Pop-Tarts®, Now Literally a World of Its Own

Welcome to Times Square, once known as a haven for drug pushers, and now... (photo by diaper via Creative Commons)

For an 8 year old, nothing is more exciting than the sound the foil makes when opening a bag of Pop-Tarts, putting the pastry in the toaster and waiting with bated breathe for the “ding.” What if that 8 year old could customize his own box? Could walk up to a cafe and order any Pop-Tart ever made? Could suggest his own ideas for new flavor varieties?

Well, welcome to Pop-Tarts World™, Kellogg Co.’s newest retail space in the middle of Times Square in New York City.

This emporium of sugar filling-stuffed frosted pastries will feel right at home, neighboring competitor sugar-pushing venues Hershey Store and M&M’s World.

Apparently, in order to fully embed their treats in the sweet-teeth of Americans across the country, candy-dealers have to secure prime real-estate in one of the world’s biggest tourist destinations. One can only imagine the profits to be made from the activities that this new retail store offers:

• Ordering from the full service Pop-Tart Cafe (with 30 different creations, including customizable Pop-Tart “sushi,” which replace fish and rice with a combination of Pop-Tart flavors rolled together in a fruit wrap, and “ants on a log,” which are peanut butter-filled celery sticks sprinkled with wild grape Pop-Tarts instead of raisins).
• Creating custom boxes filled with a mix of any Pop-Tart flavors, at the “Varietizer.”
• Playing interactive touchscreen Pop-Tart games.
• Customizing Pop-Tarts T-shirts with design artists.

So in commemoration of the grand opening last week, let’s take a look at the nutrition facts behind this American food phenomenon.

An individual Pop-Tart contains over 44 ingredients, including 4 varieties of added sugars, 4+ artificial colorings, myriad starches, oils, additives and preservatives (no wonder Pop-Tarts never get stale), and 2 measly fortified vitamins (thanks Kellogg for not making a completely useless, nutrient-empty product!).

In a nutshell, this product is diabetes and obesity wrapped in foil, disguised as a reasonable breakfast food — and should not be a go-to breakfast or snack choice under any circumstance, period.

What goes through a person’s mind when they decide to visit Pop-Tarts World? “Let’s get hyped up on sugar at the Pop-Tart Cafe, customize a box so we can bring more sugar home, and commemorate the spike in blood-sugar levels with a custom-designed diabetes-promoting T-shirt. It’s fun for the whole family!”

How are we supposed to make good healthy food choices when sugar-pushers are infiltrating our streets? These sucrose playhouses, with their bright colors and games and gimmicks, are aimed right at kids. Kellogg Co. and its cohorts are like the stranger on the sidewalk saying “Hey kid, come with me, I’ve got candy!”

Even though Times Square has been rezoned to be more family friendly, establishments like this still put our children at risk.  Pop-Tarts — aiding and abetting childhood-onset diabetes, and coming soon to a tourist destination near you.

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