An Analysis of the Market for Olestra-Based Potato Chips
Who wouldn?t want to munch on delectable potato chips all day without the
worry of adding extra inches to the waistline? This is the assumption the manufacturers
of Olestra-based potato chips are banking on. Olestra is a ?fake-fat?; it is a cooking oil,
made by a combination of sucrose and vegetable oil, whose numerous fatty acid chains
are indigestible by the human body. Therefore, it imbues potato chips with the same
flavor and texture as their full-fat cousins but diminishes the guilt factor substantially.
Olestra chips have zero fat and half the calories of the full-fat varieties (ACSH).
Obviously, this is quite an attractive prospect to chip producers, especially in the current
times where thinness and physical fitness reign supreme. Presently, there appear to be
three major potato chip brands using the fake-fat technology: Frito-Lay?s WOW! Chips,
Procter and Gamble?s Fat Free Pringles, and Utz Brand Yes chips (though Utz is sold
almost exclusively on the eastern half of the country). The market structure is a bit
interesting, considering that the Olestra oil is an innovation of Procter and Gamble alone.
Adding to this interest is the heated controversy surrounding the fake-fat chips, which has
undoubtedly had some effect on pricing and market behavior.
Before examining the market workings of today, it could perhaps be beneficial to
review a brief history of Olestra. Olestra is not a new fat substitute by any means;
Procter and Gamble scientists discovered it in 1968. They esterified eight fatty acid
residues to a molecule of sucrose, reasoning that the increased number of fatty acid
chains would help premature infants to absorb more fat. However, ...
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...98.
http://www.acsh.org/publications/story/olestra
Annual Report: Pepsico Corporation. ?1998 Annual Report.? 1998
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Baumol, William J. and Alan S. Blinder. Economics: Principles and Policy. Fort Worth:
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Center for Science in the Public Interest. ?A Brief History of Olestra.? 2000.
http://www.cspinet.org/olestra/history.html
CNN. ?FDA Panel Generally Endorses Safety of Olestra.? June 17, 1998.
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9806/17/olestra.fda
FDA Backgrounder. ?Olestra and Other Fat Substitutes.? November 28, 1995
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/olestra.html
Olean. ?Answers to Questions about Olean.? Procter and Gamble. 1998
http://www.olean.com
the world. " The Big Three" hold nearly 75% of the market and produce over 8
§ Sour cream-based dips are the most popular in flavor and account for 50 percent of total dip sales so Frito-Lay has an opportunity to gain market share with sour cream-based dips.
When researching the favorite snack foods in the U.S., potato chips pop-up in almost every survey as the top 10 snack food of choice for Americans. According to Forbes, Frito-Lay is ranked number 40 out of 100 as the world’s most valuable brand names with $11.1 billion in sales as of November 2013. With over 80 years of service, Frito-Lay manufactures and distributes several different types of brand name chips such as the Lay’s, Doritos, Tostitos, Cheetos, Fritos, and Sun Chips. The Tostitos brand is Frito-Lay’s third best selling chip. In early 1980’s, the Tostitos chip was introduce the American population. When you think of party or fiesta, Frito-Lay wants you think of Tostitos.
information on the back of the item is rather than the label on the front that reads, ‘reduced fat’. Buyers are unaware of the added sugar disguised behind ‘reduced fat’ and any word ending in ‘-ose’ in the ingredients. The food companies only care about the money made off of their products. Therefore, they reduce one thing, such as fat, to attract the consumer and add more of another, such as sugar, to retain the regular taste. Across the United States, people are
Food is an important factor in the everyday human life. Humans need food to be able to live. But how did the food people eat today come about, no one really knows the in depth explanation. What about more common foods that are a part of everyone’s everyday lives, like potato chips. They are a simple, easy snack food that is commonly in every American household. But does anyone know how they came about, who invented them. Well, let me explain a little about who that person was.
potato chips left in a sugar solution for a period of 1 hour. I will
In the US from since the turn of the century, obesity has been a rising and very serious issue. In the 1980’s, western culture experienced a fitness surge, and the major food corporations began producing new products that were “fat free”, but the issue was fat free food did not taste as good so people would not buy it. To compensate the taste, the food companies replaced the fat with sugar.
The most common theory to the invention of potato chips is that George was working at his restaurant when a customer complained that his french fried potatos were sliced too thick. George was annoyed at the customer thus he decided to annoy the customer back by slicing the potatos too thin to eat with a fork then his sister accidentally dropped it into the fryer. George served it to the customer but didn't get the reaction he was looking for. Instead, the customer was extremely pleased
In the last couple of decades, dieting trends have astronomically increased. The average dieter has trained his or her ears and eyes to react to the word ‘fat’. Low fat, reduced fat, fat free- these are all words that until recently have set alarms off ringing in the typical dieter’s head. Recently, new vocabulary, such as ketogenic, ketosis, and low carbohydrate have stepped into the dieter’s world and questioned, or rather challenged, the ‘fat’ free method of dieting. So, after you have devoured the entire box of ‘fat’ free cookies perhaps you will ask yourself....WHAT ABOUT THE CARBOHYDRATES???
Bouchez, Colette. "Finding the Best Trans Fat Alternatives." Webmd. N.p., Jan.-Feb. 2014. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.
Harvard School of Public Health “Shining the spotlight on trans fats.” Harvard Nutrition source, n.d.
The omega-3 fatty acids, popularly referred to as fish oil, are considered unsaturated fats. Science differentiates between unsaturated and saturated fats quite clearly. One fact that separates the two is the temperature at which melting occurs. Saturated fats melt at a higher temperature than unsaturated fats. The science behind fatty acids is rather complex; carboxylic acids with long hydrocarbon chains are the building blocks of saturated and unsaturated fats. This is important to the human body for many reasons; one reason being unsaturated fats do not cause plaque build-up in arteries like saturated fats due to their molecular structure in the human blood stream.
From this rudimentary description of the production of potato chips, one can see that the main ingredients include potatoes, oil, and some salt. However, what may not be so apparent are the “non-ingredient” inp...
Mexican and Canadian markets appear strong economically and politically. In addition, Eastern European, Japanese, and Chinese markets will be logical markets in the near future.
...rogenation of their unsaturated components. Some of the remaining double bonds are isomerized in this operation. These saturated and trans-fatty acid glycerides in the diet have been linked to long-term health issues such as atherosclerosis.