Pathetic Food Marketing on Television

I have to admit; I can barely watch TV anymore with all the bull that we are being fed between mainstream media, fake reality TV, and laugh-track sitcoms (because, naturally, we are too stupid to know when to laugh).

But add to all that the marketing lies in commercials, and I seriously feel like puking. First, I spotted Phil Mickelson (pro golfer) being used to peddle Embrel - a medicine for arthritis. Since when do pharmaceuticals need celebrity endorsements?!?

Then, I watched the cutest little redhead boy tell a mom that she was great for feeding her kids Kraft singles because they have no artificial colors. And it's true; however, Kraft singles aren't even cheese, but rather pasteurized processed cheese food.

Here is the ingredient list of what is actually in Kraft cheese slices (you will notice that there is no "cheese" mentioned:

Ingredients: MILK, WHEY, MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, MILKFAT, SODIUM CITRATE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, SALT, LACTIC ACID, SORBIC ACID AS A PRESERVATIVE, CHEESE CULTURE, ANNATTO AND PAPRIKA EXTRACT (COLOR), ENZYMES, VITAMIN D3. CONTAINS: MILK.

Kraft singles claim to be "natural" but are anything but.

So why are they allowed to market their Kraft singles as a virtual health product when at the end of the day, it isn't even what it claims to be. Even this ad is insulting (left).

The last straw of my television experience today was a McDonald's commercial. It showed a runner putting down a mango and an orange to tie his shoe. When he was done, the fruit turned into two McDonald's smoothies.

Then the narrator says some crap like "made with real fruit and yogurt," which I knew had to be a total lie. So, naturally, I looked it up. It was no surprise to find that these are the actual ingredients in one of their "real" fruit smoothies that apparently have 3 ingredients:




Mango Pineapple Fruit Base
Water, clarified demineralized pineapple juice concentrate, mango puree concentrate, pineapple juice concentrate, orange juice concentrate, pineapple puree, passion fruit juice, apple juice concentrate, natural (botanical source) and artificial flavors, contains less than 1% of the following: peach puree, cellulose powder, peach juice concentrate, pear juice concentrate, xanthan gum, pectin, citric acid, colored with fruit and vegetable juice and turmeric extract, ascorbic acid (preservative).

Ice
Ice

Low Fat Yogurt
Cultured Grade A reduced fat milk, sugar, whey protein concentrate, fructose, corn starch, gelatin. Contains active yogurt cultures.

I was unable to find the actual one; I found this one instead:


As a parent, it is imperative that you mind what you put in your kids' bodies, as well as your own. And it's pretty obvious that the corporations are only interested in making a profit, not your health.

Feel free to post other ads or pics you've seen that made you do a face palm. And don't forget to teach your kids about marketing tricks and truth in advertising.