Is the low-carb backlash
beginning?
Some foodmakers say moderate will replace extreme in diets
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona (Reuters) --U.S. foodmakers are scrambling to satisfy
consumer clamorings for low-carbohydrate products but also see a move toward more
balanced eating that could spell doom for the strictest low-carb diets, like Atkins.
At an industry conference last week in Scottsdale, Arizona, companies
including Kellogg Co. and Hershey Foods Corp. touted products such as
low-carb cereals and chocolate bars catering to the millions of Americans
following diets that eschew carbohydrates like bread, sugar and pasta in favor
of high-protein foods and those made with sugar alternatives.
But even as they push these new products, companies which have been hurt by
the backlash against carbohydrates expect consumers will soon back off the
more extreme low-carb diets due to growing concerns about their intake of
artery-clogging fat and cholesterol.
Recent studies have put the number of Americans following low-carb diets at
anywhere from 10 million to 24 million.
"Everything in moderation is ultimately where all these things lead to," said
Douglas Conant, chief executive of Campbell Soup Co. "These diets become
fad-like and take on lives of their own ... and typically they are not sustainable."
The Atkins diet, which tells followers they may eat liberal amounts of bacon,
eggs, cream and other high-fat products, is widely considered to be the most
extreme low-carb diet.
Controversy surrounding the Atkins diet intensified after reports alleging that the
diet's creator Dr. Robert Atkins had a heart condition and was overweight at
the time of death.
But Dr. Stuart Trager, chairman of the Atkins Physicians' Council, said Atkins'
heart condition was not related to his diet. In addition, the doctor weighed 195
pounds only a week before his death, Trager said, calling the suggestion that
Atkins was obese a "misrepresentation."
Still, food executives said the negative reports have started to raise some
concerns.
"You are beginning to see a bit of the wheels coming off the cart right now
already on this whole Atkins diet," Irwin Simon, chief executive of organic
foods maker Hain Celestial Group Inc., said in an interview. "No carbs, high fat
-- there are going to be some big challenges."
Simon added that he follows his own low-carb -- but also low-fat -- diet,
staying away from red meat as well as bread and pasta.
Reports raise eyebrows
The negative reports about Atkins, which prompted a flurry of headlines across
the globe labeling him "Dr. Fatkins," come on top of numerous public attacks
by low-fat diet gurus such as Dr. Dean Ornish and nutrition advocacy groups.
Late last year, the vegetarian group Physician's Committee for Responsible
Medicine created buzz by saying the Atkins diet could lead to heart disease and
may have contributed to the death of one teen-age dieter.
"You're beginning to see some publications and some articles about taking these
diets to an extreme," Kellogg Chairman and CEO Carlos Gutierrez told
reporters at the conference. "All these small events, whether it's somebody on
the news or whether it's a magazine article, they chip away at the diet."
Kellogg is addressing concerns about the strictest low-carb diets in a new
television commercial for its Morningstar Farms vegetarian burgers and patties,
which the company says are naturally low in carbs. In the commercial, a voice
questions whether low-carb diets are being taken too far, while a woman is
overheard ordering veal chops, ribs, buffalo wings and a burger without the
bun.
"It addresses that there is a lot of confusion out there," Gutierrez said of the ad.
"What we're trying to say is that we know the whole thing seems a bit
ridiculous. Here's something you can try."
Cereal-maker Kellogg is not the only company that is hoping to inject a dose of
moderation into the low-carb craze.
Hershey CEO Richard Lenny, for one, said the candy company has teamed up
with Dr. Barry Sears, an advocate of the popular Zone diet, to make a line of
nutrition bars that Lenny said follow the principles of balanced nutrition.
"As most fads go, something converges back to the center, which is one of the
reasons we have this alliance," Lenny said in an interview.
Another big food company, ketchup maker H.J. Heinz Co. , stressed that its
new "Truth About Carbs" line of Smart Ones frozen entrees, which are being
co-marketed with Weight Watchers International Inc., are aimed at dieters who
are interested in balanced eating.
"It hits people who are interested in low carb, it hits people who are interested
in caloric intake, and it hits people who just want to feel better about
themselves," said Heinz CEO William Johnson.
"We present a balanced approach to this instead of a one-sided, overly
aggressive approach to try to deal with a trend that may or may not last and
may or may not change over time."
http://www.cnn.com/2004/HEALTH/diet...reut/index.html
Seems like they are having an awful lot of meetings about Atkins
Alli