No matter what dads do, they can’t seem to convince the makers of breakfast food items that dads are active, engaged and present during the morning routine.

Numerous products regularly insist that dad doesn’t buy cereal, he can’t microwave a breakfast burrito, or simply can’t choose the proper peanut butter.

And now, there’s another product that’s joined the morning exclusion bandwagon, one which marks those authentic, crazy morning rituals – just apparently not endured by dads.

Little Debbie has unveiled its Moms of 7 AM campaign, which seemingly discounts dads as equal, competent parents.

Of course, we have a problem with this approach.  By positioning its product around a facet of daily life we all endure and is not exclusive to any gender – the morning ritual – and claiming it to be mom’s domain, Little Debbie is ignoring a lot of grocery shopping, caretaking (working and stay-at-home) dads everywhere.  It’s a practice that’s particularly hard to believe for a company that proudly claims to be “a family bakery.”

Of course, families include dads, and its own founder, O.D. McKee, sounds like he was a seemingly a good dad in his own right, naming the brand after his own granddaughter.  It even uses a man – the Muffin Man – to promote its own products.

What’s also disappointing is how its ad firm, the great Luckie & Co., managed to only conduct extensive quantitative and qualitative research with moms – then claimed to finally get to the heart of what makes 7 a.m. a special time in households across America.  How could this conclusion have been reached without consulting dads?

We’ll contend that in most homes, dad plays an important, pivotal role in the life of a family – even during the morning routine.

It wouldn’t take much for Little Debbie to rename its campaign “Parents of 7 AM,” just like it hasn’t taken much to turn off dads with this exclusionary promo.

There’s plenty of other snack cakes to choose from, so let’s hope Little Debbie – a family bakery – makes a quick switch before dads quickly switch to another brand.