What's the deal with Generics?

As someone living on a strict budget, I regularly pick up "generic" store brand foods, rather than their name brand influences. These days, generics have come a long way and usually taste just as good. However, I gotta ask - what is with the artwork and layout on the generic product packages?

In the old days, I remember seeing black and white labels for generic products, which no doubt saved expenses compared to full color printing. But these days, the generics are all full color printed and they even have logos, pseudo-brandnames and design templates. Problem is - they can't seem to get them right. Something is always off.

I can understand that generic product manufacturers do not have the advertising and graphics budget of a name brand giant like Kellog's, but at the same time, I have seen better layouts from second year design students (who would probably relish an intern job making generic product labels - hint, hint).

Normally, I am not that concerned about the layout and design of food products. After all, we are buying them to eat them. However, it becomes a problem when my children don't want to eat it because the food pictured on the label looks like a 1950's microwave dinner reject. It's easy to assume that our kids are only whining because their favorite full length animated feature character doesn't grace the box, but before you scoff at them for being taken in by media pressures, take a look at that food on the label - would you eat it?

The names of generic foods are also unappetizing or just downright strange - take a quick look at the Seussian "corn whizzers" and "honey buzzers" and their shelf associates on the cereal aisle to see what I mean. Again, I know that money shouldn't have to be spent on these types of details for generics (which is supposedly why they can pass the savings on to us), but my kids could come up with better names for these products. And if a manufacturer is going to create a brand identity for their generic product line and pay for full color printing, why not make it look decent?

Maybe it is some conspiracy with the name brands that generic foods can't quite taste or look as good as their rivals...Maybe the big brand manufacturers secretly own the generic stuff now, and they intentionally make them look bad so that the brand name product is more appealing. Or maybe I'm just being silly...

Long story short, I'm sure I will still be filling my cart every week with generic foods, thanks to their lower price. But that can of generic beefaroni may sit on my shelf longer than I had planned, because it turns my stomache to look at the photo every time I open the pantry...

Maybe I could market this as the "Generic Diet" - a diet where the food looks bad so you eat less.