Wednesday 19 November 2008

Oh so Special

Let us pause for a moment to reflect on the unsung genius behind the Special K marketing campaign. Well, what's your first thought when a woman in red appears on your TV screen? For me at least it's always the same - "ah, must be Special K".

So ingrained is that pernicious “stay special” message that even when the newer chocolate-loaded or honey-soaked varieties find their way into my shopping basket they’re accompanied by a definite feeling of virtue, like I’ve made the healthy choice and picked up something really wholesome.

Today, munching Oats ‘n’ Honey out of the box as my virtuous post-dinner snack, it crossed my mind to wonder whether this was actually the case. 3% fat really sounds too good to be true: what’s the catch?

I can only assume it's stuffed with crack.

3 comments:

@EmVicW said...

It's surely all comparative. 3% doesn't sound that low fat for a breakfast. You could have a fruit salad.... or meusli (which is very de jour Down Under).

bateleur said...

Nah, 3% isn't much.

The trick here's rather more obvious: by focussing on the fat content they're distracting you from the fact the product is 24% sugar.

As a result, a 40g serving contains the same calories as a Cadbury's Creme Egg.

Almost a Lady said...

Fruit salad and muesli? What is this crazy talk?

The sugar content is a bit traumatic though. How many calories are there in a Creme Egg, anyway?