http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...citrus_low_carb

Citrus Ads Seek to Counter Carb Stigma
Wed Mar 10, 5:10 PM ET Add Health - AP to My Yahoo!


By MIKE SCHNEIDER, AP Business Writer

ORLANDO, Fla. - Citrus growers trying to win over low-carb dieters are pinning their hopes on a kitchen blender.

The Florida Citrus Commission approved a television commercial Wednesday that will stress the health benefits of orange juice, taking on the low-carb diets that discourage its consumption because of its high sugar content.

The commercial will show a man feeding a kitchen blender rutabagas, liver, okra, brussels sprouts, a banana and four oysters as he explains that those are the foods a person would need to consume to get the equivalent vitamins and minerals found in a glass of orange juice.

The ad was chosen after focus groups rejected earlier ads that mocked low-carb diets like the Atkins diet, which advocates eating meats and cheeses over high carbohydrate foods such as orange juice, pasta and bread.

One proposed ad, called "Grease," showed a man pouring fat from a skillet into a glass. He then poured orange juice into another glass. Holding up the glass of grease and then the glass of orange juice, he said, "Some people think this is healthy, while this is not."

Orange juice consumption has decreased 5 percent in the last three years, from a high of 888 million gallons during the 2000-2001 growing season to an expected 844 million gallons for the current season.

The Florida Department of Citrus hopes to get the new ad on the air by mid-April and has committed to purchasing $4.8 million of air time through June on ABC, NBC and cable television channels.
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On the Net:

Florida Department of Citrus: http://www.floridajuice.com