Food industry news: misleading labels

New labeling system: “Big Food” strikes again

The food industry appears to be developing a keen awareness of consumers’ healthier food choices. Consumers everywhere are seeking more fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grain breads, healthier snacks, and cereals to name a few. The health conscious consumer takes the effort to read labels and scrutinize each product for its value. Sounds good? Unfortunately, the food industry understands what the outcome will be of these new habits. They know they are going to be hit where it hurts… less profit. Therefore, the strategy is to come up with a new labeling system that will give consumers the information they need to eat healthier.

Sounds good right…not so fast

This labeling system has already come under fire when negotiations broke during the development of the new system.The Obama administration asked that the package-front labels point out nutrients that consumers might want to avoid, like sodium, calories and fat however, manufacturers maintained the labels should highlight beneficial nutrients, including vitamins, minerals and protein. What the administration feared was a confusing label that emphasized the good in a product that was not very healthy at all.

You are what you eat

Consumers are asking some tough questions and they are determined to get some answers. Why is it such a struggle to lose weight? Why is their blood pressure high? They keep hearing diabetes is on the rise…why? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three-quarters of health care spending now goes to treat "preventable chronic diseases." Not all of these diseases are linked to diet - there's smoking, for instance - but many, if not most, of them are. It has become very apparent the health care industry finds it more profitable to treat chronic diseases than to support preventative health measures. This country is spending billions of dollars to treat obesity, diabetes, and hundreds of billions additionally to treat cardiovascular disease and the many types of cancer that have been linked to the so-called Western diet

That's why our success in bringing health care costs under control ultimately depends on whether Washington can summon the political will to take on and reform a second, even more powerful industry: the food industry-Michael Pollan

Efforts by Congress at reforming the agribusiness have been unsuccessful thus far. First Lady Michelle Obama has emerged to request that the industry move farther and faster to provide consumers with healthier product choices and more information. To many the situation is clear; until the country, government and consumers as well, become serious about food system reform; real progress in health care and healthier outcomes will remain a problem in which we will continue to flounder. In contrast, locally community supported agriculture offers consumers a variety of opportunities for purchasing fresh local products from farms, farmers markets and specialty markets.

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