As you’ve figured out by now, I do a news chum post when three or more collected bookmarks form a theme. That’s happened again, and the theme for this post is junk food:
- The Twinkie Defense. Evidently, there is a baker’s strike, and as a side effect of the strike, Hostess Brands may file for liquidation if it continues. Yes, folks, that means the maker of the popular snack cake may go out of business (as early as today), and the branded Twinkie (as well, I guess, as Hostess Cup Cakes and Ding Dongs) may go off the shelf. But don’t worry. The ones left on the shelves will never go stale.
- Ruining Tea. Most people don’t go to Starbucks because their coffee is good. After all, if it was, why would they feel the need to doctor it with so much fattening crap. It’s gotten to the point where real coffee drinkers prefer McDonalds Coffee. Luckily, us tea drinkers have been relatively safe. Until now. Starbucks has purchased Teavana for $260 million. Teavana, which already had overpriced and overmarketed tea, is a perfect match for Starbucks. Starbucks said it plans to expand Teavana’s existing 300 mall-based stores while adding a “high-profile neighborhood store concept.” According to Starbucks, the Teavana deal is a “signal that we have moved our plan to fundamentally transform the consumer tea experience in both North American and international markets into high gear.” Sigh. I love tea because I drink it black… and I already have great sources for tea (Upton, Stash, Franklin Tea). I also believe it is important to support your local coffee or tea shop, not the megachains.
- Your Drink is Bad For You. We’re learning more and more what we drink is often bad for us. First it was large sodas. I’ve just talked about the junk people add to coffee. Today’s news brings a report of another hazard: it appears the calories people get from booze nearly equals the calories they get from sodas. According to the report, soda and other sweetened drinks are the source of about 6 percent of the calories adults consume, on average. Alcoholic beverages account for about 5 percent. A 12-ounce can of regular Coca-Cola has 140 calories, slightly less than a same-sized can of regular Bud. A 5-ounce glass of wine is around 100 calories. Now people are asking whether New York will ban large alcoholic beverages. Of course, I’ve got a different question. I only drink black tea. So where am I getting my extra junk calories :-).
So what’s going to happen to Tazo? Starbuck’s bought them, too, didn’t they? :sigh: If they ever glance at Adagio, I’ll pitch a conniption.
Well, according to Starbuckles, “Teavana complements Tazo and, in fact, unleashes Tazo to compete aggressively as our premium entry point for consumers seeking an innovative and differentiated tea experience while providing us with flexibility to pursue a two-tiered global tea marketing strategy.”
Now, I’m used to government-speak, and even I can’t figure that out.