tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-384329692727378622.post5194660594557266155..comments2024-03-28T08:23:34.177-04:00Comments on On Second Scoop: Ice Cream Reviews: Ben & Jerry's Field Trip Part 4 - HeadquartersDubba Scoopshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07135130511349727532noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-384329692727378622.post-85040694193432152482010-06-02T09:55:52.830-04:002010-06-02T09:55:52.830-04:00First off, I just want to say that I read your web...First off, I just want to say that I read your website on a regular basis and enjoy your reviews. Also, I'm not the guy you met from GrubGrade on the trip, but the "other" writer on the GrubGrade blog.<br /><br />I preface my comments with that little caveat because, frankly, I find a great deal of hypocrisy in the Ben and Jerry's "social mission," and find your excessive praise for the company to be somewhat off-putting. I do not consider myself a health freak fanatic and am largely against attempts by the government to regulate, shall we say, “less” than nutritious options in schools. I also find the classifying of “good” and “bad” foods to be setting a dangerous precedent in our society, especially for young people. That being said, we as citizens hear an awful lot about the childhood obesity epidemic, and see a lot of mud being slung in the court of public opinion and government action at large fast food and food retail companies. Think about it; the cereal companies are demonized for providing cereal with (gah!) 10+ grams of sugar per serving, while anyone who offers a cheap French fry to a kid is decried as a greedy and faceless, we-don’t-care-about-your health company which gives our great institution of capitalism a bad name. God forbig something contain a dietary isignificant amount of trans fat provided by partially hydorginated oil, because obviously the use of much more expensive organic palm oil in a similar product will add year’s to the consumers life. <br /><br />Ok, I’m rambling. Sorry. My point is that at the end of the day, Ben and Jerry’s may have a great mission with being nice to their employees and using quality, fair-trade ingredients, while all the foodie Obama-ites in our society can applaud them for it. But how come the company gets the pass when it comes to the very real fact that their ice cream is probably the most fattening stuff on the market? I’m not saying it’s not good or can’t be enjoyed in moderation, but it really seems to me that just because they are the “hip” or “progressive” company with their environmental image, they get a free pass when it comes to many of the criticisms that people have of larger company’s that don’t excessively tout their environmental virtues and blah blah blah. Nevermind that the stuff costs double or triple as much, but the fact that a half cup of Ben and Jerry’s has 270 calories and 9 grams of saturated fat per ½ cup (and seriously, who eats a half a cup?) doesn’t garner nearly as much outrage as say, a kid ordering a small fry off the dollar menu at Micky D’s strikes me as the most hypocritical aspect of the current debate in food politics.<br /><br />I am all for people making responsible choices and enjoying crappy foods in moderation (hey, I look forward to my Dunkin Donut each week and nightly bag of potato chips as much as anyone) but why does Ben and Jerry’s avoid the criticisms of the health watchdogs? To me, it’s a question of elitism and pretension, and like I said, it’s really off-putting.<br /><br />Ok, that was long and probably fairly convoluted, but hopefully someone gets at least some of what I was trying to convey. <br /><br />-AdamAdamhttp://grubgrade.comnoreply@blogger.com