'BucksWire: Starbucks New Menu Rolls Out Today

And here we have yet another Starbucks ploy: After wanting to eliminate its 'smelly' breakfast sandwiches, the coffee juggernaut announced a new food platform for most of its 11,570 locations in the U.S. and Canada. It's all about fewer calories, more protein, fiber and fruit instead of dried out egg and ham croissant sandwiches and doughnuts---six new items include hot oatmeal (they "cracked the code" on oatmeal), an energy bar, a whole-grain apple bran muffin with fruit pieces, a whole grain roll with butter or preserves, a fruit pastry, and a "Power Protein Plate" that comes with a hard-boiled egg and cheese slices. This whole initiative was so top secret, it had its own code name: Morning Source.

CEO Howard Schultz admits, "Food has been our Achilles' heel." He calls the 'better-for-you food' part of Starbucks' evolving health and wellness program, a "billion-dollar" idea. He dreams of the day when people no longer say, "The food isn't as good as the coffee." (UPDATE: We read the article too hastily: Announcement today, roll out on September 3.)
· Starbucks whips up a better-for-you breakfast comeback [USA Today]
· All Starbucks Coverage [~ELA~]