Struggling with a poor diet? It’s easy to blame yourself, but what if the real culprit isn’t your willpower—it’s the system designed to keep you hooked? Let’s dive into a truth that’s both eye-opening and unsettling.
In a bold move, PepsiCo recently announced the “reinvention” of Cheetos and Doritos, launching a new line called Simply NKD—ultra-processed snacks now free of artificial colors. But here’s where it gets controversial: while artificial colors are gone, the other two dozen ingredients remain. Is this a genuine health improvement, or just a clever marketing ploy to ease consumer guilt?
This isn’t the first time the food industry has shifted blame. Yesterday, it was sugar; the day before, it was fat. Meanwhile, ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have exploded from 2,000 products in 2000 to a staggering 40,000 by 2019. And with this growth comes ultra-profits. As Dr. Phillip Baker from the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health points out, it’s more profitable to produce a Dorito than a can of corn—or even the corn itself.
The global UPF market raked in $2.94 trillion in 2022, yet corporations like Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Mondelez spend $13.5 billion annually on advertising—four times the World Health Organization’s entire budget. But it’s not just about ads. These companies engineer foods to be hyper-palatable, soft, and endlessly craveable, exploiting our bodies’ natural desire for nutrients that aren’t actually there. As futurist Mike Lee puts it, “We designed food to be irresistible. Now we’re taking medicine to resist it.”
Here’s the part most people miss: UPFs now make up half of Australia’s energy intake, yet less than 5% of us eat enough fruits and vegetables. Two-thirds of the country is overweight or obese, straining healthcare systems with preventable diseases like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. But instead of taking responsibility, corporations point the finger at consumers, framing it as a matter of personal choice.
And this is where it gets even more troubling. Interest groups funded by these corporations work tirelessly to block regulations, while systems like Australia’s Health Star Ratings often give UPFs high scores, effectively turning them into marketing tools. Even scientific reviews on soft drinks and obesity are five times more likely to show no link when industry-sponsored.
So, is it really your fault? Or is the food industry the one that’s become bloated—obese with greed?
The Lancet’s three-part series on UPFs and human health offers a stark alternative: the root cause isn’t individual failure but the unchecked power of the UPF industry to reshape our food systems. From Brazil’s 15% limit on UPFs in school meals to proposed sugar taxes and marketing restrictions, experts argue that systemic change is the only way forward.
But here’s the question: Can we truly fix our diets without addressing the deeper issues of time, resources, and gendered care work that make healthy eating a luxury for many?
What do you think? Is it time to stop blaming ourselves and start demanding accountability from the corporations profiting from our health struggles? Let’s spark a conversation—because the real change starts when we stop pointing fingers and start asking the right questions.
