helpful in steering people away from unhealthy foods.</p>
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<span class="caption">Chilean warning labels indicate high levels of energy (calories), sugar, saturated fats and sodium.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/tijuana-mexico-september-24-2020-processed-1821237416">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Several countries have recently introduced warning labels on unhealthy foods. In Chile, for example, it is mandatory for products to display black, octagon-shaped “stop” signs on foods that exceed limits for sugar, sodium (salt), saturated fat and energy.</p>
<p>The introduction of Chile’s warning labels, as part of a comprehensive nutrition policy suite, has led to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34390670/">improvements</a> in the healthiness of Chilean diets at the population level.</p>
<h2>How do Australia’s labelling rules stack up?</h2>
<p>Australia’s Health Star Rating system performs <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0950329322001665">relatively well</a> in helping people to understand the healthiness of different products.</p>
<p>And it has likely led to <a href="https://nutrition.bmj.com/content/early/2022/08/17/bmjnph-2022-000459">some improvements</a> in product healthiness, as manufacturers have reformulated products to achieve a higher Health Star Rating.</p>
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<p>But, as a voluntary scheme, Health Star Ratings have been implemented on <a href="https://foodenvironmentdashboard.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/203/2021/06/HSR-Uptake-Year-5-and-6-Eligibility-reporting.pdf">less than half</a> of eligible products. This limits people’s ability to compare product healthiness across the board.</p>
<p>Perhaps as a result of the limited rollout, there’s <a href="https://nutrition.bmj.com/content/early/2022/08/17/bmjnph-2022-000459">no compelling evidence</a> to show that the Health Star Rating system has changed what people buy. </p>
<h2>How can we make our food labelling more effective?</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-nutr-111120-094932">Research</a> points to several suggestions to optimise the design of food labels in Australia.</p>
<p>First, if the Health Star Rating scheme were made mandatory, it would help people compare the healthiness of each product – not just the select few products that are labelled now. </p>
<p>This would work best if coupled with <a href="https://www.obesityevidencehub.org.au/collections/prevention/health-star-rating-system-proposed-improvements">improvements</a> to the algorithm used to calculate health stars to better align the scheme with the <a href="https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-09/n55_australian_dietary_guidelines.pdf">Australian Dietary Guidelines</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-looked-at-the-health-star-rating-of-20-000-foods-and-this-is-what-we-found-141453">We looked at the health star rating of 20,000 foods and this is what we found</a>
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<p>Second, the addition of colour (through the use of a spectrum linked to the product’s healthiness) to the existing Health Star Rating design would increase its visibility and is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1326020022000176">likely</a> to enhance the performance of the scheme. </p>
<p>One option for colour-coding would be for the healthiest rating to be green, with red for the least healthy. </p>
<p>Third, the addition of warning labels could be used to clearly show products high in risky nutrients such as sodium and sugar. </p>
<p>There is <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34838869/">emerging evidence</a> that the use of warning labels and Health Star Ratings in combination is more effective, and can discourage consumption of unhealthy products.</p>
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<p>Flipping to the back of food packaging, <a href="https://www.phaa.net.au/documents/item/5265">public health groups</a> consistently recommend including added sugar levels in the existing nutrition information panel. This is currently <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumer/labelling/Pages/Sugar-labelling.aspx">under consideration</a> by the food standards regulatory body. </p>
<h2>What else could we do?</h2>
<p>In considering ways to enhance the impact of food labels, it’s worth looking to other elements of package design.</p>
<p>The packaging on many unhealthy Australian products, such as sugary breakfast cereals and snack bars, currently features <a href="https://www.generationnext.com.au/2017/07/cartoon-characters-food-packaging-fuelling-australias-childhood-obesity-crisis/">cartoon characters</a> and other promotional techniques designed to appeal to children. </p>
<p>Chile banned the use of cartoon characters on food packaging alongside the implementation of warning labels. This likely contributed to the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34390670/">benefits</a> observed there. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/no-its-not-just-a-lack-of-control-that-makes-australians-overweight-heres-whats-driving-our-unhealthy-food-habits-162512">No, it’s not just a lack of control that makes Australians overweight. Here’s what’s driving our unhealthy food habits</a>
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<p>More radical options include exploration of plain packaging for unhealthy food – similar to the packaging rules for tobacco. <a href="https://ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12966-016-0421-7">Evidence</a> from New Zealand has shown plain packaging can lower young people’s desire to buy unhealthy products such as sugary drinks. </p>
<p>Experts have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/mar/06/obesity-sell-high-calorie-foods-in-plain-packaging-says-2017-brain-prize-winner-wolfram-schultz-peter-dayan-ray-dolan">argued</a> plain packaging would help challenge the marketing power of large food manufacturers. It would also put unhealthy foods on a level playing field with unbranded fruits and vegetables.</p>
<p>The inclusion of <a href="https://www.croakey.org/what-if-we-had-a-health-star-rating-to-protect-the-planet/">environmental sustainability labelling</a>, alongside Health Star Ratings, is likely to provide additional important information for shoppers.</p>
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<img alt="Woman looks at food label" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=95%2C95%2C4817%2C3157&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/511871/original/file-20230223-787-2hwll9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Visual cues such as colour can make it easier to judge a product’s healthiness.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/london-june-7-2014-pregnant-woman-1714561165">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>We need a comprehensive approach</h2>
<p>While food labelling is an important tool to inform people about product healthiness, it is only likely to play a <a href="https://www.foodpolicyindex.org.au/_files/ugd/8200a1_02916eab3c5543acae33e219d10273a7.pdf">supporting role</a> in efforts to address unhealthy diets.</p>
<p><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30700377/">Broader changes</a> to the way foods are produced and marketed are likely to be <a href="https://y97516.p3cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/ACE-Obesity-Report_Final.pdf">more potent</a>. These changes, such as legislation to reduce children’s exposure to unhealthy food marketing and taxes on sugary drinks, can work in conjunction with food labelling regulations as part of a cohesive strategy to improve population health.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/are-home-brand-foods-healthy-if-you-read-the-label-you-may-be-pleasantly-surprised-189445">Are home-brand foods healthy? If you read the label, you may be pleasantly surprised</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/200336/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gary Sacks receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the Australian Research Council (ARC), National Heart Foundation of Australia and VicHealth.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jasmine Chan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia’s food labelling system is under-performing. Here’s how we can make it more effective.Gary Sacks, Professor of Public Health Policy, Deakin UniversityJasmine Chan, Associate Research Fellow, Food Policy, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1868842022-07-27T20:23:54Z2022-07-27T20:23:54ZPreventing obesity starts in the grocery aisle with food packaging<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476372/original/file-20220727-1257-kamjyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=51%2C102%2C4651%2C3154&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">With so much competition, food marketers need to grab the attention of consumers so they buy their products, not another competitors. This is why product packaging is so important.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>In 2018, Statistics Canada reported that <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/82-625-x/2019001/article/00005-eng.htm">nearly one in three Canadians were obese</a>. Similar figures have been <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/overweight-and-obesity">reported in Australia</a>, but more concerning is the United States, where over <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html">forty percent of the population is obese</a>. </p>
<p>Obesity is not the only diet-related illness to be concerned about — <a href="https://www.diabetes.ca/advocacy---policies/advocacy-reports/national-and-provincial-backgrounders/diabetes-in-canada">diabetes is just as prevalent</a>. When it comes to such diseases, diet and physical activity help reduce the chance of being diagnosed. In fact, when it comes to Type 2 diabetes, diet and physical activity <a href="https://foodpolicyforcanada.info.yorku.ca/backgrounder/problems/poor-diet/">can prevent 50 per cent</a> of it.</p>
<p>Food packaging plays an important role in diet-related illnesses. We live in <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-the-food-industry-conspiring-to-make-you-fat-81537">a food environment that prioritizes marketing</a>, sometimes to the detriment of our health. </p>
<p>Consider the average supermarket, where there can be <a href="https://www.icsid.org/uncategorized/how-many-products-are-in-a-typical-grocery-store/">upwards of 60,000 different products in a store</a>. With so much competition, food marketers need to grab the attention of consumers so they buy their products, not a competitor’s. This is why product packaging is so important. </p>
<p>Food marketing uses a variety of tactics, like using <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/17473611011026037">bright, bold colours and eye-popping visuals</a>, to try and persuade consumers to buy certain products. They also change the size of food images shown on products — the size of the chip on Dorito’s packaging or the size of the bread on a jar of peanut butter, for example. </p>
<h2>Bigger is better</h2>
<p>Our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21644">recent research</a> looked at how something seemingly innocuous, like the size of food images on product packaging, can impact how likely it is that someone buys a product. While the size of this image might appear to be harmless, our research found that it can increase the food’s appeal to consumers: the larger the image, the better tasting consumers believe the food will be, which increases the chance of them purchasing the product.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A row of Pringles cans on the shelf of a grocery store" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475937/original/file-20220725-13-9f3r2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The colour and size of food packaging can make a produce more or less appealing to consumers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The reason for this is a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102517">concept called mental imagery</a>, which suggests that the way people visualize a product in their minds can make them think a product is better, higher quality or, in our case, tastier. </p>
<p>This has implications when it comes to food choice. When thinking about what foods are most appealing, junk foods, such as chips, popcorn and candy, come to mind. These kinds of products often have large, exaggerated images of food on their packaging. Since the size of the food image on these products are bigger, it makes consumers psychologically salivate more, persuading them into buying and eating these unhealthier foods.</p>
<h2>Colour matters</h2>
<p>Ours isn’t the only research that has been done on health habits and food product packaging. Similar research has also found that <a href="https://aic-color.org/resources/Documents/jaic_v24_02.pdf">the colour of food packaging</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2019.11.001">the location of food images on a product</a> also impacts whether or not consumers are more likely to buy a product. </p>
<p>When it comes to colours, red significantly increases a food’s perceived taste, while green increases the food’s perceived healthiness. Food images that are located higher on the package suggest that the food is “light” and therefore “healthy,” making it more likely for a consumer to purchase the product.</p>
<p>Previous studies have also found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.031308.100304">junk food brand names are easily remembered by children</a>, and parents often listen to their children when making food choices. Also, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21601">use of traffic light signals on food labels</a> promotes healthier food choices by allowing people to identify the nutritional content directly on the food package. </p>
<p>Knowing and understanding how appearance impacts food desirability is crucial for marketers and has resulted in a special visual language among consumers and products. This allows, for example, people with diabetes and hypertension to quickly locate foods that are appropriate for their needs in a grocery store. However, it also makes some consumers vulnerable to marketing ploys when they aren’t aware of how advertisers are manipulating them.</p>
<h2>Healthy shopping strategies</h2>
<p>There are some strategies consumers can use when shopping to help maintain healthy habits. Instead of focusing on the images of food on packaging, we recommend that consumers focus more on the nutritional needs and requirements. </p>
<p>Consumers should read the entire nutritional label front and back to try to make the best informed decision possible and try not to be swayed by what the image on a package looks like.</p>
<p>Don’t let the size of the food image tempt you: some Pringles or gummy bears is fine as a little indulgence, but if you’re tempted by these food products every time you step into your local grocery, it can have serious consequences for your heath. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Woman reading the nutritional label of a grocery store product" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/475938/original/file-20220725-10610-264lbz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">When shopping for healthy foods, read nutritional labels front and back to try to make the best informed decision you can.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Food product packaging doesn’t just have implications for consumers, but for policymakers as well. Most governments, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2012-0386">including Canada’s</a>, focus on nutrition labels and how food marketers advertise to consumers of all ages, such as rules <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/headlines/mcmaster-child-obesity-research-1.3665038">limiting junk food ads during Saturday morning cartoons</a>. But regulation should start even more fundamentally with the packaging itself. </p>
<p>While it might seem extreme to regulate the size of a scoop of ice cream on a box of Chapman’s, food image size is especially relevant when it comes to junk food. If we want to reduce the prevalence of diet-related health issues, like obesity and diabetes, regulating the size of images, which is what we see first and foremost in the grocery aisle, on food products might just be what’s needed.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/186884/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The size of food images on product packaging plays a key role in exacerbating diet-related illnesses and obesity.Eugene Y. Chan, Associate Professor of Marketing, Toronto Metropolitan UniversityLiangyan Wang, Professor, Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1844212022-06-12T12:11:37Z2022-06-12T12:11:37ZMove over unicorn lattes, there’s a new Instagram trend in town: Normal-looking food<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/468286/original/file-20220610-39156-mz9zxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=23%2C95%2C7916%2C4952&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Figuring out which foods garner more social media engagement will help restaurants and food content creators determine how to better amplify the reach of their online content.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The past decade has seen the rise of the Instagrammable food trend, where restaurants have altered menus to <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-42012732">prioritize visual uniqueness</a> — often at the <a href="https://www.insider.com/how-instagram-has-completely-changed-the-way-we-eat-2017-8">expense of taste</a>. </p>
<p>In a competitive social media landscape where users are inundated with content, the question for restaurateurs has been how to stand out and generate audience engagement in the form of likes, comments and shares.</p>
<p>Under the assumption that creating unique food items will help businesses stand out and garner more engagement on social media, the Instagrammable food trend has given birth to novelty items like <a href="https://www.popsugar.com/fitness/What-Unicorn-Latte-42980231">unicorn lattes</a> and <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/2795845/inside-canadas-bizarre-poop-cafe-where-everything-from-the-food-to-the-furniture-is-poo-themed/">poop cafes</a>.</p>
<p>But does this strategy actually work? Do unique, distinct and atypical-appearing foods garner the most engagement? Or do people engage more with normal, familiar and typical-appearing foods? </p>
<h2>What people <em>think</em> Instagrammable food is</h2>
<p>Since social media platforms use <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/social-media-algorithms-rule-how-we-see-the-world-good-luck-trying-to-stop-them-11610884800">rank-ordering algorithms</a> to prioritize and boost content, figuring out which foods garner more social media engagement will help restaurants and food content creators determine how to better amplify the reach of their online content.</p>
<p>Conventional social media wisdom suggests that people will engage with social media content they deem entertaining, where <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1057740814000369">“entertaining” is synonymous with unique, distinct and atypical content</a>. </p>
<p>In a food context, it has been assumed that entertaining means food that looks more unique, distinct and atypical. </p>
<p>This assumption has sparked an industry trend where restaurants have abandoned taste in lieu of visual aesthetics, such as <a href="https://gizmodo.com/how-instagram-convinces-us-to-eat-terrible-tasting-food-1789712716">bright and unusual colours</a>, to spark engagement on visual-based social media platforms, such as Instagram.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CdMGVW3OwcO","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>There are many different examples of this over-the-top food trend on Instagram, from <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thebagelstore/?hl=en">the Bagel Store</a> in Brooklyn, N.Y., to <a href="https://www.instagram.com/fugodesserts/">Fugo Desserts</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/enchanted.poutinerie/?hl=en">the Enchanted Poutinerie</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ghdoughnuts/?hl=en">Glory Hole Doughnuts</a> in Toronto. </p>
<h2>What Instagrammable food <em>really</em> is</h2>
<p>Our recent investigation, published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.05.078"><em>Journal of Business Research</em></a>, investigates which foods are truly the most Instagrammable — in other words, which ones garner the most likes, comments and shares. </p>
<p>Our research examined over 10,000 images of food on Instagram from over 850 top restaurants (according to <a href="http://www.eater.com/">Eater.com</a>) using <a href="https://cloud.google.com/vision">Google Vision</a>, a machine-learning algorithm that extracts insights from images. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A photo of a pizza is classified as being 80% food by an algorithm" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=348&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=348&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=348&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/468297/original/file-20220610-43722-ewp83.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Google Vision’s API assigns labels to images and classifies them into predefined categories. In this example, a pizza has been classified as 80 per cent food by the machine learning model.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock/Google Cloud API)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We found that when Google Vision was more confident that an image contained actual food — a proxy for how normal and typical the food actually is — the more social media engagement it received.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.05.078">followup experiment</a> suggests that positive affect, which is the extent to which we feel good, helps explain this relationship.</p>
<p>While social media forecasters may suggest that unique foods are a trend, this logic contradicts some principles of evolutionary psychology. Humans evolved to quickly visually recognize foods, not just for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2015.08.006">what is edible</a>, but also for <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/foodfeatures/evolution-of-diet/">what is calorie-dense</a>. </p>
<p>Since finding and eating edible food was crucial for survival when humans were hunter-gatherers, we may be hard-wired to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2010.11.001">feel intrinsically good when we simply see food</a> we know we can eat.</p>
<h2>Social media food marketing</h2>
<p>How is this relevant to social media? The average user <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/433871/daily-social-media-usage-worldwide/">spends over two hours a day on social media platforms</a>, exposing them to hundreds of <a href="https://time.com/3950525/facebook-news-feed-algorithm/">different posts</a> in a single scrolling session. </p>
<p>While rapidly processing content, the brain may instinctively feel more positively toward images that are more easily recognized as food. These positive feelings can then transfer to behaviours directed toward the post, thereby <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/jcpy.1073">increasing the likelihood of the post receiving likes, comments or shares</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CZDE3qLuyqH/?hl=en","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>Since people feel better when they see foods that are easily recognizable as food, normal-looking food tends get more likes. On the other hand, unique foods tend to result in lower social media engagement because they are harder for people to recognize and classify as food. </p>
<p>Despite food <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-42012732">industry bloggers</a> and <a href="https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/instagram-trends-2022">social media trends</a> suggesting that people crave unique, eye-catching content, the most successful Instagrammable foods are the normal-looking ones that are more easily recognized as food.</p>
<p>Not ice cream disguised as <a href="https://www.instagram.com/poopcafe.ca/">feces served in a toilet</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/membersonlywh/">waffles shaped like penises</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ihalokrunch/">unusually coloured ice cream</a>. Instead, consumers appear to engage more with regular food, like a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/rudyresto/?hl=en">classic burger</a> or <a href="https://www.instagram.com/northofbrooklyn/?hl=en">normal pizza</a> — no unconventional shapes or colours required.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/184421/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Philp receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ethan Pancer receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jenna Jacobson receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p>New research using AI finds that trendy, unique-looking foods generate less social media engagement than traditional, normal-looking foods.Matthew Philp, Assistant Professor, Marketing, Toronto Metropolitan UniversityEthan Pancer, Associate Professor of Marketing, Sobey School of Business, Saint Mary’s UniversityJenna Jacobson, Assistant Professor, Ted Rogers School of Management, Toronto Metropolitan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1819042022-05-12T12:13:36Z2022-05-12T12:13:36ZUsing ‘science’ to market cookies and other products meant for pleasure backfires with consumers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/462319/original/file-20220510-20-renb80.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=77%2C25%2C4204%2C2818&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Science makes pleasure. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/full-frame-shot-of-chocolate-chip-cookie-royalty-free-image/977280226">Billy Burdette/EyeEm via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em> </p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p>When companies say a product meant for pleasure was developed using science, consumers are less likely to buy it. That’s what we found in our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucac020">peer-reviewed research</a>. </p>
<p>Marketers often describe how a product has been scientifically developed <a href="https://www.ispot.tv/ad/w7k0/turtle-wax-on-a-molecular-level">in their promotions</a>, on <a href="https://store.skinbetter.com/shop/best-sellers">product packaging</a> and on <a href="https://www.sweetscienceicecream.com/">websites</a>. Over 10 studies, we examined when consumers like products created with science and when they do not. We found that it depends on what the marketer is trying to sell: pleasure or practicality. </p>
<p>In our first study, we recruited 511 students to select a chocolate chip cookie among three options on a menu: “Luscious chocolatey taste,” “Our most scrumptious cookie” and “Loads of ooey-gooey chocolate chunks.” Half the students, however, were told the first option was “scientifically developed to have a luscious chocolatey taste.”</p>
<p>Participants informed about the involvement of science were 31% less likely to pick the first option relative to the other two. This suggested that people don’t like to associate science with delectable treats – all of which were identical and given to the students. </p>
<p>Two similar studies involving cookies confirmed this finding and even demonstrated that merely the mention of “science” can be a turnoff. </p>
<p>In a separate study involving smoothies, we aimed to rule out different influences on these findings. We asked 402 people on the online crowdsourcing website MTurk to rate their interest in purchasing a smoothie after reading a marketing slogan. They randomly read one of two phrases: “Our rigorous scientific development process ensures that JTB smoothies taste delicious, indulgent, and creamy” or “We ensure that JTB smoothies taste delicious, indulgent, and creamy.”</p>
<p>We found that those told about the science were 14% less likely to want to purchase the smoothie than the others.</p>
<p>We aimed to see if these findings would also apply to non-consumable products, which can be seen both as pleasurable and practical. </p>
<p>In one study, we asked 1,013 Americans on MTurk to review a promotional message about a brand of body wash and rate their purchase intentions. Half read that the body wash will “immerse your senses in an indulgent experience” – an appeal to pleasure – while the others learned it will “wash away odor causing bacteria” – the practical appeal. Furthermore, half of participants in each group were either told the product was scientifically developed or were given no information about its development. </p>
<p>We found that participants who received the pleasure appeal were much less likely to want to buy the product when told that science was involved. But those who were informed of its more utilitarian qualities were more likely to buy when the science was mentioned. </p>
<p>Subsequent studies showed that companies can reduce this “backfire effect” by emphasizing that science is necessary to produce the product – such as by explaining that chemistry is necessary for baking. We also found that people who have a high degree of <a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.pewresearch.org/science/2022/02/15/americans-trust-in-scientists-other-groups-declines/__;!!KGKeukY!wXc3ExWnXujAouk8PFq_iQt4hTejrYfs3QVDEgftSDifPMDTQEo2X4SfibUol_YWUBXynHUWa8Oi4OfA0_tFrlMihzw$">trust in scientists</a> or work in related fields do not respond negatively to the mention of science. </p>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>Science, and the scientific method, is vital to producing just about everything you see around you, from <a href="https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/resources/highschool/chemmatters/past-issues/archive-2014-2015/smartphones.html">computers and smartphones</a> to <a href="https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/reactions/videos/2016/how-does-shampoo-work.html">shampoo</a> and – you guessed it – <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/12/03/248347009/cookie-baking-chemistry-how-to-engineer-your-perfect-sweet-treat">chocolate chip cookies</a>. </p>
<p>But our studies suggest that many consumers have mixed feelings about the promotion of science in product development.</p>
<p>We believe this occurs because people stereotype the scientific process as being competent but cold, similar to how they <a href="https://www.americanscientist.org/blog/macroscope/scientists-who-selfie-break-down-stereotypes">stereotype scientists</a>. As consumers, people tend to <a href="http://doi.org/10.1057/pb.2013.5">associate enjoyment and sensory pleasure with warmth</a>. Put another way, it was the feeling that a product focused on pleasure is an odd fit with science that reduced people’s desire to buy it.</p>
<h2>What still isn’t known</h2>
<p>Future research can explore other ways to turn off the science backfire effect for pleasure-focused products. We don’t yet know if there are ways to change people’s beliefs about science so that it doesn’t seem like such a mismatch with pleasure.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/181904/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New research found that consumers were less likely to buy a product associated with pleasure if marketers emphasized it was developed with science.Rebecca Walker Reczek, Berry Chair of New Technologies in Marketing and Professor of Marketing, The Ohio State UniversityAviva Philipp-Muller, Doctoral candidate in Social Psychology, The Ohio State UniversityJohn Costello, Assistant Professor of Marketing, University of Notre DameLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1762512022-02-09T00:36:40Z2022-02-09T00:36:40ZA gutful of lunchbox hype – has selling ‘good bugs not drugs’ for kids’ health gone too far?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444977/original/file-20220208-19-1hp3d6q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=46%2C0%2C5184%2C3445&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Does your child have a “<a href="https://kidsinadelaide.com.au/build-a-gut-friendly-lunchbox/">gut-friendly</a>” lunchbox? It’s <a href="https://www.healthylunchboxweek.org.au/">Healthy Lunchbox Week</a>, a back-to-school initiative of Nutrition Australia. School lunches are essential for long-term child health and well-being, according to <a href="http://www.thechildrensclinicpa.com/blog/2021/9/24/strength-in-numbers-how-nutrition-can-build-an-army-to-protect-us-against-covid-19">some researchers</a>.</p>
<p>There are even <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/language/english/audio/five-tips-to-boost-your-child-s-immune-system-against-covid-19">media</a> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/11/unlocking-the-gut-microbiome-and-its-massive-significance-to-our-health">reports</a> that a “gut-friendly” lunchbox might help protect us against COVID-19.</p>
<p>Many products are now heavily marketed as promoting gut health. How can parents, carers and schools navigate these claims in deciding what children should eat?</p>
<h2>What is a gut-friendly lunch?</h2>
<p>In recent years, microbiome scientists and nutritionists have drawn attention to the interaction between our diet, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/essays-on-health-microbes-arent-the-enemy-theyre-a-big-part-of-who-we-are-79116">colony of microbes</a> in our gut (microbiota), and our health. We have moved beyond the simple idea of nutrition and health as “<a href="https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/energy-in-and-energy-out">energy in, energy out</a>”. Instead, human-gut microbiome research understands our bodies as members of and hosts to multispecies communities. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YB-8JEo_0bI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">What exactly is the human microbiome?</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A gut-friendly diet consists of foods that build healthy microbiota. Foods with “friendly” or “good” bacteria – yoghurt, kimchi, sourdough and kombucha, for example – are claimed to promote the microbiota colony in our gut, thereby improving overall health.</p>
<p>Excitement surrounding this research is based upon the hope that your gut microbiome might hold the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/11/unlocking-the-gut-microbiome-and-its-massive-significance-to-our-health">key for countering a range of diseases</a> and conditions. The benefits include better heart health, lower risks of diabetes and obesity, and decreases in depression and anxiety. Some also claim healthy gut microbiota <a href="http://www.thechildrensclinicpa.com/blog/2021/9/24/strength-in-numbers-how-nutrition-can-build-an-army-to-protect-us-against-covid-19">could help fight COVID and other infectious diseases</a> by boosting the immune system.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/essays-on-health-microbes-arent-the-enemy-theyre-a-big-part-of-who-we-are-79116">Essays on health: microbes aren't the enemy, they're a big part of who we are</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Against this backdrop, it’s little surprise <a href="https://www.campusreview.com.au/2019/02/monash-exhibits-the-humblest-of-objects/">the school lunchbox</a> has again been targeted as one way to help solve today’s public health challenges. </p>
<h2>The ‘gutification’ of food and diets</h2>
<p>Much of the research on microbiomics is in its early stages. There are gaps in scientific knowledge in this field. Still, the focus on the gut and its relation to human health is changing our understanding of food, health and our bodies.</p>
<p>Food corporations have arguably been among the biggest drivers of the gutification of foods. More and more products are labelled using the language and concepts of “gut health”, “mood food” and “immunity boosting”. Yoghurts for children, for example, are marketed using terms such as “probiotics”, “immune boosting” and “strengthening”. </p>
<p>Manufacturers’ marketing is part of a broader trend of using nutrition science in <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4601">“wellness” industries</a>.</p>
<p>However, some <a href="https://theconversation.com/boosting-your-gut-health-sounds-great-but-this-wellness-trend-is-vague-and-often-misunderstood-155472">researchers are cautious</a> about the specific health claims made by food corporations. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4815753/">Others have raised concerns</a> that the general advice to consume probiotics could harm some individuals, such as those with an overactive immune system.</p>
<p>The Therapeutic Goods Administration does regulate products like, for example, <a href="https://www.tga.gov.au/faecal-microbiota-transplant-products-regulation">fecal microbiota transplants</a>. But food-related claims about gut microbiota and health are under-regulated. These products often fall between the cracks of <a href="https://www.tga.gov.au/community-qa/food-and-medicine-regulation">medicine and food</a> regulation and labelling requirements.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Illustration of various types of priobiotic food products" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444979/original/file-20220208-22-a3uq5j.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Many food products are marketed by highlighting their health-giving ‘probiotic’ qualities.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/boosting-your-gut-health-sounds-great-but-this-wellness-trend-is-vague-and-often-misunderstood-155472">Boosting your ‘gut health’ sounds great. But this wellness trend is vague and often misunderstood</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Is the ‘immunity-boosting’ lunchbox ethical?</h2>
<p>The concern about these products is not just a matter of scientific evidence. In the race to commercialise such products (as with other new food technologies including <a href="https://www.organicgardener.com.au/blogs/nanomaterials-our-food">nano- and biotechnology</a>), the social and ethical dimensions of this burgeoning industry have been neglected. </p>
<p>Industry sees the process of properly considering such questions as <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2015/07/31/the-moral-imperative-for-bioethics/JmEkoyzlTAu9oQV76JrK9N/story.html">slowing down innovation</a>. But it’s vital to answer these social and ethical questions to ensure community expectations and standards related to food science and innovation are upheld.</p>
<p>In these times of heightened anxiety about child health at school, gut-healthy products can give parents and carers a greater sense of control over their child’s health. Yet almost all of the conditions or diseases gut-healthy foods purport to address have complex causes located in a myriad of structural factors. Public health researchers call these the social determinants of health. </p>
<p>Obesity, heart disease and depression are all complex conditions. They are shaped by family history, environment, geography, genetics, economics and education. These factors are beyond the responsibility of individuals and can’t simply be solved by more probiotics.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="lunchbox full of healthy food" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/444981/original/file-20220208-18-1dyn958.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">It might help, but don’t expect a healthy lunchbox to be a cure-all for complex public health problems.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/lets-untangle-the-murky-politics-around-kids-and-food-and-ditch-the-guilt-108328">Let's untangle the murky politics around kids and food (and ditch the guilt)</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<p>A major concern within public health ethics is when individuals are made <a href="http://foodfatnessfitness.com/2017/05/01/lifestyle-thin-sociality-neoliberal-welfare/">responsible for social or structural problems</a>. It’s like blaming an individual for not using an energy-saving light bulb while the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/australia-resources-minister-floats-a250-bln-coal-lending-facility-2021-10-07/">government is supporting new coal mines</a>. Similarly, expecting a school lunchbox to protect a child from diseases doesn’t make up for inadequate public health infrastructure.</p>
<p>This situation risks putting the responsibility for managing a global pandemic on individual carers (as well as requiring parents and carers to navigate science claims). It also sends a confusing message to the community about the nature of infectious disease transmission and prevention. In the absence of widespread vaccination, ventilation, masks and social distancing, “boosted” immunity is not going to protect children or the community.</p>
<p>The gut microbiome is an exciting new area of research. It opens up wide-ranging possibilities for individual and public health. But uncritical acceptance of health claims that over-promise only serves business interests and risks undermining the integrity of the science and overburdening individuals. </p>
<p>As this field develops, the ethical and social dimensions of human-gut microbiome research cannot be left behind.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/176251/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kristen Lyons is a member of the Australian Greens, and senior research fellow with the Oakland Institute. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Mayes and Deana Leahy do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Many school lunchbox products are now heavily marketed as promoting gut health. The limited regulation of such claims leaves it to parents and carers to assess whether they really stack up.Christopher Mayes, Senior Research Fellow, Alfred Deakin Institute, Deakin UniversityDeana Leahy, Associate Professor, Faculty of Education, Monash UniversityKristen Lyons, Professor, Environment and Development Sociology, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1554722021-03-12T01:47:15Z2021-03-12T01:47:15ZBoosting your ‘gut health’ sounds great. But this wellness trend is vague and often misunderstood<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/386867/original/file-20210228-13-69nmka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C1%2C998%2C663&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/woman-hands-making-heart-shape-on-1414143233">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you walk down the supermarket aisle, you may be tempted with foods <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveknox/2020/07/16/why-gut-health-is-the-next-big-wellness-trend/?sh=90d972919783">marketed as</a> being good for your gut. Then there are the multiple <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/best-gut-health-blogs#1">health blogs</a> about improving, supporting or maintaining your “gut health”.</p>
<p>But what does “gut health” mean? Is it the absence of disease? Is it no bloating? Or is it something else entirely? And how strong is the evidence “gut health” products actually make a difference?</p>
<p>As we explain in our article <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langas/article/PIIS2468-1253(21)00071-6/fulltext">just published</a> in the journal <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langas/home">Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology</a>, even researchers have not quite nailed a definition. Here’s what we know so far.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-kombucha-and-how-do-the-health-claims-stack-up-87180">What is kombucha and how do the health claims stack up?</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>What does the science say?</h2>
<p>We know the gut is important for our overall health and well-being. And when we say “gut”, we usually mean the large intestine, the region of the gastrointestinal tract where most of our gut microbiome lives. </p>
<p>Our gut microbiome is our gut’s resident microbes. And evidence is emerging this <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/361/bmj.k2179">affects</a> everything from how our body processes sugar in our diet, to our risk of cancer, depression and dementia.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YB-8JEo_0bI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Remind me again, what is the microbiome?</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But there’s no clear agreement on what “gut health” actually means. Researchers don’t use the term in the medical literature very much. When <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/ejcn200964">they do</a>, they seem to refer to no:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>unwanted gastrointestinal symptoms (such as pain or diarrhoea)</p></li>
<li><p>disease (such as Crohn’s disease or colon cancer), or</p></li>
<li><p>negative gut features (such as inflammation, a deficiency of certain molecules or an imbalance in the microbiome), which are almost impossible to precisely diagnose.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Nowhere do researchers or gastroenterologists (doctors who specialise in the gut) mention any aesthetic perks, such as a smooth, flat belly or glowing skin, despite what <a href="https://cultivatebeauty.com.au/gut-health-glowing-skin/">magazine articles</a> might suggest.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/do-men-really-take-longer-to-poo-152233">Do men really take longer to poo?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>So, what’s the problem?</h2>
<p>There are two main problems with products or <a href="https://www.eatthis.com/foods-gut-health/">lists of foods</a> that claim to be good for “gut health”.</p>
<p>First, such claims are not backed by strong scientific evidence. Second, these claims are simplistic.</p>
<p>While a healthy diet is undoubtedly an essential contributor to good health, including of the gastrointestinal system, it’s dietary patterns and overall habits, not individual foods, that shift the dial.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/these-5-foods-are-claimed-to-improve-our-health-but-the-amount-wed-need-to-consume-to-benefit-is-a-lot-116730">These 5 foods are claimed to improve our health. But the amount we'd need to consume to benefit is... a lot</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<h2>Let’s take fibre as an example</h2>
<p>Fibre is one dietary component heralded as a <a href="https://loveyourgut.com/all-entries/hero-ingredients-for-good-gut-health/">gut health hero</a>. Indeed, there is compelling evidence showing <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41575-020-00375-4">health benefits of a high-fibre diet</a>, for the gastrointestinal tract, and also more broadly (for instance, a reduced risk of heart disease and diabetes).</p>
<p>Yet most people in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6124841/">Western</a> <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/943114/NDNS_UK_Y9-11_report.pdf">countries</a> <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6163727/">do not eat enough dietary fibre</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Bowl of high-fibre cereal" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/386622/original/file-20210226-15-177l4lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A bowl of high-fibre breakfast cereal alone is unlikely to help your ‘gut health’ if your overall diet or lifestyle is a problem.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/wheat-bran-breakfast-cereal-no-milk-371849272">www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>However, the little-told story is foods contain multiple types of dietary fibre, each with <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41575-020-00375-4">different effects</a> on gut function (and its microbiome).</p>
<p>We don’t know if all types of fibre are essential or beneficial. At least in animals, too much of certain fibres might <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/proceedings-of-the-nutrition-society/article/nutrition-and-gut-health-the-impact-of-specific-dietary-components-its-not-just-fiveaday/695D2CD23097CA8D98C814037C9CADA1">affect the large intestine</a>, causing inflammatory disease. </p>
<p>So yes, eat high-fibre foods <a href="https://www.gutmicrobiotaforhealth.com/how-to-eat-for-a-diverse-microbiota/">(including</a> wholegrain cereals, fruit, vegetables, legumes and nuts). But do so as part of a varied diet, not by overloading on just one or two foods or commercial products claiming to improve your “gut health”.</p>
<h2>We are all individuals</h2>
<p>The optimal diet for your gut as well as your overall health is likely to be highly individual. What is best for one person may not be so for the next. </p>
<p>Large human studies show the gut microbiome may be the major driver of this <a href="https://www.cell.com/fulltext/S0092-8674(15)01481-6">individuality</a>, responsible for some of the variability in how different people metabolise food.</p>
<p>However, as we have written about <a href="https://theconversation.com/should-i-test-my-gut-microbes-to-improve-my-health-131216">before</a>, it isn’t yet possible to define the perfect microbiome, or how to get one. What is clear is that any one product is unlikely to achieve this anyway.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/should-i-test-my-gut-microbes-to-improve-my-health-131216">Should I test my gut microbes to improve my health?</a>
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</em>
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<hr>
<h2>So where does this leave us?</h2>
<p>If we accept the concept of “gut health” has many nuances, what next?</p>
<p>There is good evidence the health of the gastrointestinal tract and its microbiome are <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/361/bmj.k2179">important for overall health</a>, and certainly the absence of pain and disease boosts our well-being. </p>
<p>But rather than focusing on one food, the evidence for what’s best for our gut tells us we’d be better off looking at improving our overall diet. <a href="https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/guidelines">National healthy eating guidelines</a> universally include advice to eat a variety of foods, including those high in fibre, and to avoid excessive alcohol. </p>
<p>General principles of a healthy lifestyle apply too: avoid substance abuse (including smoking, off-label prescription drugs and illicit drugs), exercise regularly, take care of your mental well-being and manage your stress.</p>
<p>All these combined are likely to be more helpful for gut health than the latest superfood or boxed cereal.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/essays-on-health-microbes-arent-the-enemy-theyre-a-big-part-of-who-we-are-79116">Essays on health: microbes aren't the enemy, they're a big part of who we are</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155472/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amy Loughman receives funding from The Jack Brockhoff Foundation and Deakin University.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Heidi Staudacher receives fellowship funding from Deakin University and has received non-financial and financial support from CD investments VSL pharmaceuticals. </span></em></p>Rather than focusing on single foods for ‘gut health’, we’re better off having a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle.Amy Loughman, Senior Research Fellow, Deakin UniversityHeidi Staudacher, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Food & Mood Centre, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1501512020-11-23T13:18:12Z2020-11-23T13:18:12ZThe rise and fall of Tab – after surviving the sweetener scares, the iconic diet soda gets canned<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/370404/original/file-20201119-21-lu4xns.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Before there was Diet Coke, there was Tab.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/cans-of-diet-cola-tab-brand-soft-drink-produced-by-the-coca-news-photo/595289606?adppopup=true">Ramin Talaie/Corbis via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Tab, the Coca-Cola company’s original diet soda brand, is headed to the soda graveyard, joining retired brands such as <a href="https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/x0MAAOSwbWhdZzLu/s-l400.jpg">Like</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/georgeginis/status/1307440469090078722">Leed</a> and <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/690161122/1970s-lime-crush-limette-metal-pop-top">Limette</a>.</p>
<p>Coca-Cola has announced that <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/16/business/coca-cola-tab.html">it is discontinuing Tab after 57 years on the market</a>, and fans of the drink will have until the end of December to purchase their last can of nostalgia.</p>
<p>From the beginning, Tab’s story has been one of perseverance. The brand survived initial low sales, the artificial sweetener scares of the 1960s and 1970s, lukewarm enthusiasm for the product at the corporate level and intermittent consumer availability to become – for a brief period – the most popular diet soda in America. Then, of course, Diet Coke came along.</p>
<p>While it never regained its lofty status as the top diet soda, loyal Tab fans kept the brand alive.</p>
<h2>Meant for diabetics, downed by dieters</h2>
<p>While some might think Tab was the first diet soda, that honor actually belongs to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSHfJ1tgzbQ">a beverage called No-Cal</a>, which was developed by beverage industry pioneer Hyman Kirsch in 1952. Kirsch wanted to create a soda for diabetics and people with cardiovascular problems, <a href="https://www.saveur.com/artificial-sweeteners/">so he used cyclamate</a>, which was discovered in 1937 by a graduate student working at a University of Illinois chemistry lab after he licked some of the substance and found that it tasted sweet. About 30 times sweeter than sugar, cyclamate isn’t metabolized, making it ideal for people who need to avoid sugar.</p>
<p>But from the start, No-Cal was popular with a different type of consumer: dieters. Actress Kim Novak became <a href="https://i2.wp.com/baybottles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/KH-1956.jpg?resize=768%2C929&ssl=1">the brand’s slim celebrity spokesperson</a>. Canada Dry followed soon after with a line of diet sodas called Glamor, <a href="http://lileks.com/bleats/archive/15/0915/0902/product/2.jpg">marketing it to women trying to lose weight</a>.</p>
<p>Diet soda really took off with <a href="https://healthfully.com/diet-rite-cola-ingredients-6270941.html">the introduction of Diet-Rite Cola</a> by the Royal Crown Cola company in 1958. Like No-Cal, Diet-Rite initially targeted diabetics and was often placed in the over-the-counter medicine section of grocers. But it soon became clear that the real market was dieters. By 1960, <a href="https://www.drinkstuff-sa.co.za/the-bittersweet-sexist-history-of-marketing-diet-soda/">Diet-Rite was the fourth-best-selling soft drink in the country</a>, trailing only Coca-Cola, Pepsi and 7 Up. </p>
<h2>Soda giants caught flat-footed</h2>
<p>Coca-Cola and Pepsi, finding themselves behind the ball, scrambled to come up with their own diet soda offerings. </p>
<p>Coca-Cola’s foray into the diet cola market – <a href="https://www.metv.com/stories/in-the-1970s-coca-cola-also-tried-to-expand-its-diet-soda-with-a-variety-of-tab-flavors">dubbed Project Alpha</a> – was an ambitious one. It wanted to come up with a soda that tasted good, had a proper mouthfeel – sugar adds not only sweetness <a href="https://www.mydrinkbeverages.com/challenges-faced-in-creating-sugar-free-beverages">but also viscosity</a> – and was attractive to women, the presumptive market. It also needed a catchy name.</p>
<p>For the name, Coke executives had one directive: Even though its taste was engineered to mimic Coke’s, it couldn’t be called Diet Coke. Because most early diet sodas didn’t taste that great, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1537-4726.2004.00115.x">strategists warned</a> against associating their brands with drinks that might taint their tremendous value.</p>
<p>So an early IBM mainframe computer generated <a href="https://soda.fandom.com/wiki/Tab">more than 600 candidates</a> with the parameters that the name be three or four letters and not offensive in any foreign language.</p>
<p>Tabb, which was eventually shortened to Tab, eventually won the battle of market testing. Stylized as “TaB,” it was introduced to the world <a href="https://clickamericana.com/topics/food-drink/20-years-tab-diet-cola-vintage-ads">in a series of ads</a> with the tagline “How can just one calorie taste so good?”</p>
<p>For a company that ordinarily has such excellent marketing instincts, Coca-Cola wasn’t sure how to fit Tab into its portfolio. Bottlers resisted the product, fearing it would undercut their profitable sugar-based sodas. By the end of its first year, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1537-4726.2004.00115.x">it had only 10% of the diet soda market</a>, an unusual predicament for a brand backed by the No. 1 soda company in the world.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DJL4yQn_7qQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Coca-Cola wasn’t subtle about targeting dieting women.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Later in the 1960s, Coca-Cola introduced the grapefruit-flavored diet soda Fresca, <a href="https://www.coca-colacompany.com/news/fresca-lived-up-to-its-tagline-for-1967-new-york-debut">which was a much bigger hit</a> with consumers and further sidelined Tab.</p>
<h2>Emerging from the sweetener scares</h2>
<p>Artificial sweeteners were riding high in the 1960s as Americans wanted to enjoy their sweets without paying the caloric price. But danger was lurking in the form of the <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/HRD-82-3">Delany Clause</a> in the Food Additives Amendment of 1958, which prohibits food additives that have been found to cause cancer. </p>
<p>In 1969, <a href="http://ilovetab.com/the-bitter-truth-about-a-sweetener-scare/">the Food and Drug Administration banned the sweetener cyclamate</a> after lab studies indicated that large doses of the sweetener led to bladder cancer in animals. While Tab contained two artificial sweeteners – saccharin and cyclamate – cyclamate was the more important of the two. Saccharin is 300 to 400 times sweeter than sugar, but in high concentrations it gives products a bitter, metallic aftertaste. However, when it’s combined with cyclamate, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chembiol.2017.08.004">bitterness goes away</a>.</p>
<p>After the cyclamate ban, Tab was forced to reformulate and ended up deciding to use saccharine as its primary sweetener. Then in a second blow, follow-up research on potential health problems associated with artificial sweeteners focused on saccharin, leading the FDA to require warning labels on products using the sweetener. </p>
<p>Despite these obstacles, Tab <a href="https://www.mashed.com/263185/the-real-reason-coke-just-discontinued-tab/">still ended up becoming the bestselling diet cola of the 1970s and 1980s</a>. People, it seems, were willing to turn a blind eye to potential health problems as long as they were able to continue to get their diet soda. And Tab, for a brief period, was apparently the favorite of the bunch.</p>
<p>In 1982, Tab was reformulated yet again to include Nutrasweet, <a href="https://foodinsight.org/everything-you-need-to-know-about-aspartame/">also known as aspartame</a>. But Tab drinkers <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/10/garden/tab-soda-drinkers-miss-familiar-taste.html">protested the change to the drink’s flavor profile</a>, and the company dropped aspartame from the recipe.</p>
<h2>Enter: Diet Coke</h2>
<p>After Pepsi entered the diet cola market with Patio, it rebranded the product as “Diet Pepsi” within a year. Consumers embraced the new drink and a string of celebrity endorsers only enhanced its popularity. </p>
<p>This lesson was lost on Coca-Cola, which didn’t bring a diet drink using the Coca-Cola name onto the market until 1982, when it introduced Diet Coke.</p>
<p>Contrary to the company’s original fears, <a href="https://www.beveragehistory.com/2018/01/history-of-diet-coke.html">Diet Coke was an immediate hit</a>. Even though the flavor of the new beverage was not a carbon copy of the sugar-sweetened version, customers took to it. And the main victim of Diet Coke was not the original Coke, but Tab. Over the years, Tab’s market share dwindled; by 2019, <a href="https://www.ingredientsnetwork.com/cocacola-to-discontinue-production-of-tab-soda-news085577.html">its sales made up only about 1% of the Coca-Cola portfolio</a>.</p>
<p>Yet the drink managed to retain some passionate devotees, even as rumors of its impending doom circulated on and off over the years. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tab-shortage-sparks-panic-2018-10">A Tab shortage in 2018</a> caused self-described Tab-aholics to stockpile their favorite beverage, and petitions to save the drink were circulated and sent to the company. </p>
<p>They couldn’t stop the inevitable. Coca-Cola is trying to cut underperforming brands, and even modern ones like Odwalla juice and regional sodas like Delaware Punch <a href="https://www.today.com/food/coca-cola-will-stop-selling-tab-end-2020-t195035">are poised to fall prey to the cost-cutting guillotine</a>. The company says more than half of the 500 brands it currently markets <a href="https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2020/10/23/coca-cola-company-200-drinks-coke-brands-being-cancelled-list/">will disappear in the near future</a>.</p>
<p>[<em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>Tab lovers might have less time than they think to load up; serious Tab fans <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2020/10/16/coca-cola-discontinuing-tab-one-of-the-first-diet.html">have begun snapping up any six-packs</a> that might still be lurking on store shelves. </p>
<p>It won’t be long until the only cans left will be in the basements of Tab-aholics.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/150151/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeffrey Miller does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Tab was Coca-Cola’s first foray into the diet soda market. Though the brand went on to build and maintain a legion of devoted fans, its days are numbered.Jeffrey Miller, Associate Professor, Hospitality Management, Colorado State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1293172020-01-27T12:20:03Z2020-01-27T12:20:03ZObesity, second to smoking as the most preventable cause of US deaths, needs new approaches<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/310518/original/file-20200116-181593-akwlnw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=26%2C13%2C4394%2C3148&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Social campaigns to address the obesity crisis in America are failing. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/diet-change-healthy-lifestyle-concept-having-277748333">Lightspring/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The opioid crisis and deaths related to e-cigarette use among teenagers have dominated news headlines recently. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 34 people had died as a result of vaping and, in 2017, opioid addiction was responsible <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/statedeaths.html">for more than 47,000 deaths</a> in the U.S. Opioid addiction has been declared a <a href="https://www.cms.gov/About-CMS/Agency-Information/Emergency/EPRO/Current-Emergencies/Ongoing-emergencies">public health emergency</a>. </p>
<p>Yet these serious public health threats obscure an ever-present and growing calamity of obesity in the United States. Obesity is second only to cigarette smoking as a <a href="https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2018/rising-obesity-united-states-public-health-crisis">leading preventable death</a> in the U.S. Nearly <a href="https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/obesity-kills-more-americans-previously-thought">one in five deaths of African Americans and Caucasians age 40 to 85</a> is attributed to obesity, a rate that is increasing across generations. </p>
<p>Clearly society needs better strategies to address this public health emergency. As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=E3XmWfEAAAAJ&hl=en">health economist</a> who has spent decades studying ways to prevent disease, I believe there are some policy options that could help.</p>
<h2>The American obesity crisis</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/adult/causes.html">Many factors contribute to obesity</a>, including genetics, diet, physical inactivity, medications, lack of education and food marketing. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=545&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=545&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311485/original/file-20200123-32164-3zl0lr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=545&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The volume of food consumed contributes to weight gain.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Go-For-the-Food-Cincinnati/ef8097858c154e5aa856fc9b36059d8a/13/0">Al Behrman/APimages.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>People who are obese face heightened risk for diabetes, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and certain types of cancers, among other conditions. The estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the United States is <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html">$147 billion</a>, with most of those costs hitting public programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Similar trends have been <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight">observed internationally among developed countries</a>.</p>
<p>So what can we do about it? The massive public and private efforts to control smoking provide both a template for addressing obesity and a benchmark for social impact. Tactics such as education, cigarette taxes, and smoke-free public spaces resulted in a 66% decline in smoking between 1965 and 2018, when cigarette smoking reached <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2019/p1114-smoking-low.html">an all-time low</a> of 13.7% among U.S. adults.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311487/original/file-20200123-32170-1y2r7ra.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cigarette smoking has plummeted in the U.S.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Cancer-Deaths-Decline/b99a642bd8a0426b985f6878b6083cb7/166/0">Jenny Kane/apimages.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This outcome is associated with major health <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK53017/">improvements</a> – reduced cardiovascular disease, stroke, various cancers and mortality from lung cancer. Medicaid alone saves an estimated $2.5 billion a year from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.2307">smoking-related health improvements</a>.</p>
<p>From a public investment perspective, the potential bang for the buck is even <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/41791016">bigger for obesity than it is for tobacco</a>. In my view, a successful anti-obesity campaign must encourage people to be less sedentary; invest in new medical treatments and nutrition science; and create regulatory and health insurance policies that reward behavioral change. It also means <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/oby.22696">broader access to effective therapies</a>.</p>
<h2>Good ideas that aren’t working</h2>
<p>Our current emphasis on behavioral interventions has been disappointing. Society needs to find a way to talk about obesity and come up with ways to deal with it that do not involve <a href="https://labblog.uofmhealth.org/body-work/fat-shaming-wont-solve-obesity-science-might">body-shaming</a> Losing weight means eating less or exercising more, or both, but there are no guarantees with either approach. Getting people to exercise is difficult. <a href="https://health.gov/paguidelines/second-edition/pdf/Physical_Activity_Guidelines_2nd_edition.pdf">Nearly 80%</a> of adults are not meeting the key guidelines for both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity. </p>
<p>Getting people to change their diet is similarly ineffective. <a href="http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/Dieting-Does-Not-Work-UCLA-Researchers-7832">According to one study</a>, half of dieters had gained 11 pounds five years after starting their diet; some progress but hardly enough. Similarly, nutritional labels <a href="https://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(18)32357-2/fulltext">have had little effect on consumers’ food intake and body mass index</a>.</p>
<p>So what should policymakers do? I think it is time to take several new approaches.</p>
<h2>Economic models for health intervention</h2>
<p>The intellectual property rights of companies that develop novel approaches to weight loss, such as mimicking the effects of exercise, should be protected and rewarded with patent law and other mechanisms. Currently, if a company discovers a way to get people to go for a walk with a new app or program, protection for intellectual property and reimbursement is uncertain. </p>
<p>Given the stakes, the U.S. government should offer greater rewards for behavioral interventions that can demonstrate long-term gains under the same rigorous regulatory standards similar to those required of new drugs. U.S. companies invest <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnlamattina/2018/06/12/pharma-rd-investments-moderating-but-still-high/#33152bc06bc2">billions of dollars to develop pharmaceuticals</a>. By contrast, there is <a href="https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.2018.05187">less social investment</a> in other prevention activities. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310535/original/file-20200116-181639-6cswc5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Excess weight carries great social cost.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Overweight-Kids-Diabetes/1771374a081541b5b5775ebf9418056f/5/0">Patrick Sison/APImages.com</a></span>
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<p>While not a solution for everyone, gastric bypass and adjustable gastric banding, among other procedures, have proven effective. New incentives could expand access to these surgeries by lowering the BMI threshold for eligibility. Some insurers have put up barriers to this treatment because obesity is not immediately life-threatening or related to our <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6179496/">traditional notion of disease</a>. </p>
<p>We need to find better ways to annuitize the cost of surgery and increase access while tying reimbursement to outcomes. Other insurers with an interest in long-term outcomes, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/health-cares-killer-app-life-insurance-11553122054">including the life insurance industry</a>, can play an important role. They have a vested financial interest in avoiding mortality and disability but have traditionally remained on the sidelines while Americans grow fatter.</p>
<p>Evidence points to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhealeco.2012.04.006">a 20% reduction</a> in BMI persisting up to 10 years after surgery. In 2017, <a href="https://asmbs.org/articles/new-study-finds-most-bariatric-surgeries-performed-in-northeast-and-fewest-in-south-where-obesity-rates-are-highest-and-economies-are-weakest">228,000 Americans</a> received bariatric surgeries. Of those, only 10% of are eligible under current criteria. </p>
<p>Another approach is to consider <a href="https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/prescription-medications-treat-overweight-obesity">new medications</a> and utilize the successful approach that has been used to fight high blood pressure. About 50 years ago, hypertension was considered untreatable. Diet and exercise were the predominant means of controlling it. The discovery of multiple agents to combat hypertension, beginning with diuretics and beta blockers, proved transformative. A similar story emerged for elevated cholesterol. About half the decline in U.S. deaths from coronary heart disease can be attributed to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMsa053935">medical therapies</a> like these.</p>
<p>Several clinically proven anti-obesity medications are already available for people who do not respond to lifestyle modification. Furthermore, there is a robust clinical pipeline, with approximately <a href="https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/comment/obesity-pipeline/">250 compounds under development</a>, including dozens of novel compounds. Drugs such as these can help change the trajectory of the obesity epidemic, if they are made widely available and reimbursed — challenges in today’s health care insurance system.</p>
<p>Another avenue to consider includes <a href="https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/how-do-state-and-local-soda-taxes-work">levying taxes on sweetened beverages</a>, or the so-called “soda tax.” <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26094232">One study</a> found that implementing a 1 cent per ounce soda tax would reduce sugar-sweetened beverage consumption by 20% over 10 years. The result would be a $23.6 billion savings in health care and improved population health. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/310533/original/file-20200116-181634-1pg3a71.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">In 2012, new laws required schools to limit salt and fat and cap calories.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Lunch-Debt-Donors/e71ef26a17da43eca4647608d0bac984/2/0">Mary Esch/APImages</a></span>
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<p>Finally, the food and restaurant industry deserves some of the blame. Restricting access – like the United States tried with the ban on the consumption and sale of alcohol – won’t work. But <a href="https://www.rand.org/blog/2014/01/the-conspiracy-to-keep-you-fat.html">responsible steps to regulate portions might</a>.</p>
<p>Smart, bold strategies helped us address public health crises before, including smoking and hypertension. We need to be similarly aggressive with obesity if we want to avert hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths. As we did with smoking, it is time to make obesity a number one public health priority.</p>
<p>[ <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=expertise">Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter and get a digest of academic takes on today’s news, every day.</a></em> ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/129317/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr. Goldman is a consultant to Precision Health Economics and holds equity (<1%) in its parent company. He also reports grants from NIH, an honorarium from ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, and consulting for Novo Nordisk. </span></em></p>Nearly 40% of Americans are obese, and the numbers are climbing. The U.S. needs to get serious about solutions.Dana Goldman, Leonard D. Schaeffer Chair and Distinguished Professor of Public Policy, Pharmacy, and Economics, University of Southern CaliforniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1145812019-06-18T00:16:10Z2019-06-18T00:16:10ZWhy the Australasian Health Star Rating needs major changes to make it work<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/279685/original/file-20190616-158921-1d13fke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C411%2C5615%2C3320&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Most consumers are unaware that the Health Star Rating system is compensatory, and that one negative nutritional attribute, such as high sugar, can be cancelled out by a positive attribute like fibre. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Unhealthy diets cause multiple <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/ejcn201234">physical and mental health</a> problems. To help consumers make healthier choices, Australia and New Zealand introduced the voluntary Health Star Rating (<a href="http://healthstarrating.gov.au/internet/healthstarrating/publishing.nsf/content/about-health-stars">HSR</a>) system in 2014. </p>
<p>The system is supposedly designed to provide consumers with an overall signal about a food’s healthiness. Presumably, this should nudge consumers to make more informed and healthier decisions.</p>
<p>Five years on, the Australian and New Zealand governments are conducting a <a href="http://healthstarrating.gov.au/internet/healthstarrating/publishing.nsf/content/formal-review-of-the-system-after-five-years">system review</a>. <a href="https://ssrn.com/abstract=3352241">Our research</a> shows that, while the initiative is noble, the devil is in the details. There is a need, and hopefully an opportunity, to improve the system and reconsider some of its key aspects. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-election-pledge-to-improve-australian-diets-is-a-first-now-we-need-action-not-just-consideration-116425">Labor's election pledge to improve Australian diets is a first – now we need action, not just 'consideration'</a>
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<h2>Loopholes and consumer misconception</h2>
<p>Under the HSR system, products are labelled from 0.5 stars (the least healthy score) to 5 stars (the healthiest products). The rating is determined by evaluating the overall nutritional value of the product. It compares the content of “good” ingredients (i.e. fibre, protein, fruit, vegetables, nuts and legumes) with the “bad” ones (i.e. saturated fat, energy, total sugar and sodium). </p>
<p>But we believe most consumers are unaware that the HSR system is <a href="https://www.consumer.org.nz/articles/health-star-ratings">compensatory</a>. This means one negative nutritional attribute can be cancelled out, or balanced, by a positive attribute. A manufacturer can receive a <a href="https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/03/australias-health-star-ratings-are-broken/">high HSR score for a product rich in sugar</a> by <a href="https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/91971947/health-star-rating-system-may-mislead-shoppers">adding a healthy ingredient such as fibre</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=138&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=138&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=138&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=173&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=173&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/280260/original/file-20190619-171281-owkabb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=173&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<p>It is also likely that most consumers are unaware that the HSR rating is calculated on an “as prepared” basis. This means a product can enjoy a high rating based on the nutritional value of preparatory ingredients. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.consumer.org.nz/articles/health-star-rating-to-be-removed-from-milo-powder">Milo found itself embroiled in controversy</a> for displaying 4.5 stars on its chocolate powder, though the powder itself clearly does not merit this rating. The 4.5-star rating was based on consuming merely three teaspoons of powder combined with skim milk. But who actually consumes Milo this way? </p>
<p>Furthermore, HSR scores are intended to allow comparison only among similar products. A four-star rating for a cereal cannot be compared to a four-star rating given to milk. While the two products display the same number of stars, their healthiness may differ significantly.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/have-you-gone-vegan-keep-an-eye-on-these-4-nutrients-107708">Have you gone vegan? Keep an eye on these 4 nutrients</a>
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<h2>What holds the system back</h2>
<p>There is scepticism about the HSR’s authenticity, reliability and effectiveness. This stems in part from the system being self-regulated. </p>
<p>In addition, the system is non-mandatory, leaving manufacturers free to decide when and how to use it. For instance, only around <a href="https://www.mpi.govt.nz/dmsdocument/31635-the-health-star-rating-system-in-new-zealand-2014-2018">20% of packaged goods</a> available in New Zealand and Australian supermarkets have an HSR. To add to the distortion, a disproportionate number of these show high ratings. This indicates that manufacturers only use the HSR for their healthier products. </p>
<p>A voluntary system does little to counter the inbuilt incentive that manufacturers have to use unhealthy components such as sugar, salt and saturated fats. These produce pleasure and create “<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41538-018-0020-x">craveable</a>” foods and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092846801730175X?via%3Dihub">food addiction</a>. Manufacturers likely do not use a HSR for these products. However, consumers do not interpret missing information as “the worst-case scenario”, <a href="https://hbr.org/2017/09/research-missing-product-information-doesnt-bother-consumers-as-much-as-it-should">but assume average quality</a>.</p>
<p>Finally, the system does not effectively assist the vulnerable consumers who need it the most. While HSR does help some middle- to high-income consumers, it does a poor job with respect to <a href="https://www.hpa.org.nz/sites/default/files/Final%20Report-HSR%20monitoring%20and%20evaluation%202018.pdf">consumers of low socio-economic status</a>. This suggests that the label requires consumers to be educated about its meaning.</p>
<h2>Time to move forward</h2>
<p>Some improvements could carry the HSR forward a great distance. </p>
<p>If the system were made mandatory, it would likely raise consumers’ awareness. There should also be more education initiatives about the HSR. This, in turn, would incentivise manufacturers to produce healthier foods and beverages. </p>
<p>At the same time, we should strive to minimise the costs involved and consider backing the system with government funding. This would allow all businesses to participate in the program, including less profitable or smaller businesses. It would also prevent costs from being passed onto consumers.</p>
<p>As a minimum, if the system is not made mandatory, a general “non-participation” label should be introduced. If a producer opts not to label its product, it should be required to use a conspicuous cautionary statement. Such a statement should declare, for instance, that “the manufacturer has chosen not to verify the health rating of this product” or “the healthiness of this product cannot be verified”. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/public-health-nutrition/article/nutrition-warnings-as-frontofpack-labels-influence-of-design-features-on-healthfulness-perception-and-attentional-capture/1D45359C83C891BA20F3565083CEA363">Studies show</a> the HSR rating would have a bigger impact if placed in the upper left corner of the packaging and used colours. It could use a traffic light system, with 0.5-2.5 stars on a red background, 3 to 4 stars on amber and 4.5-5 star products on green. The colour-coded system has proved to be more effective with marginalised groups of consumers. </p>
<p>All easier said than done. </p>
<p>Healthy diets are important for <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-17262-9">physical and psychological well-being</a> and for strengthening our communities and economies. However, any regulation of the food industry is likely to be resisted by its strong and well-organised lobbying power. To fight this battle, the consumers’ voice is crucial to ensure we can all make good and healthy foods choices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/114581/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A food heath labelling system Australia and New Zealand introduced five years ago is under review and needs a significant overhaul to make it useful for consumers looking for healthy options.Jessica C Lai, Senior Lecturer in Commercial Law, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonAlana Harrison, LLB(Hons) & BCOM Undergraduate Student, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonHongzhi Gao, Associate professor, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonSamuel Becher, Associate Professor of Business Law, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of WellingtonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1035162018-09-26T20:13:42Z2018-09-26T20:13:42ZGrowers are in a jam now, but strawberry sabotage may well end up helping the industry<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238031/original/file-20180926-149982-bjbiyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">original</span> </figcaption></figure><p>Is it act of malicious stupidity or evil genius? The strawberry sabotage crisis is no doubt hurting individual growers in the short term, but in the long term it may prove a huge win for the industry. </p>
<p>Few crimes are as easy to commit, yet so seriously endanger public safety and threaten such commercial damage, as <a href="https://foodmag.com.au/thinking-the-unthinkable-product-contamination-risk-and-response/">malicious food tampering</a>.
The perpetrators’ motivation is typically to create fear and hurt a company or industry. Yet history illustrates that, over time, the opposite occurs. </p>
<p>This crisis began in early September with the discovery of sewing needles embedded in strawberries bought at <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-12/strawberry-investigation-after-sewing-needles-found-inside/10237954">a Woolworths store in Brisbane</a>. What started as an isolated incident thought to involve a disgruntled employee at one Queensland farm quickly turned to national crisis. Consumers were <a href="https://www.health.qld.gov.au/news-alerts/doh-media-releases/releases/contaminated-strawberries-queensland-update-5">advised</a> to dispose of, or return strawberries bought from supermarkets in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. Then needles showed up in strawberries <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-17/wa-has-first-reported-strawberry-contamination-case/10257554">in Western Australia</a> <a href="https://thenewdaily.com.au/money/consumer/2018/09/16/needles-in-strawberries-south-australia/">and Tasmania</a>. Within a week, dozens of cases of fruit contamination had been reported around the country, <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/queensland/new-zealand-supermarket-withdraws-australian-strawberry-brand-over-needles-20180923-p505j4.html">as well as in New Zealand</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/strawberry-sabotage-what-are-copycat-crimes-and-who-commits-them-103423">Strawberry sabotage: what are copycat crimes and who commits them?</a>
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<h2>Product tampering’s long and pointless history</h2>
<p>One of the earliest recorded incidents of product tampering was in 1982. Seven people in Chicago died after taking tablets of <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/tylenol-murders-1982">Tylenol laced with potassium cyanide</a>. Though a man was convicted of attempting to extort US$1 million from Tylenol’s maker, Johnson & Johnson, he was never charged over the deaths. </p>
<p>Johnson & Johnson <a href="https://www.ou.edu/deptcomm/dodjcc/groups/02C2/Johnson%20&%20Johnson.htm">responded to the crisis quickly</a>. It withdrew more than 30 million bottles of the medication, advertised widely to warn consumers of the danger, suspended production and changed its packaging to make it tamper-proof. It cost the company more than US$100 million. But its commitment to customers’ safety ended up enhancing <a href="https://bizgovsocfive.wordpress.com/2012/11/14/social-and-economic-benefits-can-a-company-do-both/">its brand reputation</a>. Tylenol regained its market share within a year. </p>
<p>There have also been attempts to hold pharmaceutical companies to ransom in Australia. In 2000, paracetamol capsules made by Herron Pharmaceuticals were <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/pm/stories/s225830.htm">laced with strychnine</a>. Following Johnson & Johnson’s example, Herron immediately pulled the product from store shelves.
A few months later SmithKline Beecham International (now GlaxoSmithKline) <a href="https://www.icis.com/resources/news/2000/06/06/113788/australia-sbi-recalls-panadol-capsules-on-extortion-threat/">was threatened</a>. It recalled its best-selling Panadol paracetamol capsules as a precaution. In both cases public trust in each company was enhanced. </p>
<h2>Food scares make hearts grow fonder</h2>
<p>If extortion is the motivation, threatening a pharmaceutical company has some logic. Contaminating food seems to make less sense.</p>
<p>In 1977 Australia’s biggest biscuit maker, Arnott’s, dumped $10 million of biscuits due to the threat of poisoned biscuits. In this case, bizarrely, the extortionists were demanding a convicted criminal be released from prison. </p>
<p>In 2007, Masterfoods pulled Mars and Snickers chocolate bars from the shelves due to fears <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2005/s1405381.htm">some might have been poisoned</a>.</p>
<p>In both cases, by acting quickly and following textbook <a href="http://www.ethics.org.au/on-ethics/blog/august-1997/arnott-s-doesn-t-crumble-under-pressure">crisis management</a> – protect customers first, brand second and shareholder interest third – neither company suffered long-term damage. Australians continue to buy their biscuits and bars by the millions.</p>
<p>In every case, history illustrates the targets of product contamination bounce back, often with sales even stronger than before.</p>
<p>There is good reason to believe, therefore, that the enduring result of the strawberry contamination crisis is that Australians will grow fonder of the fruit. </p>
<h2>How consumers respond to group trauma</h2>
<p>Research suggests there is a four-stage pattern of social behaviour after traumatic social events, such as a natural disaster or <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-9558.2004.00204.x">terrorist act</a>. </p>
<ul>
<li><p>first, a few days of shock and idiosyncratic individual reactions to attack</p></li>
<li><p>second, one to two weeks of establishing standardised displays of solidarity</p></li>
<li><p>third, two to three months of high solidarity</p></li>
<li><p>fourth, a gradual decline toward normalcy in six to nine months. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>The <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-19/social-media-shares-strawberry-recipes-after-needle-scare/10280260">“cut them up, don’t cut them out”</a> pro-strawberry campaign fits into the second stage. What we are observing now is a move into a phase of strong national consumer solidarity.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/video-michelle-grattan-on-strawberries-sudmalis-schools-and-the-au-pair-affair-103685">VIDEO: Michelle Grattan on strawberries, Sudmalis, schools, and the au pair affair</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>While strawberry growers suffered a few weeks of devastating losses, <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2018-09-21/strawberry-sales-bounce-back-consumers-support-farmers/10289856">sales have bounced back quickly</a>. In some cases people are making a concerted effort to <a href="https://www.moreechampion.com.au/story/5657013/queenslanders-turn-out-in-droves-to-support-strawberry-farmers/">buy even more strawberries</a> than they would have.</p>
<h2>An outpouring of strawberry solidarity</h2>
<p>Already searches for the recipes using strawberries have risen markedly on the popular <a href="https://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/strawberries-soar-in-popularity-despite-contaminat/3527031/">cooking website taste.com.au</a>. Social media hashtags #SmashaStrawb and #saveourstrawberries have trended. Celebrities and politicians have appeared in the media happily eating strawberries. Media outlets are hosting <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radio/brisbane/ekka-strawberry-sundae-fundraiser-for-our-farmers/10287386">special awareness and fundraising events</a>.</p>
<p>Strawberry festivals are attracting strong crowds <a href="https://thewest.com.au/news/fremantle/city-of-fremantle-to-host-strawberry-sunday-festival-to-support-growers-amid-needle-crisis-ng-b88966734z">from Fremantle</a> to <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-23/strawberry-celebration-in-time-of-crisis/10294122">Bundaberg in Queensland</a> Farmers have opened their gates to families wanting to <a href="https://thewest.com.au/business/agriculture/strawberry-needle-crisis-perths-pick-your-own-strawberry-farms-attract-huge-crowds-ng-b88969467z">pick their own fruit</a>.
This is the sort of emotional connection other primary producers can only dream about. It helps that strawberry farms are generally close to towns and cities, and that you don’t need to climb or dig to harvest the fruit. </p>
<p>Because we are creatures of habit – the reason we return so quickly to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/business/05metricstext.html">buying products after a contamination scare</a> – there is a good chance this enthusiasm for strawberries, if sustained for a few months, will translate into higher habitualised consumption in the longer term. </p>
<p>So if the intention of the original strawberry saboteur was to damage a specific strawberry grower, it is likely to prove an intensely stupid scheme. On the other hand, as a perverse act of strategic marketing it has a touch of evil genius.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103516/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>History shows the targets of product tampering bounce back, often with sales stronger than before.Gary Mortimer, Associate Professor in Marketing and International Business, Queensland University of TechnologyLouise Grimmer, Lecturer in Marketing, Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/879122017-12-11T03:00:18Z2017-12-11T03:00:18ZCan cranberries conquer the world? A US industry depends on it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197669/original/file-20171204-22989-tbwu65.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Not just for Thanksgiving and Christmas.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/MeiuPo">USDA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Name all the billion-dollar crops grown in the U.S. Midwest. The answer: Corn, soybeans and cranberries. Wait, what?</p>
<p>Roughly <a href="https://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/fruits/cranberries/">60 percent</a> of the U.S. cranberry crop is produced in Wisconsin, generating close to <a href="https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2016/08/12/wisconsin-projected-no-1-cranberries/88626578/">US$1 billion in revenue and 4,000 jobs</a>. Other <a href="https://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/fruits/cranberries/">top-producing states</a> include Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington. Overall, cranberries are <a href="http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC">almost exclusively North American</a>. Roughly 85 percent are grown in the United States and Canada, with the rest scattered across Chile, Western Europe and a few former Soviet republics.</p>
<p>But although many Americans see cranberries as a staple for Thanksgiving and Christmas, we associate them mainly with the winter holidays – unlike, say, mashed potatoes and gravy. That’s a problem for the cranberry business, which faces an uncertain future as supply wildly outstrips demand. The industry is working to boost demand for cranberry products at home and expand <a href="https://www.fas.usda.gov/data/cranberries-no-longer-just-american-tradition">new export markets in Asia and Latin America</a>.</p>
<p>I have spent close to 20 years studying farmers, food executives, eaters, tastemakers, activists and politicians, attempting to better understand, among other things, how niche, novel and/or foreign foods become commonplace over time. Many of these lessons are explained in my recent book <a href="https://islandpress.org/books/no-one-eats-alone">“No One Eats Alone: Food as a Social Enterprise</a>.” The history of food is full of tales where <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-strange-story-of-turkey-tails-speaks-volumes-about-our-globalized-food-system-86035">supply initially preceded demand</a>, proving that necessity isn’t always the mother of invention. Sometimes it works the other way.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=305&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=305&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=305&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197670/original/file-20171204-22996-bv7c5f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">To harvest cranberries, growers flood the bogs and collect the floating fruit.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/MeiuPo">MA Office of Travel and Tourism</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Boom-and-bust cycles</h2>
<p>In agriculture, short-term profits have a way of blinding players to the long game. When crop prices rise, farmers expand production, creating surpluses that push prices back down again. Cranberries are a case in point. </p>
<p>Adjusting for inflation, cranberry prices increased at a steady <a href="http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2016/04/17/ocean-spray-cranberry-business/2/">6.3 percent</a> for almost 25 years prior to the mid-1990s. In 1996 cranberries hit <a href="http://www.wamic.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Ag-Report-4.25.pdf">$65 a barrel</a>, which led to record crops and oversupply in ensuing years. By 1999 cranberry farmers were getting a paltry <a href="http://www.wamic.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Ag-Report-4.25.pdf">$17.20 per barrel</a>.</p>
<p>Reeling, the industry needed a savor. It came in the form of a dried-up sugary snack: Craisins, created by the Ocean Spray co-op, which controls <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2016/12/really-congressional-cranberry-caucus-heres/">65 percent</a> of the U.S. cranberry industry. Competitors were quick to jump on board with their own versions, more blandly branded as “dried cranberries.” Prices rose to record levels, and farms once again expanded production. By 2008 Ocean Spray was <a href="http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2016/04/17/ocean-spray-cranberry-business/3/">reportedly</a> paying growers $70 per barrel.</p>
<p>Craisins boosted profits by generating demand, but leftover cranberry juice concentrate sat orphaned in storage thanks to <a href="http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2016/04/17/ocean-spray-cranberry-business/">flat cranberry juice sales</a>. By 2015 cranberry prices had fallen to <a href="http://www.pressherald.com/2015/12/25/family-cranberry-farms-forced-to-sell-as-prices-bog-down/">$8 per barrel</a>. It takes a price of <a href="http://www.pressherald.com/2015/12/25/family-cranberry-farms-forced-to-sell-as-prices-bog-down/">$30</a> to <a href="http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2016/04/17/ocean-spray-cranberry-business/3/">$34</a> for farmers to break even.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=538&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=538&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197673/original/file-20171204-23037-1tzk2ml.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=538&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Theme and variations.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/433399858?size=medium_jpg">Shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Bogged down</h2>
<p>Unlike most Midwest crops, cranberries are perennials. Once planted, a bog can produce indefinitely. Some are <a href="http://www.wamic.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Ag-Report-4.25.pdf">over 100 years old</a>. But this also means that cranberry farmers cannot simply convert bogs to soybeans or corn in years with low cranberry prices. As one former cranberry grower from Carver, Massachusetts put it, the land <a href="https://www.yaleclimateconnections.org/2017/05/cranberry-farmer-grows-new-crop-solar-energy/">“generally isn’t good for anything else</a>.” He covered his four acres of cranberry bogs with solar arrays and now produces a megawatt of power.</p>
<p>Ocean Spray execs are hoping for another miracle, this time from a group of organic compounds called <a href="http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2016/04/17/ocean-spray-cranberry-business/3/">proanthocyanidins</a>. Those are the powerful antioxidants that, among other things, make cranberry juice so effective at treating urinary tract infections. The company is adding proanthocyanidins into low-calorie juices. It is also energetically <a href="http://www.oceanspray.coop/Blog/May-2014/Grown-in-Massachusetts-and-Exported-all-over-the-w.aspx">marketing cranberries worldwide</a>, including in countries that don’t even have a word for “cranberry.”</p>
<p>How can such a distinctively American, holiday-tied product make a break for the mainstream? Consider the story of the once-lowly soybean.</p>
<h2>From cattle feed to human staple</h2>
<p>Until the 1970s, most Americans viewed soybeans as a <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=tW6fjds6YwkC&pg=PA5&lpg=PA5&dq=%22American+perception+of+soybeans+as+a+nonfood+item%22&source=bl&ots=RQiq_l4eSN&sig=pJFIxsqdSoRXhY0p2uL5auOLUeU&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiJkYjM3NzXAhUqqVQKHZhHCW4Q6AEIKjAA#v=onepage&q=%22American%20perception%20of%20soybeans%20as%20a%20nonfood%20item%22&f=false">nonfood item</a>. The stigma was so strong that soybean oil had to be labeled <a href="http://www.latimes.com/sns-dailymeal-1755991-eat-exactly-what-vegetables-go-vegetable-oil-20170818-story.html">vegetable oil</a> because no one would buy it otherwise. </p>
<p>“It was viewed as what cows ate, not [as] people food,” an American Soybean Association representative recently told me. Today the U.S. edible soybean industry, having rebranded its product as “edamame,” is approaching <a href="http://www.todaysdietitian.com/news/exclusive0714.shtml">$5 billion</a> in annual revenues, up from $1 billion just 20 years ago.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=901&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=901&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=901&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1132&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1132&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197676/original/file-20171204-23009-1go69cz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1132&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">From cattle food to trendy snack.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/3k67k6">Protographer23</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Soybeans got their big break <a href="http://www.soyinfocenter.com/HSS/nutrition3.php">in 1971</a> when they were added to the list of commodities supported by the National School Lunch Program. A humble start as a meat extender accustomed a generation of Americans to the idea that soybeans could feed more than livestock.</p>
<p>I call this the bridging pathway, and have seen it work successfully for dozens of foods, including tofu hot dogs, edamame chips, soy burgers and cricket gumbo. The key is to incorporate new foods into existing meal patterns and dietary behaviors, rather than than trying to displace century-old practices and recipes overnight. </p>
<p>Bridges usually lead to somewhere, so this pathway implies a long game. First you get people used to the idea of eating a food by using it to extend another, more acceptable food. Then you get them to eat it straight. As my American Soybean Association contact explained to me, “Now it’s about making it normal, even cool, to eat edamame,” by getting cooked edamame into schools and into the hands and mouths of trend makers, including teen social media personalities and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_blog">vloggers</a>.</p>
<h2>A berry for all seasons</h2>
<p>Eating cranberries straight might not be on the immediate horizon. If you’ve ever tried a fresh one, you’ll know why: Pucker-tart! Now, however, they are associated almost exclusively with winter holiday dinners. There are 11 other months and two other meals in every day when we could be eating them.</p>
<p>Taking a lesson from soybeans, the cranberry industry might pursue the angle of meat filler – though I’m sure the marketing wizards that came up with “Craisins” could find a better term. As I can attest from growing up in rural Iowa, there is a powerful imperative in some parts of the United States to serve meat at every meal, or at least something that looks like meat. I have heard chefs praise cranberries’ properties as a meat extender: They add a deep red color, sweet-sour zing and moisture to <a href="https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/cranberry-beef-mini-burgers">burgers</a>. </p>
<p>If the cranberry lobby can get their product into the National School Lunch Program as a meat extender, cranberries might satisfy not only USDA “<a href="https://fns-prod.azureedge.net/sites/default/files/LAC_03-06-12_0.pdf">meat/meat alternative</a>” dietary requirements – they could also represent a serving of fruit, or more. Keep in mind that pizza with two tablespoons of tomato paste qualifies as <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/45306416/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/t/pizza-vegetable-congress-says-yes/#.Whw-bbT82qA">a vegetable</a> in the eyes of Congress. Proanthocyanidins, anyone?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87912/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Carolan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>How do foods break into new niches and global markets? US cranberry growers, saddled with large surpluses and working to boost demand for their product, could take a lesson from soybeans.Michael Carolan, Professor of Sociology and Associate Dean for Research & Graduate Affairs, College of Liberal Arts, Colorado State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/815372017-08-10T01:34:44Z2017-08-10T01:34:44ZIs the food industry conspiring to make you fat?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180766/original/file-20170802-16521-ei104i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Attempts to restructure our "obesogenic" food environment for health are often criticized - as restricting personal choice and freedom. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The scent of baked goods wafts towards you as the supermarket doors glide open. Your stomach rumbles and your mouth waters at the sight and smell of so much food. </p>
<p>Approximately <a href="https://www.fmi.org/our-research/supermarket-facts">40,000 products</a> are available in an average North American supermarket. Despite your best intentions, you succumb to the deals and offers that you don’t really need. Hey, why not get two bags of chips for the price of one? Before you know it, your shopping cart is full and that chocolate bar you grabbed at the checkout is in your mouth. </p>
<p>One bar won’t hurt, right?</p>
<p>If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. It is now widely accepted that we are living in a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-j-schultz/food-swamps-unhealthy-foo_b_4632942.html">food environment</a> that does not value health. This “<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-789X.2009.00611.x">obesogenic environment</a>” does not provide a set of rules to ensure easy and equitable access to healthy, affordable food. And evidence is mounting that some foods, particularly those high in fat, salt and sugar, are not easy to resist. </p>
<p>Food addiction actually <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep34122">shares common brain activity with alcohol addiction</a>. And these high-fat, high-sugar foods also tend to be cheap and readily available, and strongly linked with <a href="http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/diet/en/">chronic disease.</a> </p>
<p>This unhealthy food culture permeates society, something we have explored through <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dat055">research</a> at Dalhousie University. Our current food environment sets us up for healthy food choice failure. Yet when we overeat and weight gain ensues, society is there to dole out <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1049732314529667">blame and shame</a> for our “crime.”</p>
<h2>Is this entrapment?</h2>
<p>Blame and shame for unhealthy behaviours occur because obesity is often framed as an issue of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jan/13/obesity-cannot-be-controlled-through-personal-responsibility-alone">personal responsibility</a>. In this narrative, we alone are responsible for what goes into our mouths. If we gain weight, it is a result of gluttony, sloth and a lack of willpower.</p>
<p>Any attempts to restructure our food environments so they are more supportive of health are often criticized as denying <a href="http://www.macleans.ca/society/health/the-end-of-tim-hortons-on-hospital-grounds/">freedom of choice</a>. Initiatives such as taxes on sugary drinks, for example, are referred to as the actions of a “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/may/15/jamie-oliver-cnanny-state-food-children-healthy">nanny state</a>.” Food manufacturers and retailers seem particularly fond of this argument. They actively promote a belief that the global obesity crisis results primarily from lack of exercise (“energy-out”) and deliberately minimize the impact of over-eating processed foods and drinks (“<a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1368980009992898">energy-in</a>.”) </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180832/original/file-20170803-14599-7o2g1c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Maintaining a healthy weight is actually very hard in today’s ‘obesogenic’ food environment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But what if we reframe the debate over personal choice and collective responsibility by thinking of our modern food environment in the same way as the legal defence of <a href="https://nationalparalegal.edu/public_documents/courseware_asp_files/criminalLaw/defenses/Entrapment.asp">criminal entrapment</a>?</p>
<p>Criminal entrapment occurs when law enforcement sets people up to commit a crime they may not otherwise commit, then punishes them for it. A successful entrapment case requires the defendant to prove <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/1999/09/what_is_entrapment.html">three things</a>: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>The idea of committing the crime came from law enforcement officers, rather than the defendant.</p></li>
<li><p>The law enforcement officers induced the person to commit the crime, using coercive or persuasive tactics.</p></li>
<li><p>The defendant was not ready and willing to commit this type of crime before being induced to do so. </p></li>
</ol>
<h2>Food environment vs you</h2>
<p>Let’s explore what it looks like if the food industry is put into the role of law enforcement, and the defendant is you — a member of society trying to make healthy food choices. The food industry heavily markets unhealthy food products, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2009.179267">particularly to children</a>, inducing over-consumption (the crime). Unfortunately, their business model often depends on it. </p>
<p>Food marketing frequently uses persuasive tactics to tempt you to eat (and overeat) their products. Examples include <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2012.01.013">supersizing, meal deals, buy-one-get-one-free offers and priority product placement</a>. </p>
<p>You find yourself in an environment that undermines healthy eating, and instead pushes energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods. These are cheap to buy, heavily promoted and, let’s face it, often very tasty. The food industry has spent a great deal of money working out what pushes your buttons when it comes to flavour and taste. </p>
<p>Faced with all this temptation, you duly commit the crime of over-consumption (the trap), often unaware of the environmental cues and manipulations to which you have been exposed. In this example, all three components outlined above are present:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The idea of committing the “crime” of over-consumption came from the food industry, rather than you.</p></li>
<li><p>The food industry induced you to commit the crime of over-consumption using persuasive tactics.</p></li>
<li><p>As you tried to make healthy food choices, you weren’t ready and willing to commit this crime before being induced to do so. </p></li>
</ol>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180773/original/file-20170802-16521-1iu1qfr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Children are heavily targeted by, and especially vulnerable to, the marketing tactics of the food industry.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Let’s reframe the food debate</h2>
<p>Of course, not everyone is going to fall victim to this “environmental entrapment.” But we have enough evidence to know that — while people are aware of the dangers of over-consuming energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods — healthy eating is not easy. Our modern food environment is not reflective of <a href="http://www.wcrf.org/int/research-we-fund/our-cancer-prevention-recommendations">current recommendations</a> for good health, or for protecting ourselves against diseases such as cancer. Nor is it supportive of health within populations that are most at risk, like children or those experiencing <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1368980014001414">food insecurity</a>. </p>
<p>Can reframing the issue around environmental entrapment help to mobilize public support for healthier food environments? </p>
<p>If nothing else, it may start a conversation about the quality of our food supply, and the tactics that the food industry uses to undermine our abilities to eat in ways that lessen the burden of chronic diseases.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81537/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sara FL Kirk receives funding from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, the Lawson Foundation, the Max Bell Foundation and the Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation. She is also a board member of Canada Bikes, a not-for-profit that promotes everyday cycling in Canada. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jessie-Lee McIsaac receives funding from the Canadian Cancer Society (grant # 703878).</span></em></p>Bombarded with unhealthy offerings by the food industry, we blame and shame ourselves for gaining weight. But is it really our fault, or are we being “entrapped?”Sara F.L. Kirk, Professor of Health Promotion, Dalhousie UniversityJessie-Lee McIsaac, Postdoctoral fellow, Dalhousie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/712422017-01-13T16:54:29Z2017-01-13T16:54:29ZStruggling to stay healthy in 2017? Bad marketing could be to blame<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152659/original/image-20170113-11172-1ux21kn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Marketing can lead you astray.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">1000 Words / Shutterstock, Inc.</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Are you trying to lose the weight that you put on over the holiday period? You may have already been bombarded with articles on <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/07/why-willpower-matters">willpower</a>, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/wellbeing/fitness/starting-new-year-fitness-routine-not-fall-wagon/">exercise regimes</a> and <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/best-cookbooks-2016-diana-henry/best-new-diets-2017/">dieting</a> to help shift those extra pounds. </p>
<p>A big problem you’re likely facing, however, is simply the struggle to estimate the amount of food you are actually eating. Here, you’re not alone. Calorie under-reporting is commonplace, as <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-our-fault-if-we-eat-too-many-calories-63730">most people</a> have tremendous difficulty keeping track of exactly what they eat and what constitutes a healthy amount in relation to how much they exercise.</p>
<p>There are a number of forces working against us. Even after the holidays, food is everywhere and there are deals to be had on the chocolates, cakes and other festive goodies not sold in December. The presence of so much tempting food at every turn has been dubbed the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10600438">obesogenic environment</a> by scientists. It refers to the constant temptation we face to buy and eat more – a fertile environment for rising obesity. And it is also made worse by surroundings that don’t encourage activity, such as the presence of lifts and escalators. </p>
<p>People typically make their decisions about what to buy in supermarkets very quickly, which may mean that they do not fully comprehend what they are buying, its calorific content <a href="http://journal.sjdm.org/11/10420a/jdm10420a.pdf">and nutritional value</a>. When people do their supermarket shopping they are regularly evaluating thousands of products on a range of criteria in a very short time. Rushed in-store decisions often lead to people buying more than they want or need – it’s so commonplace that researchers have a term for it: <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9329770">passive consumption</a>.</p>
<h2>Mixed messaging</h2>
<p>If decision-making in this obesogenic environment is such a problem, perhaps manufacturers and retailers could help in the way that they market and package their food? We should be so lucky – my colleague Veronica Gee and I recently studied the way food is presented to us in supermarkets and online, and <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296316306725">found the opposite</a>.</p>
<p>We looked at products (cereals, cereal bars and yogurts) from three leading UK retailers and examined how information about nutrition, calories and portion sizes were communicated online and in-store. We also examined the product images and words used on packaging. </p>
<p>What we found was a huge range in terms of the amount of information supplied, the type of information and inconsistencies between the suggested portion sizes and how the products were presented. At best this is confusing, at worst it is misleading for consumers. </p>
<p>For example, breakfast cereals commonly have a 30g recommended portion size but this does not correspond to the imagery on most packs. Typically, breakfast cereals are displayed showing full bowls. We tested the recommended portion size against a range of currently available cereal bowls and found that to fill the bowls in the manner displayed, the portion size would have to double alongside the addition of milk, thereby doubling the number of calories involved.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152657/original/image-20170113-11207-romomj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Double the daily allowance?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock.com</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>With cereal bars, the problem is that they are often packaged in twos or threes. Ostensibly this is for sharing – although, again, research shows that what often happens is that these bars are regularly consumed by the same person <a href="http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/20097241">within the same day</a>. </p>
<p>Packs of all these food items include extensive promotional messaging, which can often be misleading. A key element is images of healthy ingredients (such as fruit or oats) and no reference to the more unhealthy elements (such as sugar). We frequently found this to be the case on products with poor nutrition ratings such as figs on breakfast biscuits and strawberries on children’s yogurts. </p>
<p>Messaging can be confusing too. One product in our sample with a poor nutritional profile included the health message: “Helps build strong bones” on the front of the packet and a yogurt had the message: “Healthier lunchbox” on the front, despite having fat, saturated fat and fairly high sugar levels. So the messaging can make people think they can consume more, even if it’s not that healthy for them.</p>
<p>So those trying their best to stick to a January health kick have a tough job on their hands, even when they’re focused on buying what look like healthy options. Is government regulation the answer? For some this feels like a step too far into the “nanny state”. </p>
<p>But, in light of the evidence of companies playing on people’s inability to see through their misleading marketing techniques, it’s potentially time to stop over-stressing individual responsibility. It is certainly worth governments considering regulation against confusing messages from marketers – in the same way that advertisers can no longer airbrush ads that <a href="https://www.asa.org.uk/News-resources/Hot-Topics/Health-and-beauty.aspx#.WHe33lWLS00">could be misleading or potentially harmful</a>. These are complex issues that most humans need help with and regulation has a role to stop businesses taking advantage in the pursuit of profit.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/71242/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Isabelle Szmigin does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New research shows how marketers get away with making their food look and sound healthier than it really is.Isabelle Szmigin, Professor of Marketing, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/674612016-10-28T01:18:27Z2016-10-28T01:18:27Z‘Healthy’ fast food chains not living up to their claims<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/142619/original/image-20161021-1796-1vasr7d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">So-called 'healthier' fast food chains are misleading consumers with claims their foods are lower in salt, sugar and fat than their traditional fast food counterparts. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com.au</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Each month, 11.5 million Australians consume <a href="http://emma.com.au/emma-out-of-home-dining-report-2/#.V_8Ovfl95pg">fast food</a>. Alongside traditional burger, fried chicken and pizza chains, new chains are positioning themselves as healthier alternatives to the typical, energy-, saturated fat-, sugar- and salt-laden meals on offer at traditional chains.</p>
<p>We know the fast food environment influences our food choices. Promotions and marketing on labels and websites influence our decisions about the foods we buy. Many chains are now using claims about nutrient content and health benefits on their websites to create a marketing edge and perhaps make us feel less guilty about our next fast food purchase.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Series/F2015L00394">Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code</a> defines nutrition content claims as those that state the presence or absence of a nutrient, for example, “contains calcium”. Foods with these claims must meet the minimum (or maximum) quantities for the nutrient in the claim, called the qualifying criteria. </p>
<p>Health claims are those that relate to a food-health relationship, such as “contains calcium for healthy bones”. In addition to containing the minimum/maximum quantities of the nutrient, foods carrying these claims must also meet the <a href="http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/industry/labelling/pages/nutrientprofilingcalculator/Default.aspx">Nutrient Profiling Scoring Criteria</a>, meaning they are healthier foods based on their energy, saturated fat, sugars, sodium, protein, fibre and fruit, vegetable, nut and legume content.</p>
<p>Previously, there has been close scrutiny of grocery foods carrying these sorts of claims, and whether they comply with the requirements of the code. However, any food sold in Australia is subject to this code, and there has been no scrutiny of the claims being made by fast food outlets.</p>
<p>We noticed fast food chains were increasingly using claims on their websites, and <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/public-health-nutrition/article/parents-responses-to-nutrient-claims-and-sports-celebrity-endorsements-on-energy-dense-and-nutrient-poor-foods-an-experimental-study/D33CDABA0E172EFB22DC5B64EE8B3F4D">given how influential</a> claims are on food choice, we decided to investigate these claims being made by chains.</p>
<h2>How honest are fast food chains in their claims?</h2>
<p>In 2015, <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/public-health-nutrition/article/health-and-nutrition-content-claims-on-australian-fast-food-websites/D4DB7F7FA4E99FB40DBF51653EC50AC5">we assessed the claims</a> fast food chains were making on their websites to promote the nutritional value of their foods. </p>
<p>We found more than 40% of menu items being marketed using claims may not have complied with the requirements of the code. These foods did not meet the qualifying criteria set out in the code, meaning consumers could believe these foods are healthier than they actually are.</p>
<p>The chains that fared worst in our study were those positioning themselves as “healthier” – such as a popular juice chain and a popular salad chain (the authors have chosen not to publish the names of the chains). </p>
<p>For example, a Chipotle Pulled Pork Wrap from the salad chain claimed to be low in energy and salt, despite containing more than four times the permitted amount of energy and sodium per 100g. </p>
<p>This product has a similar amount of energy per serve (2051kJ) as a Big Mac (2060kJ), and contained a whopping 1552mg sodium per serve - two-thirds of an adult’s upper daily sodium intake.</p>
<p>Another example is Green Tea Mango Mantra from the juice chain, that supposedly has immunity-boosting powers, despite not meeting the requirements of the Nutrient Profiling Scoring Criteria and containing between 68-91g sugars per serve – that’s 17-23 teaspoons.</p>
<p>These sorts of claims lull us into a false sense of security that we’re choosing a healthier fast food. Eat these foods too often, and you’ll probably be consuming more kilojoules, fats, and sugars, which could contribute to weight gain.</p>
<p>But it’s not all bad news. Since the study was conducted, several of the offending chains have removed claims that may not have complied. This is because the study was conducted during the phase-in period of the standard on nutrition content and health claims, with this standard becoming mandatory on 18th January 2016. So it’s working to a degree, but many remaining claims still may not comply.</p>
<p>With the “eating-to-go” habit here to stay, healthier fast food chains have an important role to play in ensuring healthy food options are available. They also have a responsibility to ensure the correct nutritional information accompanies them. </p>
<p>The study highlights the need for closer monitoring and enforcement of the Food Standards Code by the state food agencies. Whether fast food chains are deliberately flaunting the code, or have not been adequately educated on the use of claims and the requirements for making them is hard to say.</p>
<p>Regardless, stronger enforcement will ensure customers are able to make healthier fast food choices. In the meantime, relying on the claims is not a good way of making these choices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67461/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lyndal Wellard's PhD is funded by an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kathy Chapman has received funding from Ministry of Health, Cancer Institute NSW and been a partner investigator on ARC linkage Grant and NHMRC Partnership Grants</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Margaret Allman-Farinelli receives funding from The Australian Research Council, Cancer Council NSW, Meat and Livestock Australia. </span></em></p>With the “eating-to-go” habit here to stay, healthier fast food chains have an important role to play in ensuring healthy food options are available.Lyndal Wellard-Cole, PhD Student in Nutrition and Dietetics and Senior Nutrition Project Officer at Cancer Council NSW, University of SydneyKathy Chapman, Director of Cancer Programs, Cancer Council NSW; PhD Candidate in Nutrition & Dietetics, University of SydneyMargaret Allman-Farinelli, Associate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.