Smart Choices ceases food-label program
Smart Choices, the food-industry created and funded front-of-package food labeling system that gained notoriety for designating sugary Froot Loops cereal as nutritious has called a halt to the program.
Citing recent inquiries from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who both expressed concern that the labeling system launched in August could prove misleading to consumers, Smart Choices officials said the program would suspend operations and pledged to work with the FDA in developing a universal front-of-package labeling system.
Consumer advocates and nutrition experts have for years been saying such a system is needed to help people better understand the nutritional value of the foods they buy. As companies and health organizations have created their own labeling systems and logos, supermarket shelves have become crowded with competing, and often confusing, messages about foods' health benefits.
By
Jennifer LaRue Huget
|
October 23, 2009; 4:38 PM ET
Categories:
Nutrition and Fitness
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Posted by: tslats | October 23, 2009 5:08 PM | Report abuse
People need to read the labels carefully for nutritional information.
Low sodium or no salt added; low fat or non-fat; low sugar or no sugar added --
high fiber
Watch the portion size as well; when you pour out that cereal you have have to know what is the real portion size, and it's not the size of your bowl.
Posted by: abbydelabbey | October 23, 2009 6:07 PM | Report abuse
Um, thats not true. Looking at Calorie Count, (http://caloriecount.about.com/) a 24 gram serving of Shredded Wheat has 2.9 grams of fiber versus .6 grams of fiber for Froot Loops for a larger 30 gram serving. Where are you getting your facts from?
Posted by: whirlwind81 | October 23, 2009 6:12 PM | Report abuse
According to Marion Nestle, Froot Loops now has 3 g of fiber per serving, so yes, is similar to Shredded Wheat
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marion-nestle/kelloggs-asks-for-a-froot_b_278206.html
Posted by: Luciana1 | October 24, 2009 12:11 PM | Report abuse
The comments to this entry are closed.
.. but they are. Compare Fruit Loops to Shredded Wheat (an industry stalwart) for meeting daily fiber requirements and you'll see they're on par (by same serving size). What's in a name, eh?