Initially Enviro Girl looked at San Francisco’s proposed ban on Happy Meal toys with interest and approval. For years she’s been the mom who says “NO,” to her children’s pleas to a) eat at McDonald’s and then b) to get a toy on the rare occasion when they do eat there. It’s a dirty little secret that the toys cost extra–when Enviro Girl ordered a Happy Meal, hold the pickles, onions, mustard, ketchup and toy, she’d pay 75 cents less.
Even so, the tradition of a toy in a meal spread to other fast food restaurants and her children became indoctrinated to expect a prize with their meal. And Enviro Girl’s kids eat fast food once a month. Imagine the behavior patterns of children who eat fast food weekly! Enviro Girl’s sons knew by the age of four that if they ate at the local family restaurant, the only prize at the end of the meal was a small ice cream. At Mc Donald’s, Burger King, A&W, Subway–even the locally owned franchise of burger joints–they would get a plastic toy!
But then Enviro Girl’s libertarian streak got hold of her thinking. Does government really need to legislate what we eat and how it’s served? What business is it of the government if a Happy Meal comes with a toy? If consumer demand drives a capitalist society (as Enviro Girl believes it does), then the inclusion of a Happy Meal toy should be treated no differently. It’s up to consumers, not the government to stop taking the toys. It’s up to parents to learn how to say “NO!” to the toy.
And then Enviro Girl in a moment of weakness allowed her oldest to bring home a box of Fruit Loops from the grocery store a few weeks ago. He decided to keep the Fruit Loops safe from his dad (who has a serious sweet tooth) by disguising the contents. He took the bag of cereal out of the Fruit Loops box and moved them into a nearly empty Honey Nut Cheerios box. He threw the Fruit Loops box into the recycle bin. Three weeks later over half the Fruit Loops are still in the pantry. Enviro Girl’s kids aren’t begging to eat them, though they know they’re inside that Honey Nut Cheerios box. Enviro Girl figures it’s about the marketing. Inside a boring box, Fruit Loops have less appeal. Her children are still eating oatmeal, bagels, Life and Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast. They’re ignoring the HFCS-laced Fruit Loops.
And if a simple exercise in swapping packaging doesn’t convince a person, Scientific American published an interview with a professor of nutrition who agrees that the move is a good start. The same logic about marketing bad habits to children is what limits a lot of tobacco and alcohol marketing. When Enviro Girl really thinks about it, maybe it’s best to limit the advertising aimed at the youngest in society.
But then she keeps feeling it’s a pity we need to do it. Isn’t it enough for parents to learn to say no? Can’t consumers make the demand for healthy change? Does the government need to legislate common-sense decisions like this one?
Reader, where are you at on this issue?
Everything you say has occurred to me and is relevant. It’s too simple to say, Just put me in charge. I’d probably step on some toes (poor benighted fools).
I’m torn. On the one hand, I’d like to see Happy Meal toys completely eliminated; however, I agree that it’s up to the consumer to say no. That’s what we’ve done in our house — no McDonalds, ever. Actually, we rarely eat fast food — maybe once or possibly twice a year. We’ve explained to our children exactly what’s in the food and why we don’t eat it, so they don’t ask for it because they’re just as disgusted as we are.
We ate at Mc Donalds for the FIRST TIME EVER recently… my kids are so deprived, poor darlings. 12, 11 and 9, they each got an identical Shrek witch and made them do synchronized ballet throughout the meal. They gave them away to passing kids when we left. If parents buy these things regularly, they must really get underfoot. Are they recyclable?
Sadly, no. And yes, they do get underfoot. It’s total clutter. Unnecessary and useless.
I definitely think that the government should not get involved in that. Like you said, can’t parents Just Say No? If they can’t push back on buying happy meals, what on earth will happen when their kids are older and want to . . . I don’t know, cut school and shoot heroin?
Just thinking out loud here.
PS: That’s really interesting about your kids and the Fruit Loops box!
I’m working on my thesis on this issue and becoming increasingly more cynical the more I research. It seems that, left to their own devices, people will go after cheap, easy-to-prepare, aesthetically pleasing (the toys are part of that) foods even when they know they “really shouldn’t”. I don’t know if its laziness or apathy or that kind of “all that bad stuff will never happen to me or mine” mentality, but it certainly can’t hurt our habits to have the government butting in. Yes, we as consumers should discourage the big wigs from giving us stuff we shouldn’t be buying by not buying it, no matter how good it tastes or how cheap it is. But getting enough people to cry off to put a sizable enough dent in profits that things actually change? I’ve never said this before, but it might be quicker if the government handles it.
Great post — and I’m torn about government involvement too. But are they involved already? Sesame Street is on public TV, but it’s “proudly sponsored” by McDonald’s, which basically runs a full ad at the beginning of each show. Also, are arguments in favor of consumer demand really appropriate when that marketing is aimed at children? Adults know they’re “being sold” while children do not.
Here’s a similar post about toy marketing; hope it adds to the debate: http://mathisworks.wordpress.com/2010/11/13/gender-expectations-and-toys-“r”-us