Did Rx bar sleep with Harvey Weinstein for $600 million?

On Friday, news of Harvey Weinstein’s “habits” was everywhere. There was another big news story that you may have missed. In my food centric world it was maj. Rx bar, a nutrition bar company, was bought for $600 million dollars by Kellogg’s. That’s a really big number and I tried to be excited for a company we’ve supported since its infancy. But there’s a problem.Rx bars are notable because they slap a short ingredient list on the front of the package. And they get bonus points for humor by listing “No B.S”. What you see is what you get, we’re honest and genuine.

Facebook commenters alerted me to a  letter RX bar sent to customers (but not their wholesalers). The gist was that even though they sold (out, oops)  you will never know anything was different. Kellogg's likes them just the way they are. But we do know. And I’m not sure it feels honest and genuine to be “in bed” with or married to a company built on B.S. (Pop tarts, Eggo, Froot Loops). Strangely, I couldn't cut and paste the "smart label" for Pop Tart's but here are the ingredients:

ENRICHED FLOUR

SUGAR

CORN SYRUP

SOYBEAN AND PALM OIL (WITH TBHQ FOR FRESHNESS)

HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP

DEXTROSE

FRUCTOSE

SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK

MODIFIED CORN STARCH

SALT

BROWN SUGAR SYRUP

LEAVENING 

MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES

SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE

GELATIN

DATEM

SOY LECITHIN

YELLOW 6 LAKE

BLUE 2 LAKE

NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS

YELLOW 5 LAKE

RED 40 LAKE

COLOR ADDED

NIACINAMIDE

REDUCED IRON

VITAMIN A PLAMITATE

VITAMIN B6

VITAMIN B2

Some of my colleagues support this union. After all, this will give RX bars reach and exposure. Just tell me how this is different from an actress saying, OK I’ll jump in the sack (I think he prefers showers, ick) with Harvey because it’s good for my career, for my brand. No, everyone thinks that’s wrong. Sure, it’s a little different, using power to coerce women is different than a corporate merger but not entirely different. As a commenter said on my Instagram post "you can't shtup the devil and claim purity."

Carolyn and I have each had lucrative opportunities with brands we don’t necessarily endorse. Each time, we have lengthy discussions and, at times, try to see if we could make a positive change with our messaging. But we wholeheartedly believe in quality and, for that reason, work with a handful of smaller companies at a time. We turn the majority of tempting offers down. And, for that reason Foodtrainers isn’t worth 600 million dollars (yet). 

What do you think? Is this how natural brands boost themselves? Or, is integrity allowed?

If the Halloween candy "called" you, here's why

 Via Vo/shutter stock

There’s a definite pattern when it comes to adults and Halloween candy. Many adults resist candy on Halloween. Then, the next day if it’s in the house or at the office they start to pick. “Just a couple” pieces here, a couple there. The same thing goes for Thanksgiving. Day of, many clients are on plan. The next day? The leftovers take them down.

Why is this? Many people make a decision, ahead of time, not to eat candy on Halloween or not to eat the 5,000 calorie meal on Thanksgiving. It’s clear what the plan is for the holiday itself. The day after? There’s no plan for that and so deliberation begins. “Should I have it?”  and this line of questioning rarely ends well.

I read a thought-provoking Vox article, “the myth of self-control”. The first portion of the article is a little depressing as the case is made that it’s super tricky to pass things up. “Human beings are terrible at resisting temptation.” Then came the  interesting part. “The people who are really good at self-control never have these battles in first place.” It’s not that some people have more willpower, it’s that some people avoid having to exert it.

If you want to avoid the exhaustion that comes with fending food (or other temptations for that matter) off some ideas:

Planning

I talk about this throughout The Little Book of Thin. The fewer food decisions you make on the spot, the better. When you’re staring face to face with the muffin tray and negotiating, your odds are slim. A Foodstalking client has a coworker with a candy bowl or “bowl of bullshit” as she calls it. The bowl was her downfall every afternoon. “One or two things only” wasn’t cutting it. Instead she called out of B.O. B. and put it on her “no” list. No piece here or piece there, no contemplating no bullshit…period.

Reminders and reinforcement

 In research mentioned in the article, people were texted reminders of their goals to help them make good choices. A couple of years ago, we started our Foodstalking program. We were astounded by the success and demand for spots. In this email-based program, we are in touch with clients daily. This encouragement and accountability helps establish new behaviors. Having a buddy is another way of doing this. Enlist a friend or coworker (spouses aren’t best idea for this) and work together to skip the candy, make it to your workouts etc.

Substitution

 “No candy” for some sounds daunting. In order to avoid the bowl of bullshit, my client has an RX Bar at 3pm every day. You can replace a food with a food or it can be a behavior. Taking a walk after dinner or meeting a friend for a workout instead of a drink are other examples of substitution.

So don’t beat yourself up for a slip. Instead, backtrack and see where you could’ve avoided that temptation all together. I’ll remind you about this  again before Thanksgiving and leftovers come into play.

Best protein bars to eat and a couple to skip

We have an online shop and perhaps you know this already. Last week I mentioned, to a friend, “we have those in our shop” and she said, “shop, since when do you have a Foodtrainers’ shop?” Carolyn and I can add that to the list of under promoted, overthought work-related items but I’ll tell you why we have a shop. It’s not really to make money (I recently read the best way to make money is to do something for free for 10 years….almost there). It’s because some of our “Foodtrainers’ Favorites” are small, difficult to find brands. There’s enough to stress about. We don’t need you annoyed with us because you cannot find the protein bar we recommended.

 Speaking of bars, our Monthly Morsels newsletter today featured our top 10 nutrition bars. We didn’t delve too much into flavor specifics but my current loves are the strawberry coconut Yes Bar, peanut butter RX Bar and the chai by Yawp.I will also admit, over the course of a month, I made a good dent in the cranberry Perfect Bars they sent over. And my whole family approved the Clif nut butter filled bars that Carolyn and I brought home from California (Clif presented and had an outdoor yoga class too).

Years ago a frozen yogurt company (hint has a color in its name) sent me a cease and desist letter following a blog post. For this reason, I’m gun-shy about calling brands out I dislike. There are a couple of popular bars I don’t recommend. I don’t like soy protein in bars and so Luna is off our list (we told Clif this). And there’s a very well promoted bar starting with a “Q” with inferior ingredients.

Humor us, check out our shop. Taste test our top 10, there’s a lot of variety and goodness there.

What are your favorite nutrition bars? Any you’d like our opinion of?