Oats are a great source of soluble fiber, and as the specific fiber contained in whole oats, beta-glucan soluble fiber, has been shown to help control cholesterol, some oat products are allowed to claim that they reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. These products include oat bran, rolled oats or whole oat flour, and they also must meet the FDA's standard for "low fat" foods. The Quaker Oat company has requested - and temporarily received (pdf) - an exemption to the "low fat" standard for some of their other oat products, like instant oatmeal. The exemption allows qualifying products to make the claim that they coronary heart disease right on the packaging by allowing them to increase their oat content to acceptable levels, even if by doing so they surpass the federal maximum for low fat products. Not all oat products will be eligible, but Quaker's reduced sugar instant oatmeal products would qualify under the new plan.

When you want chocolate in the morning, once you're over the age of 10 or so, you're probably going to opt for hot chocolate, a mocha or maybe even a small piece of your favorite candy bar long before you reach for a box of chocolate cereal. But cereal makers are counting on the fact that their newest products will change that.

Odwalla is launching a new line of juices at the Sundance Film Festival, called the "PomaGrand" varieties ("Uniquely combining the wonders of the red spectrum from nature's harvest, PomaGrand combines the goodness of pomegranate juice with wild berry extract"). Quaker Oats is sponsoring the "Steel Cut Oatmeal Power Breakfast" [pdf link], "where Hollywood's dealmakers will be invited to the Premiere [magazine] lounge to find both the next big deal from the Festival as well as a healthy breakfast."

They both seem a little, well, ridiculous. Quaker Steel Cut Oatmeal has (as far as I know) nothing to do with movie dealmakers. Pomegranate, while good for you, is so over. Hollywood is now doing the Acai thing. The hip health nuts have moved on. Yes, the attendees of this festival are truly hip (after all, some of our favorite people are going!). But are they really a mainstream grocery store food audience? Do you really think Robert Redford shops at Safeway?

You might be aware that breakfast cookies are gaining popularity these days. Even Quaker is coming out with a line of the breakfast sweets, full of oats and fiber for those who just can't stomach the idea of cereal in the morning. Frankly, I don't see much difference between these and the regular oatmeal cookies that I like, which I am not about to start eating for breakfast. If breakfast cookies could somehow incorporate bacon, though, I am sure that many people would be brought around to the cookie-for-breakfast mentality. Enter Cookin' in the 'Cuse and her recipe for Bacon Breakfast Cookies. These cookies are a "sweet and savory crunchy cookie studded with bits of smoked bacon, raisins and multi grain cereal." Now if only someone would start to market these!