Nutrition Labels and Packaging

         Are food labels lying to us to make food more appealing? Do you rely on food labels to make healthy choices for your family? This is a question that influences people’s health to what they buy. Packaging is the outer layer of a product that gives the image of a healthy product. The nutrition facts are the actual labels giving the amount of ingredients in each product. Packaging on food is crucial to most consumers’ choice in buying the product. Parents like the comfort of knowing that a product is “safe” or “healthy” for their family. In addition, our society has turned more health conscious about what they eat for example if it’s organic or not. So out of all the advertisements and labels which ones are not telling the truth?

         In the article “5 False Food Claims” it gives us a run down on some of the most popular advertisements we see with food. “Made with real fruit” (5 False Food Claims p.1) is a quote we see on everyday “health” packages. Although a product may say it is made with real fruit it can be quite deceiving. There actually is no regulation over if the product can say its “made with real fruit” so companies can put it on the package even if its not true. For example Kellogg’s Cereal bars say that are made with a real-fruit-filling, which is really a puree concentrate that is mainly sugar. 

By: Kellogs

Yet there is nothing from stopping them to say it is “real fruit”. The little things like this are what matter in having a healthy balanced diet.

How do we prevent this?

-Never substitute fruit, always try eating the real thing

-Look on the actual ingredients and see if sugar is towards the top of the list (if so, it could be one if the most prominent ingredients)

By: General Mills

      Another slogan on packaging that is used frequently is “Lightly Sweetened” (5 False Food Claims) on various foods packaging. Anything with the words “Sugar-Free” or “No added sugars” is not regulated by the FDA or Food and Drug Administration. So, companies are allowed to put that on their packaging to make their food look more appealing to their consumers. For example according to “5 False Food Claims” Wheaties Fuel Cereal is a cereal for athletes that are “Lightly-Sweetened”. One would think this is a healthy, strong breakfast but the cereal actually has 14 grams of sugar. “Fruit Loops” a popular cereal thought to be very sugary only has nine grams of sugar.

By: Kellogs

How to prevent this?:

-Simply look on the back nutrition label

-Look at the ingredient listing to see if sugar is in the top four                               ingredients 

Food&Drug Administration (FDA)

 Speaking of packaging and labels, did you know in 2011 the FDA sent warnings to 17 companies because of false food labels on 22 of their products alone? (Nutrition and Healthy Eating p.1) Then what is the FDA doing about all of this mislabeling then?

The FDA was able to change a lot about the nutrition label and answered many questions people about certain claims. One question from was “What claims for carbohydrates are being authorized?”(FDA.Food Labeling). Instead of just the words “low” or “free”, they must add the word carbohydrates to the end of the word. Adding carbohydrate to the end of the word makes it official and more of a true statement. This way there is no misleading information about what the product is really “low or “free” of.

-Keep a look out for health foods that actually have the full word “carbohydrate”

         “Why has the serving size changed to one?” (FDA. FoodLabeling). The reason for this is because some companies would lie about the true serving size (the amount of food in one serving). For example, before the regulation was passed a bottle of soda said in 2.5 servings there was 110 calories. But once the regulation for serving size was passed, in just one serving size the soda was a whopping 275 calories. That is very misleading to the customer and should have never been over looked. The FDA had to change the serving size to one because it was crucial to the customer’s health and very misleading information.

By: The FDA

-Be smart about serving sizes, even do the math if your up to it

- If something seems off about the numbers or doesn’t feel right it most likely is not the best choice

         Another thing the FDA has done to prevent these issues is to change a lot about the food labels appearance. They eliminated the calories from fat portion so that there is just one clear calorie count. Also, they bolded the calorie count so that it would stand out to customers more. Finally, they gave the DV or Daily Value percentage next to the calories to show the customers how much these calories count in their daily value. (FDA Food Labeling.)

Bold Nutrition Labels:

-Most recent/updated information

-Look for this while you are shopping so you know the facts of the food

By: The FDA

California Law/GMO's

         Recently the state of California has had food labeling laws come up as an issue in their community. There are already food-labeling laws that are fairly thorough. But the community spoke about their dislike of genetically modified food or GMO’s (Genetically Modified Organisms). They are not now thinking about where there food is coming from and do not like all of the chemicals the genetic enhancements bring.

         Genetically modified organisms are organisms that are genetically altered to fit the needs of our growing society. These organisms are what create the genetically modified food. The organisms are mainly in plants, bacteria, yeast, fish, crops and mammals. For example when crops are exposed to certain chemicals they are altered to resist pestisides.

By ecohealthwellness

Tips:

-Still questionable if these foods are actually safe

-Economic concerns for theses foods because of property laws (Genetically Modified Food. Wikipedia)

The prior laws California already have for food labeling are the following; products with unusual names or non-English names are unacceptable on labels.  The Ingredients label must in descending order by weight (largest item first).  Also, FDB or Food Drug Branch investigators can investigate food labels at anytime. They must have nutrition information on all processed foods and have the newly formatted food labels. Finally, they must have ingredient listings on foods with two or more ingredients. (FoodDrugBranch.Labeling. p.1)

By:creative commons

For Prop. 37

      The population who was for the law against genetic engineering or Prop.37 had a lot to say about the health issues it caused. They even called the movement “Crusade against Frakenfood”. If the law were to pass it would most like spread across the rest of the U.S. Thus, it will impact how our entire food system is organized. The system will be more concentrated on small, organic producers instead of big corporate businesses. In addition, this movement sparked interest in thousands of endorsements for health, public interest, and food advocacy groups. 

From Phawker.com

         Even 61 other countries have food labeling laws about genetically modified foods. In 2011, 88 percent of corn and 94 percent soybeans were from genetically engineered seeds. This is a reason why Californians want change in what is genetically engineered. They are concerned about the genetically engineered organisms that can contain viruses and foreign genes and they feel they should be prevented. “There is a movement. You see it when you go to the farmers market…People are getting very interested in where there food comes from.”(p.1 article California’s Food Safety.)

Why Pass It? :

-Prevents foreign viruses

-New organization of nations food

-Helps the smalls business community

-Good for your family’s health

Against Prop. 37

Clip by Paul Sherman

For those who are against the law passing they have many valid reasons as well. The prop.37 had a lack of scientific evidence in an argument against their proposition. Also, if the law is not passed it will increase the expansion of large corporate agricultural businesses. But the main issue with prop. 37 it will affect all of America economically.

         The extra labeling causes an increase in prices for the manufacturers, which forwards to the customers. It is estimated to cost tax payers from $100,000 to one million dollars more annually. It affects everyday food such as wheat, corn, and soybeans, this means a great increase in almost all of the groceries around the company if prop. 37 spreads. “Which house holds will respond to this information or will the consumers just shrug? “Said Matthew Kahn a professor at UCLA’s institute of the Environment. (p.1 California GMO Article).

Posted by Berrek

         Ultimately Prop. 37 did not pass by six percentage points. Which caused a lot of grief for those who were ready to start this new and improved food movement. But in this economy there is no way the nation is going to be fine with paying extra money per year on grocery’s because of the new packaging. The law just did not have enough clear facts to portray to the public. Mainly the public just wasn’t interested in it enough to spend that extra amount per year. (Prop. 37: Genetically Food Labels Defeated)

         Now while grocery shopping, look our for your families health more. Not every nutrition label or package is telling the truth. Keep these tips in handy while shopping and remember to just shop smart. Just because something is screaming out to you healthy, you should still look at the back label and ingredients. Supporters of Prop. 37 stated "Whether you buy genetically engineered food or not, you have a right to know what you are buying and not gamble on your family’s health," (Prop. 37 Food Labeling Law Fails)