http://www.7-eleven.com/newsroom/articles.asp?p=2274

New Year’s Resolution: Shop Healthy at 7-Eleven®



Atkins® Controlled-Carb Products Join Growing



Dallas, Texas, January 5, 2004 - To communicate that healthy food choices are no further away than their neighborhood 7-Eleven® store, the nation’s leading convenience retailer is launching a national awareness program, "Better Choices, Better Year," with Atkins® controlled-carb products headlining a line-up of better-for-you offerings.

Almost 50 products offering a diversity of convenience snacks, food and beverages catering to the many types of weight-management lifestyles, including controlled-carb, low-fat, low-calorie and high-protein, are being merchandised in a single section to show customers the variety of healthier choices available. Half of those products are new to 7-Eleven, including 12 Atkins-brand items, like Atkins Bakery™ bread, Atkins Crunchers™ chips, Morning Start bars and Advantage meal replacement bars and shakes.

"Atkins is long past being a fad," said Kenneth Fries, 7-Eleven category manager for Snacks. "What first was considered a fad and then a trend has now crossed over to become a lifestyle for millions of people. An estimated 25-30 million are following some kind of low-carb weight-management program. Fortunately, now you can have your cake and bread, and eat it too."

White flour and sugar, along with sugary soft drinks and foods that contain trans fat are among the ones limited on Atkins and similar plans. 7-Eleven has seen sales of nuts, cheese and jerky climb as more people began looking for low-carb snacks. However, Fries said you won’t see these items on the 7-Eleven "Better Choices" display.

"Everybody knows we sell jerky," he said. "What they may not know is that we also sell low-carb bread, soy chips, low-carb chocolate bars, high-protein cookies, fat-burning bars, low-cal meal replacement shakes and diet supplements. That’s what we’re trying to get across to people. 7-Eleven has the products they want and need. We’re more than just hot dogs and burritos."

Items in the "Better Choices, Better Year" display also are merchandised in their appropriate sections throughout the store, where customers can compare nutrition labels and make their selections. In addition to Atkins®, manufacturers of products now offered at participating 7-Eleven stores include EAS, Dr. Phil’s Shape Up!, Carb Solutions, LeanSource, Slim Fast, Z Carb, Carb Slim, Metabolife and Power Protein. For the past four years, the company has added products to appeal to the weight- and nutrition-conscious in a variety of categories from energy drinks and low carb beer in the vault to sugar-free and zero-calorie Slurpee® beverages and fat-free cappuccino.

In fresh foods, a new Snack Cup with cubed meat and cheese answers the need for a low carbohydrate lunch alternative to the traditional deli sandwich.

While "low-carb, high-protein" is the gold standard by which most new diet foods are measured these days, no industry criteria has been set that actually defines what constitutes a low-carb item, according to Fries.

"Individual products must have less than 10 net carbohydrates per serving to be designated as ‘low carb’ at 7-Eleven," he said. "That’s our standard and the current, but unofficial, benchmark in the food business."

Net carbs refers to the total grams of carbohydrates minus grams of fiber carbohydrates and polyols. Atkins pioneered this concept in order to communicate the level of carbohydrates, which have a significant impact on blood sugar, the ones you count when you’re following Atkins. For instance, Atkins Crunchers™ snack chips contain 8 grams of carbohydrates, of which 3 are fiber, for a net carb count of 5. Atkins Morning Start™ Apple Crisp bars contain 13 gms of carbs, but only 2 net carbs, once you subtract glycerin (4 gms), sugar alcohols (1 gm) and fiber (6 gms).

While dozens of weight-loss plans call themselves "low carb," the publication of Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution is credited with pioneering the trend and has gained the widest recognition among food-conscious adults. With more than 50 percent of Americans professing to be following some form of weight-loss program, food retailers and manufacturers are working to meet the demand."

"We are always looking for new products that meet our customers’ needs," Fries said. "Low-carb programs look like they’re here to stay, so our customers can expect to see a growing number of choices as major food companies introduce alternatives to favorite foods like chips, candy, cookies and other sweet and salty snacks."

About 7-Eleven, Inc.

7-Eleven, Inc. is the premier name and largest chain in the convenience retailing industry. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, 7-Eleven, Inc. operates or franchises approximately 5,800 7-Eleven® stores in the United States and Canada and licenses approximately 19,700 7-Eleven® stores in 16 countries and territories throughout the world. During 2002, 7-Eleven® stores worldwide generated total sales of more than $33 billion. Find out more online at www.7-Eleven.com.





Margaret Chabris

7-Eleven, Inc.

214.828.7345

Wow if 7-11 is selling LC it shouldn't be long before more & more companies figure it out. I don't eat much processed food but it's that the choice is out there for people that want a snack when they're on the road.

I second that WOW. More and more companies are listening!

I wanted to drop a quick note on processed foods. Not all of the processed lc foods out there are equivalent. Some are essentially whole foods nicely prepared, and others are loaded with trans fats, partially hydrogenated stuff, and other nasties.

I've noticed that a lot of the Atkins brand foods that I've bought are pretty good quality stuff.

It boils down to looking at the ingredient list. If it's not a completely whole food, then checking out the ingredients is a must on anything that we buy.

One fabulous product out there by Instant Gourmet is their line of dehydrated soups. These are sold at my local Vitamin Cottage (natural grocery), and the ingredients are pretty wholesome (http://www/aa-foods.com).

Another fabulous product--but guaranteed to be addictive--are the 7 grain fiber bagels made by Low Carb Emporium (http://www.deepdiscountnutrition.com). They are the "closest thing to sliced bread" so to speak... they taste exactly like regular bagels (but toasting is a must). As a side note, they make wonderful mini-pizzas for those of us who have been missing pizza and croutons/stuffing. These bagels are 1 net carb per oz, and a bagel can be anywhere from 2 - 5 oz each.

A staple in my refrigerator is Carb Countdown Dairy Beverage by Hood. It's available at my local Wal-mart and is a nutritionally improved milk/soy blend that is out of this world. Perfect hot chocolate or cold. My kids ask for the chocolate one at breakfast. A cup of the plain blends very nicely with 4 frozen strawberries and Splenda for a lc shake to die for.

I, too, have tried this product. I use the "skim" version in tea and found it doesn't leave the mild, slightly bitter aftertaste regular skim does. There is a thread about this product and most people seem to find the "whole" milk similar to the consistency of cream, the 2% closer to regular "whole" milk. Check it out. And everyone posting loved it.

I just tried the Carb Countdown with some Atkins cereal. Pretty darned good! And that milk is thick enough for coffee.

There I was, parked in front of a 7-11 last night while my partner ran in for a bottle of water. I looked up and saw the huge sign over the door that stretched from one end of the building to the other..."JOIN THE LOW-CARB REVOLUTION!".

I remember 2 years ago when the only snakcs we could hope to find in a 7-11 were pepperoni or maybe some nuts. And that most people thought we were nuts...

Donald