Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. (ANI) announced today that Neil Harrison has joined the company as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. At the same time the company said that Paul D. Wolff and Scott Kabak, the Chairman/CEO and President respectively since 2000, will remain as members of the Board of Directors but will no longer serve in day-to-day operational roles. Mark Rodriguez, currently General Manager, ANI North America, assumes the position of President of ANI, North America.

“Few chances come along in one’s career that allow the opportunity to participate directly in the growth of a dynamic brand like Atkins,” said Harrison. “As a food industry veteran with over 27 years of experience, I have seen very few brands that have revolutionized the food business and spurred a period of unprecedented growth in their segment of the industry to the extent Atkins has. Atkins’ better-for-you bars, shakes, mixes and indulgent foods are grounded in the body of scientific evidence that supports the safety and efficacy of the Atkins Nutritional Approach, providing consumers with superior products that make it easier for everyone to control their intake of refined carbohydrates. I am honored to be asked to lead a company based on a brand that for more than three decades has been helping people enjoy healthier lives.”

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Atkins Nutritionals confirmed today that it has hired a turnaround specialist as it struggles with tough competition and waning interest in low-carb diets. The comapny said that crisis management firm AlixPartners LLC will help with its finances and the management of its supply chain.

As previously reported, Atkins also said it will cut jobs and take other measures to boost efficiency in response to an increase in the number of low-carb products. “There has been a huge explosion of low-carb products from manufacturers of every conceivable size,” said Atkins spokesman Richard Rothstein. “We are dealing with a very different marketplace than existed a year ago.”

According to the Dow Jones Newswire, Atkins Nutritionals is in the process of laying off workers. Richard Rothstein, a spokesman for the company, which is privately held and currently employs 370 people, would not say how many positions will be cut. “It’s an ongoing process that began this week and will be resolved in the near future,” Rothstein said.

bq. The cuts are the latest sign of distress for the diet company, which bears the name of Dr. Robert Atkins. Its diet peaked last year and has faced criticism from health officials as well as mounting competition from other diets.

In the second quarter, Atkins wrote off some of its inventory as the food expired, a move that weighed on the company

At a key meeting of national stakeholders in the current review by the US Government of the food guide pyramid, Dr. Stuart Trager, Medical Director of Atkins Nutritionals, today called for an overhaul of the government’s graphic to one that is reflective of the dynamic relationship between physical activity and the elimination of non-nutritive carbs from one’s daily diet.

“It’s time to move beyond a one-size-fits-all approach,” Trager said. “We need solutions that work not only in the laboratory, but in the real world, for real people with busy lives and healthy appetites. Working in partnership with the federal government, we can combat the obesity epidemic by giving people the tools and knowledge they need to make informed choices about the food they eat.”

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Atkins Nutritionals is bringing its low-carb diet to Latin America. The company plans to open a small office in Aventura to head the expansion south of the border, where foods such as tortillas, rice and beans make up a large portion of almost every meal.

“It’s definitely challenging,” said Jeffrey Sharlach, president and chief executive of The Jeffrey Group, a Miami Beach marketing agency that’s been hired for the effort. “It’s not exactly a diet-conscious society.”

In response to today’s news linking high-carb diets with breast cancer, Atkins Nutritionals has provided CarbWire with the following statement:

Atkins has recently rolled out a slew of new low-carb products, including:

Morning Start Muffins (3g net carbs; $4.49) - Ready-to-eat muffins with Banana Nut or Blueberry flavor.

Triple Berry Morning Start Cereal (3g; $5.99) - Filled with strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.

Bakery Tortilla Wraps (5g; $11.99) - Great for making sandwich wraps, quesadillas, huevos rancheros and more.

Cheesecake (4g; $15.99) - Rich and creamy cheesecakes now available in Key Lime and Chocolate Swirl.

Atkins Endulge Candy Bits (2g; $18.99) - Plain or Peanut Chocolate Candy Bits covered with a thin candy shell.

Cheesecake Sampler (4g; $17.99) - Soft and moist ready-made sampler features two servings of five flavors.

BusinessWeek has published excerpts from a recent interview with Veronica Atkins, the widow of diet guru Dr. Robert C. Atkins. Atkins says she is funding research in the hopes of validating her late husband’s theories on nutrition.

bq. Dr. Robert C. Atkins was criticized heavily for a scarcity of scientific data to back his theories on the benefits of low-carb diets. Now his widow, Veronica Atkins, is looking to change that. The 66-year-old is devoting the resources of the Robert C. Atkins Foundation, which she heads, toward research into obesity, diabetes, and the benefits of cutting carbohydrates. Skepticism still abounds: Critics question whether research from Dr. Atkins’ eponymous foundation, which was started in 1999 to fund nutrition-related initiatives, will be impartial.

In a letter soon to be posted on the Atkins Web site, Veronica Atkins, widow of Dr. Robert Atkins, pays tribute to her husband on the first anniversary of his death and says his low-carb lifestyle has changed the world forever.

bq. “My husband actually has helped change the way the world eats for the better,” Atkins wrote. “He actually has driven millions of people to a more balanced and healthful diet. You know, Bob never doubted that as the years passed, others would see the wisdom of what he was doing for his patients,” she wrote. “He never felt anger towards his critics because he knew he was right and he knew he was helping people.”

Atkins Nutritionals said it will spend $35 million this year on advertising aimed at the beer drinking crowd (a contrast to the wine drinkers who were the early disciples of the low-carb diet), Hispanics and teens.