We’re all stupid.
At least that’s what advertisers must think of us. I picked up a packet in the supermarket labelled “organic” in huge letters on the front, a quick check on the back and the amount of certified organic ingredients? Zero.
Or a jar with ‘No Added Sugar’, check the ingredients list, second ingredient by volume? Sugar. A manufacturer can buy some components of his product already made and loaded with sugar and put them in the jar, as long as he doesn’t add more sugar himself he’s sweet.
Pardon the pun. ‘Added vitamins’ is a good one. You could go around to some factories, buy their nutritionless leftovers for a couple of cents a tonne, add a truckload of sugar and salt to taste.
Then drop a couple of mg of cheap synthetic Vitamin C or iron in it and it magically transforms to a health food! They say you can’t make chicken salad out of chicken poo, but I guess there are some companies that are going to try. Actual product content seems a non issue.
The most important part is getting the buzz word on the packet. What about the Nurofen tablets especially for ‘back pain’ that contain 200mg ibuprofen? Don’t confuse them with the ‘tension headache’ tablet! They contain 200mg ibuprofen. And guess what’s in the tablet with a big “targets period pain”? Yep, 200mg ibuprofen.
Extra Calcium, low cholesterol, all natural, squeezed daily… I even saw a packet of dog biscuits labelled ‘Lite’. What the? Heres a crazy thought, how about just putting a few less bikkies in Rover’s bowl?
There must be an epidemic of hugely obese wild dogs running around the outback because they can’t source a good supply of ‘low fat’ road kill.
You wouldn’t buy a house without looking at it because some agent told you it’s a charming handyman’s delight. It’s sales speak.
There’s teams of very smart professionals and billions of dollars spent finding ways to get you to buy products that might not be very good for you or your family. But the good thing is, you get the final say.
Only you can put it in your trolley. So read the ingredients list. Bypass the blurb and check the content. Advertisers can think we are stupid all they like, just don’t prove their point and make them right.
