Oh, Ulukaya. Studies say it only takes about three weeks for us to adjust to a new/different taste. If you drink coke and then switch to diet coke, it won't take long for diet coke to taste normal. Then, when someone hands you a non-diet coke, it will taste strange, too sweet, too something.
Same with switching from cow's milk to soy milk or peppermint toothpaste to wintergreen.
The phrase "new normal" is real in the world of taste.
You're right! I recall my college days. I didn't like coffee...who does??? I started with mochas and then to cappuccinos, then coffee with cream and finally: black!
This was a great edition of the newsletter! I definitely want to learn more about microplastics making it's way into glass bottles. I think it may be stemming from the manufacturer/factory equipment. I remember seeing a warning sign at Jamba Juice that said smoothies were made in blenders with led. That must be a really good candy bar. Have you tried the Dubai Chocolate yet?
I haven’t tried it yet, but I’ve seen plenty of copycat variations on YouTube. It’s a bummer I missed out on the limited edition Costco supply of the candy bars.
Two words: heirloom tomato. Forever and a day I didn't think much of tomatoes. Meh in my book. Then along comes heirloom to turn m tomato opinion upside down. The strange craggy creatures are such a leap ahead in taste it rewired my expectation of wha a tomato must taste like. Now I can't go back to the former. Thus we all have expectations about what a food in any given category is expected to taste like. If you can improve upon the state of the art and disrupt expectations, you have a shot at changing a category paradigm. If you can do this without costing an arm and a leg, you also have a shot at scale. Just saying taste is the prince of palatability and when you miss that mark, your formulation will never scale no matter the basic quality of an ingredient. Just the way humans are wired...
I was recently chatting with a friend who just read the book "Good Energy" by Casey Means PhD. (Have you read it? I just did.) Anyway, my friend was being honest, basically saying, that even being informed of all the ways that ultra-processed foods are unhealthy, he'll still eat them, despite that awareness. He was marveling at that fact at the same time. I couldn't help but go to an equation of factors: convenience + price + marketing + a cultural default. Spinning out of all that is hard for so many people.
Great observation. So many of us will eat UPF mindfully -- yes I'm doing it but oh well. I suppose more could be teased out about folks that aren't aware of what's going on and what they're eating. I will be happy with more of this type of awareness.
Oh, Ulukaya. Studies say it only takes about three weeks for us to adjust to a new/different taste. If you drink coke and then switch to diet coke, it won't take long for diet coke to taste normal. Then, when someone hands you a non-diet coke, it will taste strange, too sweet, too something.
Same with switching from cow's milk to soy milk or peppermint toothpaste to wintergreen.
The phrase "new normal" is real in the world of taste.
You're right! I recall my college days. I didn't like coffee...who does??? I started with mochas and then to cappuccinos, then coffee with cream and finally: black!
Perfect example. Tastes are acquired, and we can acquire them in a remarkably short period of time. Biology is great that way.
This was a great edition of the newsletter! I definitely want to learn more about microplastics making it's way into glass bottles. I think it may be stemming from the manufacturer/factory equipment. I remember seeing a warning sign at Jamba Juice that said smoothies were made in blenders with led. That must be a really good candy bar. Have you tried the Dubai Chocolate yet?
I have not tried the Dubai chocolate. I would LOVE to. :) You?
I haven’t tried it yet, but I’ve seen plenty of copycat variations on YouTube. It’s a bummer I missed out on the limited edition Costco supply of the candy bars.
Two words: heirloom tomato. Forever and a day I didn't think much of tomatoes. Meh in my book. Then along comes heirloom to turn m tomato opinion upside down. The strange craggy creatures are such a leap ahead in taste it rewired my expectation of wha a tomato must taste like. Now I can't go back to the former. Thus we all have expectations about what a food in any given category is expected to taste like. If you can improve upon the state of the art and disrupt expectations, you have a shot at changing a category paradigm. If you can do this without costing an arm and a leg, you also have a shot at scale. Just saying taste is the prince of palatability and when you miss that mark, your formulation will never scale no matter the basic quality of an ingredient. Just the way humans are wired...
Hah. That comic is perfect.
I was recently chatting with a friend who just read the book "Good Energy" by Casey Means PhD. (Have you read it? I just did.) Anyway, my friend was being honest, basically saying, that even being informed of all the ways that ultra-processed foods are unhealthy, he'll still eat them, despite that awareness. He was marveling at that fact at the same time. I couldn't help but go to an equation of factors: convenience + price + marketing + a cultural default. Spinning out of all that is hard for so many people.
Great observation. So many of us will eat UPF mindfully -- yes I'm doing it but oh well. I suppose more could be teased out about folks that aren't aware of what's going on and what they're eating. I will be happy with more of this type of awareness.