I often go to the grocery store, Harmons, for lunch since it is located near my work. When I went to get my usual California Roll, I was greeted with this sign:
Since many people start off the year with a resolution to lose weight, Harmon’s took advantage of this by offering $1 off for the lower calorie sushi rolls. I think it’s a great, well timed promotion that aligns with many people’s interests.
We hear a lot about the obesity epidemic that it happening right now. Wouldn’t it be great if the food industry priced every food to incentivize you to lose weight? What if restaurants charged a penny for every calorie of your meal? That would make a McDonald’s Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese $7.50 and their Grilled Chicken Sandwich only $3.50. At Wendy’s, it would price the Baconator at $9.40 and their half sized Apple Pecan Chicken Salad at $3.40. At Olive Garden, it would price the Fettuccine Alfredo at $12.20 and the Herb Grilled Salmon at $5.20. At the grocery store, it would price an apple at 55 cents and a regular sized Snickers bar at $2.50.
It’s kind of a radical concept but I think the adjusted prices would change the way people make decisions about their food by incentivizing them to pick lower calorie options. It would also cause food producers to find ways to lower the calorie content for some of their items. If you think about it, you’re already paying a higher price in the long term to eat junk food in the form of medical bills for diabetes, heart disease and a number of medical conditions. Just a thought. In the meantime, it’s good to see places like Harmons incentivizing health, even if its just in a small way.