Khloe Kardashian Launched A ‘Guilt-Free’ Protein Popcorn — And Got The Messaging All Wrong

Khloe Kardashian last week launched a new business endeavor: Khloud, a popcorn that contains 7 grams of protein per serving.

There’s nothing inherently wrong about the launch of a new snack, but when the marketing and branding come into the picture, things get questionable.

The popcorn bag is branded with phrases like “good stuff” and “no fillers or fake stuff” and is also referred to as a snack you “don’t have to feel guilty about” in a People magazine interview with Kardashian.

In the interview, Kardashian said she created the snack as an alternative to protein products that are “filled with so much filler and artificial stuff.” She went on to say things like “I just want to feel good about the things I’m eating” and referred to other snacks as “bad.”

All of this “guilt-free,” “good” and “bad” language in reference to food is a diet culture foghorn that experts say customers should be careful of. Here’s why:

″‘Guilt-free’ gives a moral implication to food when there is no need to label what we eat as good or bad,” said Beth Auguste, a maternal wellness dietitian in Philadelphia. While there are certain food additives that can be harmful, looking at food as “good” or “bad” is too much of a generalization, she added.

“You aren’t ‘being bad’ if you eat a food that contains harmful ingredients, you are being a human who exists in a space where you can’t possibly control everything that goes into the foods you eat,” Auguste said.

Talking about food as “guilt-free” isn’t right, either. “Guilt is an emotional response that’s meant for when we hurt others, not for eating a snack,” said Cristina Hoyt, a clinical nutritionist in Philadelphia and host of the “Millennial Body Image Project” podcast.

“But diet culture has trained us to internalize guilt around food choices, especially for women, and then that guilt gets packaged and sold to us in products like this,” Hoyt said.

“The term ‘guilt-free’ reinforces the idea that enjoying food requires justification,” Auguste noted.

“Calling a food ‘guilt-free’ implies that other foods should make us feel guilty, and that’s not how nourishment works,” Auguste said. “All food can offer us something that benefits us.”

“It’s about enjoyment and nourishment, too,” Hoyt added. A plate of spaghetti and meatballs can remind you of Sunday dinner at your grandparents’ house, or a batch of homemade brownies can bring up memories of baking with your college roommates. And that’s no less important than a meal that’s going to fuel you for your workout class.”

“One of the things that I took from the [People] article was that [Kardashian] talked a lot about being skeptical of the food industry, and I feel like there’s been a long history of products making big wellness claims without much transparency or substance behind them,” Hoyt said.

It is absolutely frustrating to eat something for months, thinking it’s nourishing you in a specific way, only to find out that isn’t the case and it was just hyped-up marketing.

Hoyt stressed that “health food marketing, including this popcorn, is really just selling the feeling of being better than other people because you made a ‘right choice.’ And it’s less about what’s in the snack and more about what the brand wants it to say about you as a person.”

“One of the things that I find to be problematic is that if a company really wants to build trust, it needs to go beyond clean aesthetics and protein buzzwords,” she said. “It has to stop using shame-based language like ‘guilt-free’ and actually help people feel empowered around food and not judged by it.”

More, it creates a narrative that food is virtuous, Hoyt said. But folks don’t always have access to the foods that are “good.”

“It feeds into this idea around access to certain types of things, and if you don’t have access to something, then what? I’m not good enough? Now I should feel guilty for eating this? No, I should feel good about eating the things that are accessible to me and that are nourishing and … that I enjoy eating,” Hoyt said.

“I encourage all of my clients to think about the pros and cons of hyper-focusing on diet. At some point, the stress of eating ‘healthy’ can outweigh the benefit,” Auguste said.

Research shows that folks who restrict food and feel guilt and stress about it have worse health outcomes than those who don’t restrict their diet, according to Auguste.

“Those negative, guilty or restrictive feelings aren’t good for you either,” Auguste said. It also can lead to health issues such as an eating disorder diagnosis called orthorexia, “which is described as preoccupation with food quality and its impact on health,” Auguste said.

“Instead of asking, ‘Is this food guilt-free?’ Let’s ask, ‘How do I want to feel after I eat this food?’” Auguste said.

Maybe the food gives you energy, feels good in your body or lifts your mood, she said. “What’s the point of feeling guilty for choosing a food that lifts your mood?” Auguste said.

That being said, it’s not easy to just turn off guilty or bad feelings around food, and that’s because diet culture is really pervasive. But it can be unlearned.

Hoyt stressed that Kardashian likely launched this popcorn with the simple goal of having a more protein-dense snack on shelves, but diet culture is pervasive and she’s no less immune to it than we are.

“This is not Khloe Kardashian … it’s not about her. This is about a culture that is so pervasive and really has trained, especially women, to internalize guilt around food and that you should feel guilty about the foods that you’re eating,” Hoyt said.

“I talk to my clients about — and I have a podcast too, where we talk about this a lot as well — is around having a healthy dose of skepticism about the things that you’re reading and who’s sharing with you,” Hoyt said.

“What I mean by that, really, is about wondering and thinking to yourself, ‘Who is benefiting from this narrative, and how am I feeling about what’s being told to me?’ Am I now feeling like I am not doing enough, or I’m not good enough, or whatever it is, and then also who’s benefiting … because it’s not me. It’s usually someone else’s pocket,” Hoyt said.

Then, when you’re at a store and face-to-face with Khloud popcorn (or whatever product branded with gimmicky health buzzwords such as Halo Top, which is marketed as a “better-for-you” ice cream option and the candy brand Smart Sweets, which has “smart” right there in its name), you can ask yourself why you want a certain product.

“Am I supposed to feel guilty about eating popcorn? Why do I need to and who’s benefiting from that?” Hoyt said.

If you’re struggling with an eating disorder, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org for support.