Kellogg Will Start Adding Fiber To Most Of Its Breakfast Cereals
Kellogg has announced that it's going to start adding fiber to about 80% of its cereal product line, beginning with Froot Loops and Apple Jacks in August and continuing into other brands through the end of 2010. The goal is to bump up the fiber per serving to 3 grams, which is the amount the government requires to label a food a good source of fiber for kids.
Of course, the cereals will also remain a good source of sugar—adding fiber won't change the rest of the nutritional package, so be sure to read the nutrition label and not just the "now with Fiber!" badge plastered on the front of the box.
Fearing a clampdown by the Obama administration, "Companies that make highly processed foods are looking for ways to make them look less processed," adds Tom Vierhile, director of Datamonitor's Product Launch Analytics. "Besides, consumers perceive more fiber as good for you."
Adding fiber alone won't make a product better, says Michael Jacobson, director of the consumer group, Center for Science in the Public Interest. "You can gussie up any product by adding fiber and vitamins," he says, but says what consumers need to check for are added sugars, sodium and dyes.
Still, we think John Harvey Kellogg would be proud to see that nearly all of the breakfast cereals produced by his brother's company will soon be as concerned about bowel movements as he was.
"Kellogg adds fiber, hoping to bowl cereal consumers over" [USA Today]
(Toilet photo: mararie)
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What type of fiber?
Wood Fiber, Fiber Glass, Fiber Optics?
I won't eat cereal with less than 7 grams. Maybe someone can rig me up some super fiber cinnamon toast crunch?
If you want some fiber, I would recommend Kashi cereal.
This is probably the same processed fiber that goes in Fiber One. It won't make you more regular and doesn't have the same good properties that real whole grains like oats have. Then again, if you're eating something that has 20+ ingredients I guess it doesn't really matter anyways.
Will they all become drugs, like Cheerios?
A problem with this scenario is the fiber they add will be in powdered form, i.e. dust, and not actual grain fibers which might do you some good.
They really should put a picture of a toilet on the boxes.
@MooseOfReason: Or start selling a high-fiber cereal, shaped into small toilets, with the chocolate taste the kids love.
That's a million-dollar idea right there.
@edwardso: Frosted Mini Wheats is the closest - my typical morning breakfast. CR loves them because they have more fiber than almost all other cereals, and hates them because they have about as much sugar as Frosted Flakes etc.
I like Froot Loops, but I like to be regular too, Thank you Kellogg!
Quote:
"Companies that make highly processed foods are looking for ways to make them look less processed," adds Tom Vierhile
So we're going to make a processed food look less processed by adding more processing?
grrr.... now more food i can't eat. i know, it's just a few of us that have to be on low fiber diets. but damn it, i use apple jacks as a source of sugar when i go hypoglycemic. and now i can't. their intended amount of fiber makes apple jacks match cheerios - which make me very very sick.
i get that they want to appease the majority. but wouldn't it be nice if people could just be trusted to make reasonable decisions for themselves and their children without the corporate entities forcing us into what they think of as the appropriate mold to meet their sales needs?
Yeah, "fiber". They're adding fiber from 50 pound bags of industrial fiber. Whoopee.
This is total BS. I think they're going to use fake fiber, or polydextrose. I don't know why, but the FDA started letting manufacturers use this in a lot more foods & let them call it 'fiber' and though it might technically be a fiber, I don't think it's what the average person thinks of when they are considering the benefits of a fiber-rich diet. It's not proven to have the same benefits, and though it may be useful for some things - like making the food taste more filling - is it going to do what you expect from fiber? (lower cholesterol, prevent colon cancer, etc) No.
So not only are they trying to have it both ways by making sugary cereal that's also 'high fiber', it's probably going to be a useless fiber. So zero health benefits - just lots of marketing notions.
Polydextrose and inulin and a few other substances might technically fit the definition of fiber, but I think any company that uses them for a 'high fiber!' claim is being disingenuous. Having components of fiber does not make you a high fiber food.
Also, if I understand things correctly, the relatively new FDA decisions on inulin and polydextrose are why there are so many 'high fiber' dairy products, breakfast bars, etc. It really bugs me, since real fiber is very important, and people are going to think if they eat enough ice cream (or fruit loops), they'll be fine.
@rpm773: I was going to say the same. Who needs to breathe it in? I'd rather have intestinal cancer than lung!
@catastrophegirl - manic first time home buyer: Not cool. Maybe stock up? Or I know at my grocery store there is a knockoff brand that I think tastes just as good, maybe the fiber in that will remain the same?
Kudos to Chris for linking the John Harvey Kellogg bio, showing that it was only a few chromosomes that made Kellogs into a company that manufactures breakfast cereal, instead of one that administers yogurt enemas and attempts to cure female masturbation tendencies.
Serious answer: probably polydextrose, which may or may not have the benefits of natural fiber. Slate did a story on this: [www.slate.com]
You know, you could get the same amount of fiber by simply eating the box after you're done eating the cereal. And it would also save space in landfills.
Colon blow and you in the morning.
Life cereal is greater than everything.
An article published in Nutrition Research earlier this year found that fiber from polydextrose did not have the same effect as corn bran and resistant starch. They were pretty direct in their conclusion. I'm convinced that companies are just "herding the sheep" and giving in to the consumer demands, even if does nothing for you. Gatorade just started to add fiber to its Propel water. Now why the hell would I want to retain water in my stomach if I'm working out??
@edwardso: Fiber One makes a Caramel Delight cereal that is pretty close to Cinnamon Toast Crunch, of course Caramel flavored. Texture is the same. 9g of fiber.
Just what I need, more poop-inducing food, like I don't already poop enough...
Chris, that picture is full of win.
@Crabby Cakes: Every once in a while Flickr produces the perfect photo element--like a toilet with a kid-friendly lime green seat.
Interestingly (as someone who eats a LOT of cereal), the supposedly "sugary" cereals tend to have LESS sugar than the seemingly healthy ones. Raisin Bran, for instance, has much more sugar than Cocoa Pebbles. Look at the sugar gram info for Raisin Bran Crunch, you will never eat it again. Mainline some Lucky Charms instead. Always check the nutritional information, don't make assumptions.
More fiber is great ... but what about reducing the boat load of processed sugars ?