Does the Canadian music business need a spoonful of Sugar Crisp? Cereal company Post Foods has promised studio time, producer support and $5,000 for the most popular song submission to a contest called "The First15."

The official explanation for the venture, though, is a relatively nonsensical reflection of how cautious many are about stepping into this arena.

Presumably, the company was inspired to link itself to independent home recording artists after being approached by rapper Ish Morris to use the vintage 1960s "Can't get enough of that Sugar Crisp" jingle in a harmless ditty that itself sounds like a commercial that would air between Saturday morning cartoons circa 1989.

No doubt it would've been easier to just exploit the association with a viral video aimed at kids. So, why go through the hassle of trying lure musicians to upload their own tune?

The fact that Post has been forced to stop skewing its sugar cereal to children — while maintaining that 40 per cent of its eatership is over 18 — might have something to do with it.

"The track is allowed to incorporate the Sugar Bear jingle," stipulate the rules, "but this isn't required."

Permissions aside, if nothing else, "The First15" can be another another magnet for moonlighting artists eager to rise above MySpace obscurity. Asking their personal Facebook friends to vote — which invariably requires clicking the like button — should boost the perception of interest in Sugar Crisp.

Similar efforts haven't proven entirely unsuccessful, either: six years ago, Taco Bell started offering struggling musicians $500 in road food. The inevitable cheap shots actually built momentum for the promotion. If you want to sell out, you might as well be ridiculous about it, instead of waiting for an automaker to call.

Post Foods seem to be aspiring toward a similar edible kitsch status — without being able to draw too much attention to its cartoon mascot for fear of riling up regulators at Health Canada.

After all, nutritionist pressure forced the company to long ago change the name of its U.S. brand to Golden Crisp. And the Sugar Bear jingle never had the same ring to it again.