Customer Reviews

Marketing Nutrition: Soy, Functional Foods, Biotechnology, and Obesity (The Food Series)

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Although encouraging people to eat more nutritiously promotes better health, many companies, dieticians, and even parents are disappointingly ineffective at it. Misunderstanding consumers has lead to floundering sales for soy foods, modest results for costly nutrition programs, and mountains of uneaten vegetables in homes and in school cafeterias. The objective of "Marketing Nutrition" (University of Illinois Press, 2005) is to change this.

The full title of the book is "Marketing Nutrition: Soy, Functional Foods, Biotechnology, and Obesity," and this is not simply a Marketing 101 rehash applied to nutritious foods. It is based on dozens of studies conducted by the interdisciplinary research team at Cornell University's Food and Brand Lab.

The book identifies 14 real problems - such as de-Marketing obesity, winning the biotechnology battle, leveraging FDA claims, targeting nutritional gatekeepers - and answers these problems through specific studies. The findings are broken down into what their implications are for brand managers, dieticians, health care professionals, and public policy officials. Some of these findings show . . .

-- To change eating habits, target the cooks, not the consumers
-- To introduce new foods into diets, encourage small, infrequent substitutions
-- The better the description of a food, the better people perceive its taste
-- There are three types of cooks who lead trends and opinions
-- Health claims are most effective if quantitative and personal
-- Use both sides of a package - short claims on front; long on back

In two other chapters, instead of directly answering problems, two new techniques are illustrated that can be used to better understand a person's view toward healthy foods and how to improve it. Since the answer to this is food specific and segment specific, instructions are given about how to 1) Develop mental maps of how people view a specific food, and 2) prototype ideal "food champions" and "clone" them in others who are predisposed in the same direction.

The author of Marketing Nutrition is Brian Wansink (Ph.D.), who is the John S. Dyson Professor of Marketing and of Nutritional Science at Cornell University. He directs the Cornell Food and Brand Lab, a group of interdisciplinary researchers who have conducted over 200 studies on why we eat what we eat and buy what we buy.

I have been a follower of Professor Brian Wansink's brilliant work since studying as a dietitian from 2002, and Brian's book - Marketing Nutrition has been like my bible for my nutrition consulting.

We continue to face problems with the health of society deteriorating, and in Marketing Nutrition the science of nutrition is combined with the practical applicability of marketing and consumer behaviour to promote positive health behaviour.

As Dietitians, we have a strong understanding of the science behind how food and nutrients affect the body and body composition. We are passionate about having our message heard, but unfortunately as depicted on page 14 of Marketing Nutrition; Doctors, Magazines, Books and Television were ranked as more highly trusted sources of nutrition information than nutritionists.

Marketing nutrition gives us the tools to marketing nutrition and health and how we can use the principle that marketers use to achieve effective health outcomes.

Sometimes as dietitians, we believe that knowledge is power and focus on educating our clients. Although important, Brian identifies a hierarchy in nutrition knowledge and that if people link knowledge of a food's attributes to personal health consequences, they are more likely to accept and consume a new food.

Gatekeepers are identified as the key to promoting healthy eating, making up to 70% of the families food choices. To be successful, we therefore need to target gatekeepers who are making health decisions on behalf of others. Brian also describes research into successful health claims. Interestingly, short health claims were found to be more believable than long ones, and this could be relevant for all types of health messages.

The great thing about Marketing Nutrition is that it can't be adequately described in a summary - each chapter introduces new ideas, strategies and case studies around nutrition marketing. It can be used as a textbook - and should be within every dietetic course, where students would benefit from learning strategies about getting nutrition messages across.

Relevance to Health Professionals

Marketing Nutrition is obviously specifically written for dietitians, mums, teachers, restaurateurs and the food industry that have goals to improve the appeal of nutrition for their primary target audiences.

However, some of the principles in Marketing Nutrition can be transferred to other areas of the health industry. Marketing Nutrition encourages us to

* Apply the four P's of marketing to health message marketing to promote change.
* Understand your client's, separate them into client profiles and ensure messages are tailored to suit their needs.
* Use interesting, creative and descriptive adjectives to improve the acceptance of healthy food and other healthy non-food products.
* Look at research from other fields such as marketing, behavioural economics, psychology, advertising and consumer behaviour to determine whether any strategies tested in these fields can help you market your health messages.
* Use short key messages to market your health message.
* Increase availability of healthy alternatives.
* Connect to the emotion of your clients, but asking `why' questions when discussing likes and dislikes associated with health.

This book highlights the importance of considering what influences food choices. Too often health care providers ask individuals to make changes without taking into account the subtle environmental cues that encourage us to overeat or make inappropriate food choices. The author discusses the importance of being aware of these cues so that mindful eating practices can be developed.

This book is worth every penny! It's interesting and full of useful information. I use it when I'm talking to clients and groups about quick, easy ways to change their habits.

Marketing Nutrition: Soy, Functional Foods, Biotechnology, and Obesity by Brian Wansink (Professor of Applied Economics of Marketing and of Nutritional Science, Cornell University) focuses on an increasingly problematic issue in American society: how can people be persuaded to eat more nutritious foods, including vegetables and soy foods? Almost everyone knows that fruit is better for one's health than a cookie, yet not so many will pick an apple over a cookie for a dessert when the opportunity comes to choose. Marketing techniques for unhealthy foods push consumers into poor diet patterns that result in obesity, from childhood on up. Wansink reveals that the same marketing tools, techniques and insights that make non-nutritious foods popular can also bolster the appeal of nutritious foods. Techniques such as targeting foods toward the "gatekeeper" or family cook first (whose selections have more impact on what the family eats than anything else), labeling foods to sound delicious, marketing techniques to introduce unfamiliar foods and acquaint them with popular awareness, and much more are discussed in depth. An insightful book that deftly blends the scientific knowledge of a nutritionist with the wisdom and practical skill of a trained marketer.

This book presents a very real and significant problem in today's society. That is, the North American population is getting more and unhealthy, in large part due to the North American diet. Furthermore, this Cornell University marketing professor suggests that marketing can be used to reverse this health crisis. The problematic question which consequently arises (unique to the issue of healthy eating), is how can consumers be marketed to enjoy healthy foods, when they already know what kinds of food they like to eat?

This book points out that, just as unhealthy foods have been marketed to become widely consumed, so too can healthy and nutritious foods, such as soy. Drawing from numerous psychological studies, the mindset of the consumer is closely studied to gain insight into how this can be done effectively. Consider, for example, the difference between Americans who readily turn their nose up to soy, whereas soy is a widely accepted food in many Asian countries. What accounts for these differences? What has made soy a success food in Asia, and a failure in North America? These are but a few of the questions considered by Marketing Nutrition. In effect, if one can 'tap into' the successes and failures of marketing various foods, the information can be used to advance the prevalence of soy in the North American diet.

Other discussions raised by Wansink include how foods that are new and unusual to the typical consumer can be effectively introduced and adopted into their lifestyle. Also, ideas are presented as to how to target nutrition towards the cook, rather than the consumer (which is proven to be ultimately more successful). Furthermore, Wansink delves into issues such as which nutritional and health information can most positively influence eating habits, in order to promote a healthier North America.

In light of these topics, Marketing Nutrition is a definite must-read for a broad audience - not only psychology and marketing researchers, but health professionals, health food companies. Wansink provides vital information for those who wish to improve the quality of life for today's consumer, and is also of significant interest to parents and families alike. After all, vegetarian parents can begin to critically analyze how 'non-nutrition' is being marketed to their children through commercials, advertisements, etc., and therefore make a counteractive effort to instill healthy eating habits within their own families. In this respect, Marketing Nutrition is not only a recommended, interesting read, but a hefty investment in today's generation, as well as in many of those to come. --Debbie Alleva

If you ever wanted to know how soy went from an unprofitable "poverty food" to the fastest growing segment of the health food industry, you must read this book. It tells exactly how the soy industry plays "consumer helper" and encourages soy consumption with the use of "health claims" that have been carefully created through the power of public relations, the corruption of scientific inquiry, and the collusion of the FDA. More than 60 years of studies link soy protein and soy oil to malnutrition, digestive distress, immune system breakdown, thyroid disorders, infertility, reproductive system problems, and even cancer growth. Yet soy is now widely perceived as a "health food" for men, women and children. This book tells why and how. It's a five star book for marketers that gets one star because its authors fail to acknowledge the industry's shabby and slippery ethics and its shameless putting of profits before people.

This valuable book really leverages the work that Wansink has conducted over his career - the organization and format make it a user-friendly resource that offers compelling and thought provoking insight for those trying to reshape nutrition worldwide.

"With innovative insights, cutting-edge research, and global best practices, Wansink unravels the mysteries of marketing nutrition and provides ingenious ideas to help encourage, promote, and improve a healthier America."
---- Herb Jackson III, Senior Consultant, The Gallup Organization


"Quite simply the best book I have read on all that matters for infusing "nutrition" into consumers' shopping habits. A superb synthesis of intelligence and perspectives from consumer research on how to get consumers to shop more healthfully. Should be mandatory reading for product developers, marketers and CEO's in food companies everywhere. Read it if you have anything to say about what you eat!
---- Kantha Shelke, Consumer Insights Editor, Food Processing magazine


"It is critical that the U.S. government recognizes that intelligently focused nutrition-related efforts are important in helping lead Americans of all ages to lead healthier lifestyles. Marketing Nutrition shows how simple solutions can save lives."
---- Congressman Timothy V. Johnson, U.S. House of Representatives


"Marketing Nutrition offers a "win-win" proposition for all concerned. Insightful companies, health professionals, and policy makers can lead the way . . . in helping people eat better and enjoy food more."
---- Dr. James O. Hill, Director of Human Nutrition, U. of Colorado Medical School


"Well documented and insightful, Marketing Nutrition is an essential read for those involved in marketing new food products to the 21st Century consumer."
---- Peter Golbitz, President, Soyatech, Inc.


"Professor Wansink has provided a wealth of insights into why consumers eat and behave the way they do. However, unlike many other concerned nutrition observers, he puts forth remedies to common nutrition stumbling blocks, ill-conceived marketing programs and consumer misunderstandings with an eye to more effective marketing for food companies and improved health for consumers. This valuable book should be read by industry marketing professionals and public policy makers alike."
---- Dr. Ed McLaughlin, Director, Food Marketing Program Cornell University


"Marketing Nutrition moves theory and research into practice. There are enormous economic dividends for health care providers, public health institutions, and commercial food companies, if we are successful in doing
this."
---- Dr. David Mela, Expertise Group Leader, Unilever Health Institute