New "Smart Choices" Labeling: Six Facts You Really Need To Know.
It’s a sad fact that just because something is labeled as healthy we can’t believe it. The Smart Choices green check mark is no different. In a nutshell you need to be aware of a few facts before you decide to use the green check as a helpful, healthy buying guide. 1) Companies pay up to $100,000 a year to be in the program, based on how well the product with the Smart Choices label does in sales. 2) It’s not a government run, sponsored or approved program although the check kinda looks like it. It’s run by a non-profit but the program obviously has its fees. The fact that producers pay based on sales is an obvious conflict of interests. The fact that food producers are also on the board is another conflict of interests. 3) Breakfast cereals can have a maximum of 12g of sugar per serving, like Foot Loops. That’s 41% of the total weight of the product and 44% of it‘s total calories. Did you know Froot Loops is misspelled to prevent people thinking that it actually contains fruit? 4) Defending Froot Loops a member of the Smart Choices board said the standards were consistent with federal dietary guidelines - like that means anything in a nation where most people die of diseases caused by diet and lifestyle - and that ‘small amounts of sugar’ encourage people to eat more thus increasing nutrient intake. Of course that statement also implied that breakfast cereals are ‘nutrient-dense foods’ which is only possible after adding in nutrients to make up for the utter lack of them in the first place. And doesn’t getting more nutrients by eating more sugar sound like it might help people gain a few pounds? 5) Even the FDA and USDA are unhappy about this. They are planning an online study to see how labeling effects buying decisions. 6) The Smart Choices Program overview flat out says "The program nutrition criteria were collaboratively developed by scientists and multi-sector food industry leaders based on the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans." A for transparency. F for honestly helping people make better food choices. More References http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/05/business/05smart.html http://www.smartchoicesprogram.com/pdf/Smart_Choices_Program_Insert.pdf Read more about food news and events. Return from Smart Choices Food Labeling to the homepage of Favorite Freezer Foods.
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