Have you ever done it? Open a bag of potato chips while reading a book and chomp your way through the whole package until the last chip is gone? Oops…Maybe a few chips too many??In the comment section of my blog entry, “Smaller portions of food,” posted last Sunday, reader Cindy commented about certain foods being produced with a goal of getting the consumer to mindlessly eat their way through the snack.
I asked Cindy for some background information and she supplied the following quote from the text “Strategic Management Concepts and Cases,” by Thompson and Strickland. It’s from a case study of PepsiCo's Acquisition of Quaker Oats in the section that talks about the acquisition of Cracker Jack.
I think you’ll be interested in reading the quote:
A Frito-Lay executive who championed the acquisition discussed the additional appeal of Cracker Jack: "We were missing out on 50 percent of the snacking opportunity because when people snack, they first decide whether to go for a salty treat or a sweet one." The executive also commented that the product met Frito-Lay's "mindlessly nibbling test" since "once you open the bag, you just keep eating them until they're gone."
Isn’t there an ad on the market right now for some snack about not being able to put the bag down until the last item is gone...?
For one who used to fight being overweight and tried not to eat until the last one was gone, I never could see the attraction behind such ads. I’ve since conquered that temptation with finding more spiritual contentment.
One lesson from the above is remembering that we have to think for ourselves in this world of advertising barrage and consumer driven marketing. We have to spiritually counter a mindless nibbling mentality that would lead us to “eat the whole thing” when we don’t need the empty calories.
In an effort to make wise decisions over gluttonous choices we can rejoice in knowing there is one Mind, the divine Mind, to guide and govern our eating behaviors.
We are not mindless robots programmed to err and overindulge. We are thinking beings designed to express the intelligence, wisdom and balance of God.
Soooo, mindless nibbling, be gone!
3 comments:
Along those same lines as marketing and consumer spending, other strategies are being used to get consumers to spend more money needlessly. For instance, toothpaste tubes have increased the size of their openings, hoping we will use more toothpaste than is really necessary. Ever see an advertisement with enough toothpaste on the brush to satisfy practically a whole week's worth of brushing?! What a waste of money! And they do that with other products, as well. Let's not let them get the better of us. We'll let God control our lives, not the mega-industries. Consumers beware!
I was just complaining this week to myself over a new brand of toothpaste my wife bought for the family. The toothpaste came out in large quantities, and night after night I told myself, "You have way too much toothpaste here!" But I couldn't figure out what was different. Now I know. The hole in the tube is bigger. I'll have to squeeze less from now on. :)
Your comments are most important in this area where I have struggled.
I am getting there.
BG
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