Healthy junk food for the masses... what a concept! Frito-Lay has decided to launch healthier snacks, either because it's the right thing to do as the general populace packs on the pounds, or because of pressure.


Pressure from consumers who are demanding healthier choices, pressure from competitors who have made inroads into the snack market. Or maybe, the impetus was a combination of all of these factors. Regardless, Frito-Lay recently launched its Flat Earth line of baked fruit and vegetable crisps. Terra Chips anyone?
Based on an article that Newsweek and MSNBC published online recently, Frito-Lay Tries to Take Junk Out of Junk Food, the company may have decided on this tactic to outmaneuver its competition in the snack industry, eliminating trans-fats in 2002.
Of course, many other snack and confection companies have done the same since then. Frito-Lay seems to have determined that it had to create a healthier image than its competitors, so what to do next?
After the company removed trans-fats from its chip products, why not remove saturated fats, since the latter are increasingly linked to heart disease? Yet, this was no small feat. Several years, and millions of dollars later, Frito-Lay has developed adequate sources of sunflower oil, converting its snack production over about a year ago. Sunflower oil is high in linoleic acid, a healthy, unsaturated fatty acid. Great!
With that accomplished, why not elbow into the natural product industry's market and focus on whole grains, baked vs deep-fried snacks and the addition of fruit and vegetable-based chips?
The most interesting aspect of this progression of events: there is no doubt that many veteran snackers could care less about fats and other potentially harmful ingredients. The primary focus for these folks is taste. Frito-Lay has had to walk a fine line here. How to please the critics who have given them a lot of flak for their contribution to the growing obesity epidemic and how to make healthier foods for the general public without alienating its core customer base. . .who insist on flavor above all else?
Questions:
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Do you think Frito-Lay has done a good job in making better-for-you snacks?
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Do you think the company has done a good job in marketing their healthier-come-lately choices?
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Do you think Frito-Lay has given in to consumer demand for healthier foods, even though its core audience is not as health-conscious, or are they more concerned about one-upping their competition?
We'd like to hear from you.