Would you like fries with that?

Years ago we used to joke that the cigarette murderers should just short circuit the process and add chemotherapeutic agents to their products. One stop cancer initiation and treatment. That was years ago.

Functional beer is another emerging product identified by Datamonitor, with beer manufacturers trying to regain ground lost to increasingly popular wine by launching new products with health benefits. These include vitamin beers, such as Stampede Light, which contains B-vitamins, folic acid and folate, as well as Germany's Karlesberg

Braueri functional beers aimed at women, made with lecithin, folic acid and other vitamins. (FoodNavigator)

It turns out this part of the new trend in the food industry, Health and Environment as marketing strategy. The good news is that the industry isn't creating a non-existent market, they are trying to capture an existing one. Of course they will do it in their own inimitable way. But it's interesting to see where they think the bucks are because it probably says something about changes in eating habits and concern. Last summer Mrs. R. and I bought a share in the harvest of a local farm, part of a movement called Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Every week we got a share of whatever was growing at that time. If the harvest was bad, we lost out. If it was good, we won. As it turned out we were supplied with more vegetables than we could safely consume with a low flow toilet, although in the last analysis not at all cheaper. The more relevant point is we didn't do it to save money. We did it to support local farmers. Apparently we weren't alone:

Consumers are also becoming increasingly concerned with the environment, and this awareness is being conveyed through a turn towards ethical consumption habits. This is seen through a growth in demand for locally grown and raised foods, with the USDA identifying a near 80 percent growth in the number of farmers' markets from 1994 to 2002. This interest is driven by the desire for fresher food, but also for helping the environment.

Indeed, the concept of 'food miles' is just beginning to surface, communicating the high-energy consumption required to bring foods from far-flung areas to market.

"It isn't too far fetched to speculate that we might see carbon ratings on packaged foods and beverages to encourage energy conservation and fight global warming. These ratings could express the carbon released into the atmosphere to grow, package and transport goods to market," said Datamonitor.

Along with some good trends come the inevitable cashing in on the preoccupation with body image. Since that image is looming larger and larger, this makes sense, but it is doubtful many of the food products marketed to help you lose weight will effectively in any organ system but your wallet.

"Nutriceuticals" pushing antioxidants and immune system boosters are another item slated for more shelf space. Expect to see more "oxidant rich superfruits" like goji berries, acai and pmoegranite. I know this sounds like latte drinking east coast foodie chardonay loving liberals indulging themselves.

But we have control of the Congress.