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