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Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

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Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#21

Post by petercooper »

blintson wrote: post #16

This "rebranding" is obnoxious. If I was kid I'd be pissed. Kids can tell when you're bs'ing them. They're exposed to enough propaganda already. The path to healthy food isn't in telling kids what to do, but exposing them to something better. Look at what Japanese kids eat. I _know_ kids would prefer salmon-roe onigiri and fried rice to potato chips and twinkies.

Is Japan a good example? If any country is second to the USA in packaging products to appeal to kids (or, as you put it, "BSing them"), it's Japan:

http://japanfix.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/DSC_0019.jpg http://s7.thisnext.com/media/largest_dimension/23448865.jpg

(I think this is a good thing if, and only if, the food is healthy and worthwhile to eat - as here. It's easy to rail against branding and advertising - it's harder to prove it doesn't work.)

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#22

Post by petercooper »

muyyatin wrote: post #6

Nice, but it may be more effective to limit advertising of unhealthy food during cartoons and shows targeted directly at children.

I believe this has been law here in the UK for some years but the childhood obesity rates are still high. The problem is that the most convenient food in terms of both price and preparation time is the least healthy.

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#23

Post by kentosi »

megablast wrote: post #18
catone wrote: post #3

Brilliant! And fitting, since baby carrots are already the sort of "junk food of the carrot world." At least, insofar as that they're the lazy alternative to buying and cutting your own damn carrots. (Baby carrots are just big carrots that have been pre-cut and marked way up. Info here: http://www.wisebread.com/baby-carrots-the-frugal-idea-that-i... ... which also brings to mind the semi-related issue of America's av…

This aversion to ugly fruit and veg invaded UK and Australia year ago as well. So now, when you go to a supermarket, you will have beautiful tastless food, whereas when you go to Spain or Italy, you have ugly delicious fruit and veg.

I totally agree. I live in Australia, and I didn't realise this until I went to India a little while ago.

The fruit there seemed smaller, but far, FAR more tastier.

So it's not just the looks, but also the size that seems to matter in Australian supermarkets.

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#24

Post by ashu »

devonrt wrote: post #5
StavrosK wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While I agree with you, I notice that I eat disproportionately few carrots than their taste would suggest (they are pretty delicious), and it's mostly because of the inconvenience of cleaning them and their relative unavailability. If I had a vending machine with carrots, I'd definitely choose them over the other snacks most of the time.

Is it really that inconvenient to clean a carrot? Just peel it and eat it. I can peel a carrot quicker than most people can even decide what to have at a vending machine.

You don't need to peel carrots, really. They are nice to eat just like they are!

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#25

Post by neild »

petercooper wrote: post #21
blintson wrote: post #16

This "rebranding" is obnoxious. If I was kid I'd be pissed. Kids can tell when you're bs'ing them. They're exposed to enough propaganda already. The path to healthy food isn't in telling kids what to do, but exposing them to something better. Look at what Japanese kids eat. I _know_ kids would prefer salmon-roe onigiri and fried rice to potato chips and twinkies.

Is Japan a good example? If any country is second to the USA in packaging products to appeal to kids (or, as you put it, "BSing them"), it's Japan: http://japanfix.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/DSC_0019.jpg http://s7.thisnext.com/media/largest_dimension/23448865.jpg (I think this is a good thing if, and only if, the food is healthy and worthwhile to eat - as here. It's easy to rail against branding and advertising -…

The first of your links isn't sushi, by the way. It's a kit for making grape-flavored candy in the shape of sushi.

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#26

Post by blintson »

petercooper wrote: post #21
blintson wrote: post #16

This "rebranding" is obnoxious. If I was kid I'd be pissed. Kids can tell when you're bs'ing them. They're exposed to enough propaganda already. The path to healthy food isn't in telling kids what to do, but exposing them to something better. Look at what Japanese kids eat. I _know_ kids would prefer salmon-roe onigiri and fried rice to potato chips and twinkies.

Is Japan a good example? If any country is second to the USA in packaging products to appeal to kids (or, as you put it, "BSing them"), it's Japan: http://japanfix.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/DSC_0019.jpg http://s7.thisnext.com/media/largest_dimension/23448865.jpg (I think this is a good thing if, and only if, the food is healthy and worthwhile to eat - as here. It's easy to rail against branding and advertising -…

Yes. Yes it is. Just because they have lots of fancy candy packaging doesn't mean that Japanese kids eat tons of it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidemiology_of_obesity#Japan

Just look at photos of what the Jap kids eat for lunch:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lunchinabox/1378172475/

This is actually what they eat for lunch everyday. It's amazing.

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#27

Post by petercooper »

blintson wrote: post #26
petercooper wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is Japan a good example? If any country is second to the USA in packaging products to appeal to kids (or, as you put it, "BSing them"), it's Japan: http://japanfix.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/DSC_0019.jpg http://s7.thisnext.com/media/largest_dimension/23448865.jpg (I think this is a good thing if, and only if, the food is healthy and worthwhile to eat - as here. It's easy to rail against branding and advertising -…

Yes. Yes it is. Just because they have lots of fancy candy packaging doesn't mean that Japanese kids eat tons of it. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidemiology_of_obesity#Japan Just look at photos of what the Jap kids eat for lunch: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lunchinabox/1378172475/ This is actually what they eat for lunch everyday. It's amazing.

I think I misunderstood your message. What Japanese kids eat seems to be excellent and I support healthy food choices. What I sensed, however, was an unfair antagonism towards branding and packaging design as a way to achieve that. If my inference was wrong, apologies!

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#28

Post by petercooper »

neild wrote: post #25
petercooper wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is Japan a good example? If any country is second to the USA in packaging products to appeal to kids (or, as you put it, "BSing them"), it's Japan: http://japanfix.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/DSC_0019.jpg http://s7.thisnext.com/media/largest_dimension/23448865.jpg (I think this is a good thing if, and only if, the food is healthy and worthwhile to eat - as here. It's easy to rail against branding and advertising -…

The first of your links isn't sushi, by the way. It's a kit for making grape-flavored candy in the shape of sushi.

I learn something new every day - thanks! If I were going to be evil and do a ninja edit, I could pick any of 100s of weird, in-your-face Japanese products, but it appears I have been hoisted by my own petard on this one.

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#29

Post by yummyfajitas »

ars wrote: post #7

If carrots actually tasted like they were supposed to, sweet and carroty, it wouldn't be so hard to get kids to eat them. Especially baby carrots, which are the junk of the carrot world, do not taste good.

Why do baby carrots taste different from regular carrots? I thought they were regular carrots, just pre-peeled/cut.

Re: Rebranding Carrots as Junk Food

#30

Post by chadmalik »

megablast wrote: post #18
catone wrote: post #3

Brilliant! And fitting, since baby carrots are already the sort of "junk food of the carrot world." At least, insofar as that they're the lazy alternative to buying and cutting your own damn carrots. (Baby carrots are just big carrots that have been pre-cut and marked way up. Info here: http://www.wisebread.com/baby-carrots-the-frugal-idea-that-i... ... which also brings to mind the semi-related issue of America's av…

This aversion to ugly fruit and veg invaded UK and Australia year ago as well. So now, when you go to a supermarket, you will have beautiful tastless food, whereas when you go to Spain or Italy, you have ugly delicious fruit and veg.

We're ridiculous sometimes. I was at the farmers market and wanted some strawberries. I noticed none at the stand but the vendor had some stacked on a table behind her. Why weren't those being sold? She said she'd forgot to wash them off and customers don't like fruit with dirt on it.
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