[Alt text] This two-page advertisement includes one large image of scientists in a wet lab. The scientists are all white, 3 men and 1 woman. The scientists are wear informal attire underneath white lab coats, asserting status and professional credibility. They are surrounded by many different types of chemistry instruments and substances. One man is looking into a microscope and another is stirring a liquid in a beaker.
Transcription:
What you know about food product development has made us the fastest mover in phosphates.
Some time ago we said to ourselves: Food scientists are the experts in new product development… and if we just tell them what phosphates can do, they’ll know best how to use them in a particular situation. So rather than try to do what you do best, we decided to concentrate on what we do best: provide you with a dependable supply of high quality sodium and potassium phosphates, along with information on the multi-functional nature of these relatively low cost food ingredients. It’s working. Your purchases from FMC over the last five years have continued to grow, due in no small part to your acknowledgement of FMC as the strongest phosphorus producer. Just as important, we’ve been able to make good on our commitment to dependability. How? It’s easy when you're the most completely back-integrated supplier in the industry. We have our own alkali, phosphate ore, and coke. And our delivery is fast, thanks to a highly efficient distribution system. If you need technical assistance, we can explain exactly what phosphates can do for you. After all, FMC is one of the largest phosphate producers in the world. For more information, including our free brochure outlining the many ways FMC phosphates can help you, write: FMC Corporation, Phosphorus Chemicals Division, Dept Q, 2000 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. For faster service, call our marketing Department at (215)299-6865, or nearest FMC Sales Office:
Comments: This advertisement emphasizes promoting FMC’s reliability and reputation as a large corporation with ownership over phosphates, instilling trust in food manufacturing companies. The text highlights their “commitment to dependability”, demonstrating reliability as a value in the food manufacturing industry. Using language such as “food scientists" and “experts”, the company validates their products as accurate and efficient products of scientific innovation. This message is supported by the large image of scientists focused in a wet lab with many liquids and supplies surrounding them. The company FMC also bolsters that they are one of the largest producers of phosphates and has their own raw materials, demonstrating agency in this product line. Overall, contrary to many other ads, this advertisement does not discuss the purpose or values of their product, but rather the reliability and scientific accuracy that food manufacturers can expect when buying from this company.
Phosphates provide many benefits to food processing, improving the palatability, taste, texture, and nutritional value of foods. Specifically, they are used as nutrient supplements, stabilizers, emulsifiers, pH control agents, among other applications (Calvo et al., 2023).
Calvo, M. S., Dunford, E. K., & Uribarri, J. (2023). Industrial Use of Phosphate Food Additives: A Mechanism Linking Ultra-Processed Food Intake to Cardiorenal Disease Risk? Nutrients, 15(16), 3510. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15163510
Leila Dubon
