Have you seen this??!?

[Swimmom]

Atkins Nutritionals out of bankruptcy
By DAVID B. CARUSO
Associated Press Writer

January 10, 2006, 1:23 PM EST

NEW YORK -- Atkins Nutritionals has emerged from bankruptcy with a revised business model that hinges less on the popularity of the low-carb diet espoused by its founder.

The company said it isn't abandoning the legacy of the late diet guru Dr. Robert C. Atkins, who taught that people should eat foods rich in protein and limit their intake of carbohydrates.

But with the anti-carb craze waning, the company is no longer publishing books about the Atkins diet and has jettisoned almost all of a once-broad product line that included low-carb bread, bagels, pasta, cookies and cheesecake.

Its new sole focus is selling Atkins Advantage protein bars and shakes, which have been around since 1997, but have been recently reformulated to taste better, said chief executive officer Mark S. Rodriguez.

"We have put all our energy and focus on improving their appearance, taste and overall quality," he said.

Keeping with the Atkins tradition, the Advantage bars are low on carbs and calories, high in fiber, have more protein than a standard PowerBar (a snack marketed to marathoners) and as much saturated fat as a Snickers chocolate bar (perhaps a bigger attraction for couch potatoes).

Founded in 1989 and based in Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Atkins Nutritionals spent five months in bankruptcy protection, trimming $300 million in debt. The company filed papers ending court supervision of the company Tuesday. It emerges with its debt at $110 million.

Atkins Nutritionals said it has also streamlined operations, improved delivery times and cut costs by trimming the number of products it offers from 340 to 60 and its number of contract manufacturers from 34 to six.

Robert Atkins died in 2003, at age 72, after a fall on an icy sidewalk.

He began promoting his diet emphasizing foods like meat and eggs over bread and fruit in 1972. At the time, it was assailed by the American Medical Association as potentially dangerous, but it nevertheless sparked a craze in the 1990s, and was later partially vindicated by studies showing that people on the diet lost weight without compromising their health.

So, what I get from this is that they are going to stop publishing the books (which tell how to do Dr. A's program correctly) so they can focus on manufacturing the frankenfood bars and shakes that uneducated people (who now can't get the book) will use as a first resort instead of the last and will then blame for making them fatter. This will, of course, lead to further bashing of this WOE. I'm so glad I already have a copy of DANDR!!!

[LC_Dave]

Yeah, I don't know what will become of the books. But they sell themselves, perhaps a publishing company will buy the rights to it.

I know everyone is pretty anti bars on this forum, but in their defence I find the Advantage bars just about the best out there.

It's good they are out of bankrupcy - now the diet gurus can shut the **** up!

[Brook]

I wish I could say it surprises me, but no such luck. Atkins Nutritionals has been more concerned about the almighty dollar and progressively less and less concerned with the health of the people they're supposed to be taking care of for a long, long time. It really makes me sad. I feel they've completely perverted the intentions of the good doctor. "Occasional use" doesn't mean market 3 bars a day to people while perpetuating the instant gratification mindset or fostering the belief that any of us are too busy to take care of ourselves, ya know?

They might be the best bars out there (I wouldn't know) - but I'm pretty sure there are quality differences in horse dung too. It all comes down to the same thing. Garbage is garbage is garbage, regardless of how you dress it up!

~Brook

[goin2Bgood]

I wonder if they're discontinuing their vitamins too? I like the essential oils and basic 3

[ladyinred]

Poor Dr. A. He's probably spinning in his grave right now. I wish they'd call their stupid company something else instead of muddying his good name.

[Moochiecat]

At least they got the details of Dr. Atkins death correct, and they said good things about the diet and that it is not bad for people...which is a refreshing change from how the media usually glosses it all over.
It's sad to think that people might believe that eating a bar or shake will make them thin and not be able to find the resources to understand the complete Atkins diet, but on the flip side of that, at least they're making the frankenfoods better and of a higher quality.
It's a shame his research will not continue in the form of updated books. The diet world really lost a lot when he slipped on that ice.

I think this is a good time to trot out my cut and paste of Dr. Atkins opinion of frankenfoods.

Bars/shakes
Quote:The patients who stayed, however, were extremely loyal to both atkins and his low-carb diet. But they had one major complaint: In a fast-paced world where everything was low in fat or high in carbohydrates or both, it was difficult to find something that they could eat on the run while still remaining on the low-carb program. They had no time to prepare their own snacks. Perhaps something like the low-fat energy bars sold in convenience stores would be great, only low-carb instead.

Atkins hesistated, and for a good reason. One of the things he constantly stressed with his patients was that they should eat foods that were as close to their natural state as possible, and for him, any kind of energy bar was as good as poison since it was clearly a processed food...

But his patients continued to beg him for something---"you sell the vitamins and other supplements, why not energy bars?" they reasoned--and so, with great reluctance, he gave in and developed not only an energy bar but also a low-carb shake that would make it easier for patients to keep to their Atkins programs.

"As long as you only use it for emergencies," he reminded them.

****

The energy bars and shakes were a necessary evil, there only because he thought his patients were too lazy to prepare the real kind of unprocessed foods that were the mainstay of his diet.

---Excerpted from:
Dr. Robert Atkins: The True Story of The Man Behind the War on Carbohydrates Lisa Rogak. Chamberlian Bros. 2005. Ch. 6

[Chris]

None of this surprises me, in the least. Those Advantage bars, in my opinion, do much more harm that good. People read "net carbs" and believe it, but the sugar alcohols just don't work as they claim.

I'll allow that the shakes can come in handy in rare situations. They have no sugar alcohols, and are very rich in vitamins. Even they, however, should not be used except in the rare situation when real, whole foods are not available.

I have two copies of DANDR and one of Essentials, and I'm going to hold and treasure them!

[Carrieh]

I hate to see this, too. Just like people don't read the book and think they know all about the Atkin's WOE (my doctor included), as soon as they see that Atkin's Nutritionals is changing its focus, they will say, "Oh yeah, they had to make a change away from Atkin's because low carb is dead."


Brook -- "They might be the best bars out there (I wouldn't know) - but I'm pretty sure there are quality differences in horse dung too. It all comes down to the same thing. Garbage is garbage is garbage, regardless of how you dress it up!" I lOVE it!!!