Indulge Me!

PAUL ROGERS, Contributing Editor

It happened one fateful day in June 1998. The poster child for fat free, the brand that launched a thousand copycats, the product that proved reduced-fat and tasteless were not synonymous and convinced the food industry that consumers were serious about eating healthier—SnackWells—announced it was adding fat back into certain cookies and crackers.

A collective gasp went up among the sea of imitators. Was this the end of the fat-free and reduced-fat phenomena that permeated the food industry for nearly a decade?

The signs sure seemed to point to a consumer fat flip-flop:

• According to Chicago-based New Product News, food manufacturers introduced 2,076 reduced-fat products in 1996. In 1997, that number dropped 30% to 1,405. And last year, only 1,180 new reduced-fat items made it to store shelves, a decline of another 16%.
• A recent Roper Research Worldwide survey shows that 54% of Americans eat and drink what they want despite nutritional value, and 40% say they are not sacrificing taste for lower calories.
• According to market research firm NPD Group Inc.’s 1998 Eating Patterns in America survey, 42% of respondents say taste is the No. 1 motivator when deciding what foods to eat, up from 32% when NPD conducted the same survey in 1988.

Numbers like that make one think that health and nutrition are more of an afterthought now than they have ever been in the past. Food manufacturers and food industry observers, however, say think again. The so-called indulgent trend is nothing more than normal consumer behavior, tinged with a good economy, a reward mentality and a little more understanding that fat in moderation can be part of a balanced diet.

"I’ve been doing this for 20 years," says Harry Balzer, vice president of NPD Group’s food consulting services. "There is always something on the scene that captures Americans’ attention and makes people say, ‘Look, we’re having a return to indulgence.’

"But the truth is, there is always room in our diets for things that taste good, whether it is Haagen-Dazs ice cream or Ben & Jerry’s or Godiva Chocolates. It’s a constant in our diet—always present but changing. You almost need to ask, ‘What is the indulgence du jour?’

"So is there an indulgent trend? No. Do Americans like to indulge? Yes."

Lynn Dornblaser, editorial director of New Product News, agrees: "That is what’s been happening for years," referring to consumers’ tendencies to indulge themselves even while trying to eat healthier. "Today’s conditions are just a continuation of it, but it seems to stand out because the number of lowfat products has declined."

Even the SnackWells reformulation is not nearly the watershed event some would like to think. While SnackWells did reformulate, most of the reformulations took the cookies and crackers from zero grams of fat to a measly 1.5 grams, about the amount of fat in a serving of pretzels and still around 70% less than their full-fat counterparts.

"People like to use percentages and say, ‘Oh, its 150% higher in fat than before,’" says Ann Smith, a spokesperson for Parsippany, N.J.-based Nabisco.

SnackWells sales, which had been sliding, were rejuvenated by the slight injection of fat. At the same time, Nabisco’s full-fat brands—Chips Ahoy, Cheese Nips, Ritz—continue to enjoy strong growth, says Smith. Oreo cookies have posted double-digit sales gains for the past three years.

"For a brand 88 years old, that is quite remarkable," she adds. Remarkable, yes. But not a sign that indulgent is taking over.

"You don’t see as many lowfat claims on new products as you used to, so you think there’s an indulgent trend going on...but it is not a huge change, not a big industry move to certain products. Manufacturers are not tossing products out and only going indulgent," says Dornblaser.

Consumers want taste and flavor. The message is not new. They first ate SnackWells because it exceeded taste expectations for a fat-free cookie.

"In 1992, the consumer mantra was ‘Get the fat out,’ the lower the fat the better, it was an all or nothing thing. Over the course of six years, consumer opinions evolved. People are not walking away from wellness, but their definition of wellness is changing. They are willing to accept one or 1.5 grams in order to get taste."

Actually, they are willing to accept even more than 1.5 grams to get taste when they treat themselves. While Balzer thinks the closest thing to an indulgence du jour at present is coffee, some companies are winning consumers with products that Homer Simpson would call sacri-liscious.

Sara Lee Corp., Chicago, says its frozen cheesecake sales in its lead Chicago and San Francisco markets rose 45% in the first eight months following the launch of Cheesecake Bites and Cheesecake Singles. It expects to double total cheesecake sales in fiscal year 2000, and has no plans on backing down on indulgence. Over the past year, Sara Lee rolled out a full-size, ready-to-eat, New York-style cheesecake line to supermarket buyers and Two-Mendous Treats ("decadent" dessert cake combinations like Fudgy Chocolate & Espresso and Cinnamon Pound Cake & Caramel Apple) to foodservice operators.

Haagen-Dazs is trying to tap its decadent reputation with a new ad campaign called "Passport to Indulgence." The company has linked superpremium ice cream with another indulgence: travel. Haagen-Dazs searched for America’s most indulgent cities and now features the five U.S. locations it chose (Las Vegas, New York, New Orleans, San Francisco and Los Angeles) in a free brochure with itineraries for travelers. The Passport to Indulgence Sweepstakes will earn one lucky winner a "fantasy vacation."

Ed Yuhas, general manager - breakfast at San Francisco-based Aurora Foods Inc., says "People have more disposable income and are feeling good about themselves, so they tend to treat themselves in a number of categories. People are busy and worn out, and a simple indulgence—even a $4.00 cup of coffee—is worth something."

Yuhas, Nabisco’s Smith and others are quick to point out that "indulgent" doesn’t necessarily mean "more fat."

What is indulgent to one food company or one consumer may not be indulgent to another. The descriptor has no standard of identity. Does it mean richer tasting, high in calories or fat, imported, exotic, a few cents more than the traditional food? Probably any combination of the above.

"There are a couple different ways to look at indulgent. One is pure gluttony," Yuhas says, which is definitely not the way Aurora Foods sees it.

The company’s Log Cabin Premium Blends syrups (butter-maple, cinnamon-maple and almond-maple) are comparable to mainstream brands in terms of fat and calorie content. But Yuhas says it uses more natural ingredients and a higher level of pure maple than mainstream brands. In addition, the packaging conveys indulgence. The syrups are bottled in glass, and its sister Log Cabin Blends pancake mixes (chunky pecan, cranberry, cinnamon-vanilla and old-fashioned) come in gold foil bags—both with upscale graphics.

When Aurora begins advertising Log Cabin Premium Blends in the first half of 2000, those ads will be running in Epicurean magazines, reports Yuhas.

Smith goes one step further detaching indulgence from its negative nutrition connotations. She refers to SnackWells as being in the "indulgent wellness" category of foods—possessing less fat than standard cookies but gourmet appeal.

But perhaps Happy & Healthy Products Inc., Boca Raton, Fla., captures the indulgent wellness concept best with a product aptly called Happy Indulgence®, a frozen novelty made primarily from fruit, cream and graham crackers. The frozen novelties have 7 grams of fat compared to around 21 grams in a typical premium novelty. Two new varieties (Cappuccino Biscotti and Berry Cobbler) are scheduled to join current flavors (Key Lime Pie and Peach Cobbler) before September.

The products’ name was developed precisely to hit consumers looking for a taste treat as well as those looking to eat healthier. "It gives them a chance to indulge without the guilt," says Mary Galinat, vice president of communications.

If a product is going to go the reduced-fat route these days, it has to have some selling point more than the fat claim, says Dornblaser.

"Things have gotten to a point where how many more SnackWells do you need or want? How many fat-free frozen entrees can you fit in the freezer case? Unless it has a significant point of difference, there really isn’t any more room for lowfat products. But there is always room for products that focus on taste and flavors." PF

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