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How the Food Industry Pays Influencers to Shill Blueberries, Butter, and More
- Animats 3y agoIt's surprising that's constitutional. I'd expect "Right to Farm" laws in some states to prohibit such union dues.
- mhuffman 3y agoThen again the food industry is pretty powerful. Remember when they legally forced Oprah to publicly apologize or saying that it could be dangerous to eat raw hamburger?
- CrazyStat 3y agoNo, I don’t remember that. Perhaps you’re referring to this case [1], which Oprah won? [1] https://www.britannica.com/story/a-brief-history-of-food-libel-laws https://www.britannica.com/story/a-brief-history-of-food-lib...
- SilasX 3y agoSlow down: are you seriously trivializing the fact that the food industry was able to very expensively sue someone over criticizing their product ... when she turned out to be correct ... just because she eventually won?
- Spivak 3y agoI mean anyone with money and time to burn can sue people. This isn't unique to the food industry, this is just SLAPP which is a much more general problem. So while you're right it sucks and it's bad that they can do this, it's not specifically a "big hamburger" problem.
- SilasX 3y agoIf "no big deal, it happens all time" is your answer, then you can just say "yes, I am trivializing it" -- that's what the term means.
- BobaFloutist 3y agoWow, you're exhausting.
- CrazyStat 3y agoNo, I'm just trying to keep the facts straight.
- Retric 3y agoIt’s a tax. Which is why there’s such government oversight of spending unlike a union. https://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/research-promotion/dairy https://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/research-promotio...
- raverbashing 3y agoHonestly? Better than shilling your highly processed industrialized food.
- geodel 3y agoWell people do prefer highly processed things. Consider how much loved is highly process data. There is whole (IT) industry about it.
- delichon 3y agoYep, on the spectrum of shilling for nukes, cigarettes, sugar and blueberries, blueberry shills are relative saints.
- ethbr1 3y agoAs long as they don't shill bananas mixed with blueberries. https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2023/FO/D3FO01599H https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2023/FO/D3FO0... Apparently the polyphenol oxidase in bananas doesn't play well with other nutrients.
- 0xcde4c3db 3y agoThe general term for this is "antinutrient", and their effect in real-world situations is rarely large enough to be worth the trouble of thinking about.
- delichon 3y agoSeveral knowledgeable vegans I know believe that they have real problems with oxalates in particular. This is particularly credible among people who drink a lot of spinach based smoothies, as I once did.
- organsnyder 3y agoThat's still very anecdotal.
- Simulacra 3y agoI'm amazed that people still depend on "influencers" to make decisions. After all we've seen over the last 10 years of sponsored posts, and "influencers" people still blindly follow their lead.
- morsch 3y agoIt's pretty insidious. People form parasocial relationships with these social media personas. When they recommend blueberries, or a brand of lip gloss, or invasive surgery, it's like a recommendation from a friend. I doubt it's a new phenomenon -- presumably in the past people bought sneakers because some celebrity wore them or recommended them. But it's probably more ubiquitous? And I think it's easier to fool yourself you have a relationship or kinship with a Instagram microcelebrity than with Micheal Jordan.
- tivert 3y ago> And I think it's easier to fool yourself you have a relationship or kinship with a Instagram microcelebrity than with Micheal Jordan. That, and it's probably easier to be fooled into thinking some Instagram microcelebrity is expressing a true independent opinion rather than making a paid endorsement. I think a similar thing happened to blogs. I recall reading years ago about a "mattress blog" that presented itself as some enthusiast sharing his knowledge, but it was 100% pay-for-play promotion. I'm not super active on social media, but I'm assuming something similar is going on there with influencers. An additional insidious dynamic is how advertising camouflages itself in whatever medium is the popular way for people to share honest opinions with strangers, then infects it so totally that you can't really trust it anymore. It's really undermined one of the positive selling points of the web.
- ghaff 3y agoI have trouble marshaling any outrage in this particular instance but anyone with a base level of intelligence knew that "Got Milk?" was a paid for advertising campaign while you may not know if some blog or Tik-Tok is the legit opinion of an enthusiast or is pay for play.
- timvdalen 3y agoI really cannot figure out the Bon Appetit site anymore. I subscribe to the magazine, and when I log in it says I'm a current subscriber, but I'm not allowed to read the online articles. Do you just need a separate subscription for the online stuff?
- data-ottawa 3y agoI tried a subscription to the digital version but still couldn’t figure out the login system to read the recipes and articles. It looked like the login was on another site and the cookies didn’t work properly across them.
- COGlory 3y agoIn a subscriber, and the link they send me to confirm the login just 404s now.
- whatamidoingyo 3y agoWait, are blueberries "shilled"? I had no idea, but I indeed "shill" them myself. Eating blueberries early in the morning has improved my digestion. They also make me feel really good throughout the day. So much so, I've made numerous attempts at growing blueberry bushes myself (unfortunately I don't have a green thumb). Likewise with coconut water, a habit I developed in Thailand. If they're shilled, so be it. It works for me, and if it works for others, that's good, right?
- octocop 3y agoYou don't get paid or get any other benefits from saying blueberries are good for you? Then you don't "shill" them
- ghaff 3y agoIt's a slang expression and commonly gets used even if pay isn't involved.
- zeroonetwothree 3y agoHow much did Big Blueberry pay you?
- dboreham 3y agoThat said, blueberries and butter are great. Remember: pretty much everything you see is in service of someone's business model.
- Scoundreller 3y agoStore bought blueberries are garbage. Even the frozen “cultivated wild” (wtf is that) ones. If it’s not bought from the side of the road in northern Ontario or Quebec (and probably some other places), you don’t know what you’re missing.
- geodel 3y agoAgree. Same is true for medicine. Store bought ones are garbage. I always buy from vendors selling at street corners.
- bigstrat2003 3y agoThey aren't remotely the same thing dude. Medicine is better when it gets made at a factory instead of in someone's back yard. Fruits and vegetables are better when they are made locally (which can be someone's back yard), rather than being shipped halfway across the country/world.
- justrealist 3y agoStore bought blueberries are fine. Frozen blueberries are fine. It's food, worry about things that matter.
- taeric 3y agoI... don't remember butter boards? I'm growing convinced that the worst thing with regards to how effectively targeted social media is, is in how it convinces journalists that they know what people are talking about and doing.
- IncreasePosts 3y agoYou don't remember the dumb social media trend that was popular for 2 weeks with .1% of the population a year ago?
- taeric 3y agoRight, this is my point. I would wager a lot of things that are hitting a minority of people still manage to have good coverage on journalists as a demographic. I don't know that this is happening, of course. Would love to have insight into it, but articles like this certainly strengthen my belief that it is happening.
- squigz 3y agoNot just journalists, but the average person too. It's quite frustrating.
- valicord 3y agoBut how could you miss entire "dozens of social media videos" on this captivating topic?
- trollerator23 3y agoWhen is it "shilling" vs making me aware of something I may actually be interested in? (I didn't even read the article)
- Johnny555 3y agoWhen the promoter gets paid by the industry that makes the product without disclosing it. I have nothing against paid promotion whether for butter, blueberries or cigarettes, but it should be made clear who is promoting it.
- thrill 3y agoFoodie magazine jelly of competition much?
- meowkit 3y agoThrowing my hat into the noise… Just try things people. Blueberries are awesome. I know a lot of yall sit at a desk and work on a computer. I personally find blueberries to be an amazing snack and fuel for that kind of work. Driscoll Berries - thumbs down Twin Rivers - thumbs up Farmers market - thumbs up
- midnitewarrior 3y agoWho paid you to say this???
- darkwizard42 3y agoclassic shill behavior by appealing to your target audience! what if I want a different berry?! No answer to that I assume /s
- savanaly 3y agoI just don't get the appeal of blueberries. I have tried them several times and find them both lacking in flavor and mealy in texture. I don't think I've only tried bad ones-- when I do buy them they're from the same grocery stores that are stocked with fruit I do like!
- jmprspret 3y agoI wholeheartedly agree with this. They're not bad at all. And I do enjoy them. But they really are both 'lacking in flavour' and 'mealy texture', as you say.
- Solvency 3y agothis is an absolutely outrageously stupid title. The entire world is a massive processed food advertising and marketing engine. We are pumping processed garbage hyper palatable foods full of sugar and wheat and bad oils and then advertising them to children with lovable cartoon characters. And that's just barely scraping the surface. The idea that some evil influencer sect are inappropriately schilling blueberries is one of the most perverse counter tactics I can possibly imagine by said industry.
- pollux01 3y agoYup! Clown world!
- topspin 3y agoCertainly an emblematic first world problem. No actual problems left in your world? Make one!
- achrono 3y agoMaintenance needs to become sexy (again?). Assuming you don't have near-infinite money, the misery averted by maintaining your car well is greater than the joy obtained by buying a new one, because you can really do both at the same time by spending only ~25% more and end up with 2 cars instead.
- darkwizard42 3y agoOn a broader note, with a HUGE explosion in choice especially amongst fresh fruits and vegetables which are now perpetually available "in-season" it feels like someone is ALWAYS advocating for one thing over another. I couldn't eat all the fruit my grocery store sells even if I ate one of each and three servings a day. There is so much variety... no wonder someone is "shilling" constantly, the choices are astounding.
- PeterStuer 3y agoEven more insidious is the armies of salaried mechanical turks on 'grass root' social groups and forums pushing forward a company's whisper campaign without any form of disclosure. You'll notice the same messages surfacing in various online avenues of certain niches nearly at the same time. They make people believe they are on the inside lane of something new and count on them spreading the 'insight' organically amongst their other circles, but it's pure planned guerilla marketing. Most I've noticed this in nutrition, healthcare and financial products.
- ironmanszombie 3y agoFor a minute there I thought you described us (HN readership).
- red-iron-pine 3y agoI mean, there is a lot of shillbot posting on the HN. but also keep in mind it's a startup-focused new aggregator and is explicitly for pushing your new product, esp. the YC ones. it's a concession you have to make to use the site regularly, and I can live with that.
- jbm 3y agoI'm convinced that this is why every recipe on Youtube now suddenly involves "delicious" Almond milk (which is not delicious and not milk). If you are going to be shilling for the vegan processed food industry, at least use oat milk (which you can make at home) or soy milk (which is actually delicious - at least the processed versions I had in Japan).
- autoexec 3y agoAlmond marketing is totally insane. I think it's because they feel they have to fight against all the people who point out how environmentally bad they are. It's hard to blame the people in CA who are upset when they're constantly asked to ration their personal water usage while the almond industry there takes more water than all the indoor water use of the entire state.
- sentfromrevolut 3y ago[dead]
- bigstrat2003 3y agoWho the hell needs to pay anyone to shill butter? Butter is widely known to be absolutely delicious, to the point that people go out of their way to tell us to eat less butter for the sake of our health. I can't think of anything which needs promotion less than butter does.
- lostlogin 3y ago> Who the hell needs to pay anyone to shill butter? Any company that makes butter as good as the below [1], and has an idea that some people haven’t heard of it. It’s silly expensive. It’s so great. https://www.lewisroadcreamery.com/collections/grass-fed-butter/products/premium-sea-salt-crystals-butter https://www.lewisroadcreamery.com/collections/grass-fed-butt...
- bigstrat2003 3y agoI'll have to see if I can find it at a store. I'm always down to improve my butter experience. I will say that I was very let down by Kerrygold. It's noticeably better if you are having just plain buttered toast, but otherwise I can't taste any difference between it and the normal butter one sees at the store.
- lostlogin 3y agoLewis Road have some truly great products - the salted butter is obviously different due to the visible salt crystals.
- ghaff 3y agoIt's true of a lot of things that, if you taste them in isolation, there's a noticeable difference. But if you're using them as just a supporting element or mixed in with a lot of other flavors, they may not be worth 2x the price.
- pr0zac 3y agoFound that to be the case with any butter really, when you cook with it or do anything that dilutes it, the flavor beyond "lipids" ends up lost quickly amongst the other flavors. We buy cheaper butter for stuff like frying eggs or to add to recipes that call for it and buy a smaller amount of really good stuff to put on (cooked) bread/steak/potatoes or other times where the flavor difference feels noticeable (also usually do unsalted for the normal, and salted for the high-grade). Note I said cheaper not cheap, I'd say like wine you shouldn't cook with butter you'd refuse on its own.
- gpspake 3y agoI read "Trust me I'm lying" and it reaffirmed a lot of my theories about how modern marketing works. (This isn't a sly paid plug for the book. Trust me ;) Now I assume everything is marketing by default. A couple that come to mind: the ugly sonic design when the movie came out. You get a whole wave of promotion from the outrage, then another when the design is fixed. An innocuous "my girlfriend's shirt matched her coffee mug" post but there are some brand name cookies in the edge of the frame. If I worked in marketing, these are the sorts of things I'd be trying to come up with. It gets even more fun when you apply these concepts to political propaganda.
- Spastche 3y agoyou reminded me of this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_clown_sightings https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_clown_sightings then suddenly, what comes out the next year? A long awaited remake of It https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_(2017_film) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_(2017_film) well, that's awfully curious.
- haburka 3y agoThe thinking you’re speaking of, namely that marketers are the ones calling the shots and causing disaster in order to generate controversy and therefore attention, is indistinguishable from paranoid delusions and conspiracy thinking. It’s important to back up claims of conspiracy with hard evidence otherwise it’s just unnecessary slander. Everything could be a conspiracy, potentially. I can’t think of any situation where a marketer would be given enough agency to manufacture disaster in order to sell something, except in politics. However, they certainly do have the ability to manipulate the media and narratives. I seriously doubt the sonic thing was a conspiracy as they put a ton of effort into making sonic and animating it, which they would have avoided if they intended to withdraw it.
- terribleperson 3y agoHonestly, I have a similar theory about the Sonic design incident. I think there's characteristics to that incident (the timing, mainly) that make it at least seem suspicious. My theory is not that it was marketing, but that the horrifying design was an order from above, and the trailer was a maneuver to create blowback against the design. This is baseless, of course.
- Aleksdev 3y agoWhy even shill blueberries? Who doesn’t like them?