The economy of trends: pistachio, kefir and manufactured dissatisfaction

The economy of trends: pistachio, kefir and manufactured dissatisfaction

A thread of barely ten replies contains a brutal diagnosis of the consumer machine: trends are not whims, but pieces of a mechanism that manufactures dissatisfaction and sells it as happiness. From pistachio to kefir, via protein yogurts and certain tourist destinations, the pattern repeats itself.

Pistachios, an expensive nut accepted for its flavor, have triggered an inflation of imitations: everything tastes or smells of pistachio. Kefir, described by some as "sour, off milk" and by others as an elixir for the gut microbiome, has become the trendy dairy product, to the point that goat's milk kefir is now so thick it no longer fits through the neck of the bottle. Protein yogurts, criticized for their pasty texture and their consumer profile, complete the food triptych.

But the most controversial trend is not edible. Certain trips to Southeast Asia, and Thailand in particular, are singled out for harboring a hidden demand for illegal activities that, despite official campaigns, continues to feed an underground economy. The topic is an uncomfortable one, revealing how the tourism market segments consumers whose motivations are rarely confessed.

The engine of dissatisfaction

Behind all these trends lies a common logic: creating artificial needs and selling solutions that never quite satisfy. "Perpetual dissatisfaction is the raw material of the consumer economy," the argument goes. The business is not in the consumer reaching happiness, but in chasing it relentlessly. Trends are the perfect vehicle: they expire quickly, demand renewal and turn the superfluous into the urgent.

A concrete example: Brazil nuts

The thread mentions Brazil nuts, a trendy food because of their high selenium content. One or two nuts cover 100% of the recommended daily allowance, but an excess can be toxic. The paradox sums up the model: what is good in small doses becomes dangerous when the trend scales up. The market does not warn about the risks; it only pushes you to buy.

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Trends are the mirror of an economy that plays on our insecurities. The question left hanging is whether, as consumers, we are doomed to chase the next fad or whether one day we will manage to break the cycle. The evidence, for now, points against us.