Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Grāpples

What happens when you infuse an apple with concord grape flavor? You get a grāpple. According to their website, a grāpple (pronounced grape-l) is THE hot new promising product to fight the "childhood obesity war":

"With childhood obesity increasing at alarming rates, Grāpple® brand apples could go a long way to improving the eating habits of children and introducing them to more produce. "

Is it just me, or is there something wrong about this statement? I admit, I'm not good at logic and critical thinking, but this doesn't make any sense. What is it that a grāpple will do that an apple or grape can't or hasn't done already? Where is the connection? I don't think it will go far at all to improving kids' eating habits. It will, however, quickly put a hole in your pocket at a whopping $1.25 per apple! Furthermore, I think more damage can be done to the child when we start obsessing over their weight and appearance.

Now, I'm not saying you shouldn't eat one. If you want to eat a grape flavored apple, then fine, eat it. If you don't mind spending $1.25 for an apple, then why not? Just don't do it to save your child's life.

If anything, it has added to another existing problem, and that is of food allergies. This past February's issue of the International Archives of Allergy and Immunology, addressed two case studies of allergic reactions to the fruit.

So here's my take on the grāpple:

I don't get it.
I won't get it.

1 comment:

  1. Hear, Hear!!! They had some of those at Wal*Mart in Wake Forest last year, with samples out for unsuspecting customers to try. I ate a small piece, and was seriously underwhelmed. I totally agree with you--why not just eat grapes, or apples? Somehow I don't see kids liking these bizzare freak fruits. What's next--an orange that tastes like a banana? Yuck.

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