Posted on Mon, Jan. 26, 2004
Atkins diet has heavy influence on business
By Dave Ferman
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
link to article
In 14 years of serving barbecue, Dustin Clark has never seen anything like this: Day after day, customer after customer at the Railhead Smokehouse in Colleyville orders meat and water -- and nothing else.
They might ask for a half-pound of ribs or turkey, or a full pound of sliced beef, but it's always just meat and water, meat and water, 30 or so customers a day.
"It's big-time now," Clark said. "You hear 'Atkins' all day long. It's been pretty constant for about a year."
With so many people making New Year's resolutions to lose weight, the low-carbohydrate Atkins diet has enjoyed another surge in popularity in the past few weeks.
"We're up in terms of sales of low-carb foods 25 percent in January as compared to December," said Dean Owens, specialty foods director at Central Market in Fort Worth. "And Atkins is the best-known."
Central Market and dozens of other area businesses, from Railhead to Denton's 117-year-old Morrison Milling Co., are feeling the effects -- good or bad -- of the Atkins diet, the wildly successful legacy of Dr. Robert Atkins, who died in April.
Atkins has become a cultural phenomenon: Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution has sold millions of copies, actresses Jennifer Aniston and Renee Zellweger have tried the diet, and David Letterman gets laughs mentioning it in one of his Top 10 lists. And someone you know is probably on it.
The craze has led to numerous chains jumping on the bandwagon. McDonald's, for example, is using brochures in some restaurants that help customers cut the carbs and reduce fats. Burger King just introduced a bunless cheeseburger, and On the Border is offering tortilla-free lettuce-wrap fajitas.
Although there are dozens of diets to choose from, area food experts and business owners say they have never seen one that has drawn such interest among such a wide range of people.
"In 30 years in the industry, I've never seen anything like this," said Susan Sexton, whole health category manager for United Supermarkets, which includes four Market Street stores. "Even in the smallest, littlest towns I put Atkins and low-carb products. The diet is heavy on meat and fat, and it fits right in with people's lifestyle, especially Texans' diets."
Around since the 1970s, but only gaining major popularity in the past few years, Atkins has drawn both converts and serious criticism from some nutritionists with a regime that emphasizes meat, eggs and cheese and cuts out many types of bread, pasta, fruit and sugar to severely cut carbohydrate intake.
White bread, that time-tested favorite of the American table, is out.
Atkins isn't going away largely because, at least short term, it works, according to Lyn Dart, a professor of nutritional sciences at Texas Christian University.
"People can live with it, and they can find the food readily, and they can continue to go to restaurants," Dart said.
Many business owners say Atkins has not meant decreasing sales, but rather adapting to market trends.
At Weinberger's Delicatessen in Grapevine, owner Dan Weinberger says many customers still want their Polish sausage or pastrami sandwiches, just without the bun or bread.
"It's had quite an impact," he said. "It's like a domino effect -- one person in line will have a Polish sausage without the bun and other people in line will do the same thing. I think it shows people are getting tremendous results. One guy who comes in dropped 40 pounds, and I was floored by how fast."
The meat-laden diet has meant increased sales for such businesses as Hurst's Honeybaked Hams. Store manager David Rutherford says he's seeing an extra five or six customers each week.
Some customers who used to come in just a few times a year, at Thanksgiving and Christmas, are now in "every other week, or at least once a month."
"The people who come in for ham or turkey or ribs are very happy with the diet," said Rutherford, who has lost 35 pounds since he went on the Atkins diet last summer. "You can munch on ham or turkey all day."
Large stores, such as Market Street and Central Market, have adapted by adding more low-carb foods and grouping them.
Central Market is devoting an entire aisle to low-carb items such as brown rice and spelt pastas, and low-carb bread and brownie mixes. The store is also offering low-carb recipes.
"There's been no decline in sales. People are looking for carb substitutes," Owens said. "This past summer we started seeing the demand, and we added five times the number of [low-carb] products. Everyone's getting on the bandwagon since the holidays."
United Supermarkets' Sexton has a similar story: The Market Street store in Colleyville recently grouped many low-carb items in a 12-foot section. Also, she notes, sales of pork rinds have gone through the roof.
"People are looking for a low-carb or no-carb product with flavor," she said.
Flouring discontent
Although some businesses are finding a smooth transition through the Atkins age, others in the wheat and grain industry are worried about the future.
U.S. bread sales have been flat for a year, according to Judi Adams, president of the Wheat Foods Council in Denver.
"And I know a lot of bakeries are providing customers with low-carb bread to boost sales," she said.
As might be expected, Adams is no fan of Atkins. She says that while wheat flour consumption has dropped an average of 10 pounds per American per year since 1997, obesity levels continue to rise. Childhood obesity has become a major health issue.
Bread, she says, is not the culprit. Bad eating habits and lack of exercise are.
"People want a quick fix," she said. "People don't exercise as much, and kids spend a lot of time behind computers. It's no wonder we're overweight. People want a magic bullet, and there's always a fad diet."
Not everyone is worried. Sales at Fort Worth's most famous bakery, Mrs Baird's, have not been affected, according to company spokesman David Margulies, in part because the company has introduced new bread lines featuring whole grains and fewer carbs.
"There's just been a demand for more variety in breads," Margulies said. "People are becoming more sophisticated and their tastes are becoming more sophisticated. This is just an opportunity."
But he, too, is no fan of Atkins.
"It's a lot of hype," he said. "Our doughnut sales are doing great, too. And we're still baking 120 loaves of white bread per minute. Our message is, it's not the carbs, it's the calories. A balanced diet is the only way to lose weight."
But businesses are being stung, at least a little. The 10 percent to 15 percent surge in sales Morrison Milling usually enjoys during the holiday baking season didn't happen last year, Chief Executive Harry Crumpacker said.
Supermarkets and food distributors that buy the company's flour, cornmeal and baking mixes just didn't need as much as in 2002. As a result, Crumpacker said, "we're not losing money, but we're not making as much as we're used to making."
Popular -- but durable?
The big question is, how many people will stay with the diet?
Even detractors admit that, yes, many people drop weight quickly. But observers and participants both say there are often drawbacks.
For one thing, a diet that emphasizes meat can be expensive. For another, some people lose a certain amount of weight quickly and then "plateau," finding it hard to maintain the weight or lose more.
"It's happened to me, and a lot of my customers say the same thing. They plateau after three to five months," Rutherford said.
Sexton said many people "don't ever quite transition from the beginning period to reintroducing fruits and vegetables and grains to maintain healthy eating. I see people do it for a month, and then they binge, get a big pizza or a big plate of pasta."
What's more likely is that people will go off the diet but continue to make eating choices that include lower carbs, or that they will go back to their old ways and take up the diet again when they are trying to lose weight for a short period of time.
But rising fast behind Atkins is another low-carb/high-protein juggernaut. The South Beach Diet, written by Dr. Arthur Agatston, also gives a big thumbs-down to white bread, rice and pastas, and promotes eating fish, chicken and apples, among other foods.
The three-phase diet has been endorsed by Bill and Hillary Clinton, and is seen by some as easier and with more options than Atkins.
Some people are dubious that either diet will be around for long.
"I think people will still eat pasta and comfort foods," said Owens, of Central Market. "You set out a plate of hot bread and butter in this store and see how long it lasts."
Low-carb foods
What makes a product "low-carb?" For more information, go to
www.star-telegram.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dave Ferman, (817) 685-3957 dferman~star-telegram.com
"Atkins diet has heavy influence on business"
Linear Mode
