Start Serving Health Foods at the Movies! My Concession-Stand Idea

While I feel for businesses that aren’t doing well, I can’t say that I’m particularly sad when I hear that sales of movie theater candy are dwindling, as the Los Angeles Times recently reported .

Call me un-American, but my heart just doesn’t go out to companies that rely on folks pigging out on popcorn and candy when seeing movies. Rather, my more profound empathy and tremendous compassion go to the folks, who are suffering from a variety of conditions and diseases, which may, in fact, be furthered, or even triggered, by their habit of consuming way too many quickie carbs.

But this box office slump and dwindling junk-food sales that movie theaters are experiencing is a prime occasion for me to rant and rail about my big pet peeve.

I absolutely hate, hate, hate that movie theaters sell only unhealthy, sugary, fatty food! You simply cannot find any decent, nutritious fare in movie theaters. Why not?!

Ugh, every time I see a film (which is quite often), I have to look the other way as I pass by nutrient-lacking, calorie-filled "foods" that seek to tempt me. I’m pretty good now at passing by concession stands–or even just buying water at the movies. (OK, I confess that I do make once-in-a-blue-moon slips–buying some popcorn–which I always regret later.)

Look, I am saddened that movie theaters aren’t doing so well because of dwindling attendance. (I’m exempt here — several movie theater houses actually make good money off my friends and me, because we regularly feed our movie habit. I just love seeing films as a way to set aside my cares for a couple of hours.)

But, frankly, I’m sick of having water as my only option to buy at the movies. It’s downright annoying and even unnerving to be forced to sneak in some almonds and other healthy snacks–and hope that some movie theater guard doesn’t throw me out for breaking their ridiculous rules–that you’re only allowed to eat their calorie-laden, sugary or salty fare.

Anyhow, back to this fascinating piece by Los Angeles Times reporter John Horn. The astute journalist caught a hopeful sign amidst the bad news about dwindling theater concession spending. (Big hurrahs for the newspaper for which I used to write, first as an intern and later as a freelancer.)

Horn writes:

"Where some see lemons, others see lemonade — or, at least, fruit smoothies. Steve Nilforoushan says that what theaters and their patrons really need is a healthy alternative to all those salty and sugary rations."

Amen to that! Horn continues:

"Appearing at the convention for the first time, Nilforoushan was launching Smoovies, a frozen drink filled with bananas, strawberries and no high-fructose corn syrup. Nilforoushan says his concoctions would cost just over $1 for exhibitors to make, and retail for as much as $6.50 — a healthy profit for theaters, he says, but not a wallet-gouging increase over what such drinks cost in smoothie stores."

No high fructose corn syrup? Now that is cool! More from Horn:

"Look around here. Everything is junk food," Nilforoushan said, surveying the ShoWest tradeshow floor. "Movie attendance doesn’t really worry me, because the graph for growth in the smoothie industry is going up exponentially."

Now that’s more like it! But, seriously, why don’t these concessionaires take their cue from the increasingly popular Whole Foods and start offering apples, pears, bananas, raw vegetables, or maybe even some healthy soups?

Actually, my favorite movie-theater concession idea is this: Whole Foods, Wild Oats or Trader Joe’s (or whichever health-food chain gets smart first) opens stands in every theater across America, offering nutritious snacks to us moviegoers. Yum!

Like my idea? Help me get it heard by the powers that be at health food chains across the country!