I ain't got time to chew!

In 2008 a company called Plum Organics introduced food pouches for babies and tots.  I went to their website.  I'm not linking to it, so if you want to check it out you'll need to Google it.  At first glance, it looks like something fantastic.  No BPA, certified organic, earth friendly fruits and veggies.  However, when I take a deeper look, I see a disturbing trend.

This is not just a line of baby food.  It is also marketed to parents with toddlers. Toddlers with very busy lives.  These children are so busy that there is just no time for solid food.  The kiddies suck the mush in the pouch through a tube.  YUM.....not!!!

The man behind the mush, Mr. Grimmer, calls it "on-the-go snacking".  This article in The New York Times is filled with pithy little catch phrases and buzz words.  Maureen Putman, chief marketing officer of Hain Celestial Group, says

“As a child becomes more independent and wants to self-feed, the pouches are mom’s answer. They definitely give the child a little bit of control and confidence.”

I would love to know how sucking mush from a tube gives children confidence.

Neil Grimmer tries to latch on the free-range parenting convoy.  He really, really should have researched what free-range is all about before putting that out there.  If you, and your child, have a schedule that is so packed your only recourse to stave off starvation is a tube of goo, it is time to rethink your lifestyle.

 Karen le Billon.com makes some excellent points in her blog about these pouches.  How do we expect that our children will learn to eat healthy if they are still sucking mush at age four?  There are days when things are hectic and the help of a quick packaged food can be a life saver. Occasionally!

Free-Range Kids points out that having a schedule that is constantly so packed that a pouch of mush saves the day is the opposite of what free-range is all about.

If we don't watch out, we will become like the people in Wall-E.  Strapped to a hover chair, sucking goo, watching a screen.