Proof of the power of branding 8 Aug 2007

The Chicago Sun-Times reports on a study that powerfully demonstrates how branding can trick the taste buds of young children:

"Anything made by McDonald's tastes better, preschoolers said...Even carrots, milk and apple juice tasted better to the kids when they were wrapped in the familiar packaging of the Golden Arches.

"The study had youngsters sample identical McDonald's foods in name-brand and unmarked wrappers. The unmarked foods always lost the taste test.

"'You see a McDonald's label and kids start salivating,' said Diane Levin, a childhood development specialist who campaigns against advertising to kids.

"Study author Dr. Tom Robinson said the kids' perception of taste was 'physically altered by the branding.'"

[via Cup of Java]