Nestle to Barge Junk Food Up the Amazon in "Sailing Supermarket"

Just because you live in the far reaches of the Amazon doesn't mean you should be denied access to such staples as Baby Ruths® and Raisinets.® Or so goes the thinking of Nestle,  which is intent to not let Unilever best them in bringing junk food to the world's poor, a group also known as "emerging markets."

Michele Simon, blogging at Appetite for Profit, calls Nestle out on plans to use large barges to market goods on two Amazon river tributaries. Bloomberg News, which originally posted the story, described Nestle's strategy as "sailing a supermarket barge," although I'd like to question the use of the word "supermarket" here. Last time I checked, most supermarkets carried more that just processed foods. These barges sound a lot like the ice-cream trucks or crappy corner stores that provide some of the only access to food in poorer neighborhoods in the U.S., much to the detriment of the residents there who are in need of affordable, sustainable choices.

The barges are to carry "300 different goods including chocolate, yogurt, ice cream, and juices," according to Bloomberg, which doesn't sound like the makings of a well-balanced diet. But Nestle says it's also going to remedy that situation by adding extra "nutrients" to products, which is almost comical if it weren't so sad. It's great to see someone thinking outside the box about access to food, but disappointing that it's a profit-driven, junk food company.

Apparently Nestle sees big money in targeting some of the world's most economically disenfranchised, and they've got a clever strategy for how to get people with very little money to spend it on crap. The company's adapted their products to be sold in smaller packages "to make them more accessible to low-income shoppers," Bloomberg points out.

Simon clarifies that this tactic is borrowed from the tobacco industry, which sells single cigarettes in developing countries to try to get people hooked on their product even if they can't afford to buy a whole pack, a practice that's been disallowed in most places.

Of course Nestle is not the only junk food company to turn up the heat in the developing world. I wrote recently about how Coke and Pepsi are doing their part to spread obesity to India and China, investing billions in those countries. Nestle also hasn't neglected efforts in the U.S. and the company's made keen profits by tapping spring water in economically vulnerable rural communities. The small town of McCloud, California recently sent Nestle packing after a six-year fight to keep the multinational's paws off their mountain spring water. Battles continue against Nestle across the U.S., including prolonged fights in Michigan and Maine.

Of course Nestle will continue to go where there is money to be made—one can only hope their latest junk food imperialism is a sinking ship.

Photo credit: David Boyle