According to a survey by Context Marketing (www.contextmarketing.com) most Americans place the blame for the country’s obesity epidemic upon consumers, not the food and beverage industry.

The survey found:

• 54% of the respondents considered themselves overweight

• 59% were concerned about their weight

• 25% considered themselves on a diet.

• 44% worry about how much they eat

• 42% indicated they’d like to eat better, but find it difficult.

• 77% do not believe food & beverage companies are responsible for making Americans overweight.

I am all for personal responsibility, but c’mon - do you really believe marketers are making it easy? When Mc Donald’s offers a salad and a pedometer, but fails to mention the salad dressing has more fat than a Big Mac, am supposed to know that?

Case in point, if you order the Grilled Chicken Cesar Salad and enjoy the Ranch Dressing, a bag of croutons, and 2 packs of crackers you will have consumed 600 calories/40 fat grams versus a Big Mac which has 590 calories/34 fat grams.

Well, at least the salad was tasty. Hey, I am the guy that is convinced he can offset anything eaten by washing it down with a Diet Coke.

Speaking of salad dressings beware of low-fat claims. You have to read the label – some flavors of some low-fat dressings can contain the same amount of fat as some regular dressings in other flavors. Others are higher in carbohydrates and calories, despite being low in fat.

Let’s not forget “Value Marketing” – appealing to the consumer's desire for bargains by offering more product for less money. Hey, we like getting the most for our buck. For a few pennies more, I can have double. It’s a bargain, and yes we fall for it. Is it really innocent that the Food Industry's has developed "More for Less" Sales Strategies?

I admit, I don’t read labels. I should, but I don’t. And, I don’t expect companies to tell me things that might dissuade my buying decision. Honest marketing? C’mon – I know better. But, let’s not pretend the food companies aren’t playing the game.

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