European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 14, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                General Mills has put new life in cheerios by adding is to its of  marketers making Money from food that kids play with As Well As eat by Bruce Horovitz los Angel Stimes Here is one thing most kids would rather do with food than eat it play with it. That s Why some savvy marketers Are asking themselves Why not make that a Selling Point earlier this summer hoping to persuade kids that there s More to do with cheerios than eat them general Mills began mixing x s along with the familiar toasted oat o s. With one of the nation s Best Selling cereals in a bit of a sales slump general Mills has begun promoting four Board games on the backs of cheerios boxes. No Surprise cheerios Are the designated game pieces. You might Call it interactive cheerios indeed in this age of interactive television a wave of interactive foods is hitting the marketplace. Consider one especially graphic liquid Candy super nauseating obnoxious treat snot which squirts out of a plastic dispenser that looks just like a Man s nose. All kinds of candies cereals cookies and desserts Are being promoted More for play value than taste. Marketers Are cashing in on something that parents have known for years All food is Finger food to kids. Some sceptics Are questioning that sales Hook. People aught to buy food for its nutritional value not How High it can Bounce said Michael Jacobson director of the Washington based consumer lobby Center for science in the . This sounds like desperation on the part of food  the logic of marketing has reached a meltdown state adds Alex Molnar professor of education at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. It s now devouring  for years smart marketers have. Tried to help overcome the resistance some children have to eating whether with Spaghetti of s or alphabet soup said Ira Mayer publisher of the Brooklyn . Based newsletter youth marketing r what s wrong with having a Little fun it s not As i we re telling kids to not eat their dinner Jay Tapper Cap toys official Alert. Likewise various makers of animal crackers know that the cookies Are played with As often As they Are eaten. But the concept of food As something to play with seems to be reaching new Levels. The most recent rave is two lollipops that double As toys. Spin pops Are suckers attached by their Sticks to Battery powered gadgets that spin the lollipops around in children s Mouths. Lazer pops Are Clear lollipops placed directly Over non edible flashlights which when the lights Are clicked on resemble laser lights. The Lollipop machinery in t even made by a Candy company but by a toy firm Cap toys inc. Of Bedford Heights Ohio. Sales of its spin pops and Lazer pops Are booming. Cap toys executives Are baffled by any criticism of their products. What s wrong with having a Little fun pose i Jay Tapper 24, director of Cap toys Candy division. It s not As if we re telling kids to not eat their  of course Cereal giant general Mills is telling kids to play games like tick tack toe with its cheerios Cereal before eating it we re hoping parents will get involved and play the games with their kids said Catherine Newton a company spokeswoman. Food giant general foods caught on to the interactive food trend in 1990 when it started promoting jell o jugglers concentrated jello products shaped like dinosaurs or. Holiday ornaments that can be held in the hand and jiggled. Last year general foods introduced in activities which one spokeswoman described As fantasy activities that bring moms and kids together because it often requires the assistance of a Parent to make the concoctions. Dirt cups a promotion aimed at Young boys featured a mixture of chocolate pudding Cool whip cookie crumbs and Gummy Worms. The object to make it look As if the Worms Are crawling out of the dirt. Kids seem to love the stuff. I like to play with food a lot said 7-year-old Jesse Mayer who lives in Brooklyn ., and who sees All kinds of products aimed at children in part because his father Ira publishes the youth marketing Alert newsletter. Despite All the new interactive foods on the Block Jesse s favorite is still Alpha bits Cereal. I try to get a word on the spoon before i eat it Jesse said. Two of his favorite words to eat mom and  does t mind. I m into the tactile end of food Ira said. If we somehow got kids to play with their vegetables that would be  on the family sometimes children need to hear the word yes _ i. I \ feel it is easier to say no to my children than to say yes even when i Don t feel strongly about the permission they Are seeking. I wonder Why i automatically respond so negatively. I it is easy to fall into the habit of saying no to our kids. No you can t go  no you can t have a  no you can t use the  no you can t spend the night with a  we parents could have answered affirmatively to All of these requests but chose almost automatically to respond in the negative. Why because we did t take time to Stop and think about the consequences because the activity could cause us More work or Strain because there could be danger in the request because our children ask for a thousand favors a Day and we find it convenient to refuse them All. While very child needs to be acquainted with denial of some of the More extravagant wishes there is also a need for parents to consider each request on its own Merit. There Are so Many necessary no a in life that we should say yes whenever we can. Fitzhugh Dodson wrote in his Book How to father that your child needs time with you when you Are not demanding anything from him time when the two of you Are mutually enjoying  i agree. A 11 am a teen Ager and want to look and dress just like All my friends. My parents Tell me i should be an individual and be willing to be different but i just can t do it. Do you understand sure i do. Let me explain Why you feel such pressure to be like everyone else. The answer involves feelings of inferiority which Are usually very Strong during adolescence. You see when you feel worthless and foolish when you Don t like yourself then you Are More frightened by the threat of ridicule or rejection by your friends. You become More sensitive about being laughed at. You Lack the Confidence to be different. Your problems seem bad enough without making them worse by defying the wishes of the majority. So you dress the Way they Tell you to dress and you talk the Way they want you to talk and All your ideas Are the group s ideas. Your great desire is to behave in the safest Way possible. These Behaviours All have one thing in common they result from a Lack of self Confidence. Gradually your self respect will return As you become More mature and comfortable with yourself. Or. James c. Dobson to president of focus on the family a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the Home. Correspondence should be sent to him at focus on the Famay . Box 444. Colorado Springs Colo. 60903. Calling All poets the National Library of poetry is awarding $12,000 in prizes to More than 250 poets in this year s North american open poetry contest the contest is free and open to everyone. To enter Send one original poem no More than 20 lines Long any subject and any style to the National Library of poetry 11419 co Ridge drive . Box 704-2c, Owings Mills my. 21117. Entries must carry the poet s name and address at the top of the Page and must be postmarked by sept. 30. 20 saturday August 14,1993 the stars and stripes