Atkins Repositions For Shoppers Coming Off GLP-1s; Low-Carb Protein Bar Rehearses Its Welcome-Back Speech

Simply Good Foods is pitching the brand to people who stopped the medication and want to keep weight off. The bar has been practicing in a mirror.

By Celeste Abernathy, CPG & Brands Reporter DENVER · Oct 29, 2026 · 1 min read

DENVER—Simply Good Foods is repositioning Atkins as a food option for consumers who have stopped taking GLP-1 medications and want to maintain their weight, CEO Joseph Scalzo told analysts this week, according to Food Dive.

The shift comes as Atkins sales fell 20.9% in the company's 2026 fiscal year and Simply Good wrote down the value of its Atkins and Owyn brands. The company has redesigned the Atkins website with more science-based content, expanded spending on streaming, digital, social and influencers, and launched a campaign in September speaking to people anxious about keeping weight off. Food Dive notes many GLP-1 users stop within a year.

At a fictional supermarket in Littleton, Colorado, a low-carb protein bar on the nutrition shelf (aisle 9, middle, next to the shaker bottles) said it had been preparing for this moment. "I am not going to make it weird," the bar said, while doing a breathing exercise. "I will just say, welcome back, I have fiber now, and there is no judgment in this aisle."

the bar said, while doing a breathing exercise.

What The Protein Bar Plans To SayDraft remarks, by share of rehearsal time (fictional)

What The Protein Bar Plans To Say
Welcome back, no questions asked	37%
I have fiber now	24%
Have you met my whipped cousin	19%
I never left the shelf	14%
Please do not compare me to a cookie	6%

Source: The Daily SKU Brands Desk; one protein bar, one mirror, many takes

Nearby products were less composed. A fictional bag of rice cakes said it had heard the news and was "choosing peace," and a fictional rotisserie chicken said it had been here the whole time and nobody throws it a campaign.

I weighed my own Pretzel bag on the Judge (my kitchen scale) Wednesday night out of solidarity. Still 14 ounces. It has not been on any medication. It has simply been made smaller, which is a different kind of weight management, and one nobody holds an earnings call about.

A fictional nutritionist said the real test is whether shoppers want a brand that reminds them of a diet. "People coming off a medication want to feel normal," she said. "Normal is the hardest flavor to make."

The protein bar said it is ready either way. It has memorized its lines and will be on the shelf through the end of the year.

Celeste Abernathy covers packaged goods and weighs everything first. Judge, her kitchen scale, assisted. More from Celeste Abernathy ›