The other day I was in the supermarket and I was starving. (Bad. Idea.) Nature Valley granola bars were on sale for $2. I couldn't resist the sale so I picked up a box. Not until several days later when I actually went to eat one, did I read the label. It read "100% Natural". Big claim. I was curious to know what natural ingredients I was about to consume so I flipped the package over (first indication that it was not 100% natural). Here's what I found:
- Whole Grain Oats
- High Maltose Corn Syrup--WHAT???? 2nd ingredient???
- Semisweet Chocolate Chunks (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, natural flavor)
- Honey
- Rice Flour
- Roasted Peanuts
- Raisins
- Sugar
- Fructose
- Canola Oil
- Maltodextrin
- Soy Lecithin
- Salt
- Malt Extract
- Baking Soda
- Natural Flavor
- Mixed Tocopherols (added to retain freshness)
Yeah, that's pretty natural, don't you think?
Not only was this granola bar sickly sweet, but also, its packaging contained a bold faced lie. When I got a 100% on a test at school, that would mean that I got everything right. Not mostly right, but everything right. So when I read the claim of 100% natural, I assume that the entire contents of the package are indeed, natural. But like I said, in this case, it was not true. Sometimes a single attribute of a food product overshadows everything else and consumers who don't delve deeper by doing something as simple as reading the ingredients, unwittingly delude themselves into thinking that they are doing something good for their body.
What makes me upset is that these companies actually get away with making these false claims and that there are people out there who believe them. You may be aware of the recently applauded and progressive move by Ben & Jerry's--sparked by an invitation from the Center for the Science of Public Interest (CSPI) to remove their "all natural" claim. Ben & Jerry's complied. Go awesome! (For more information, read here.) But this is just a first step. Clearly, there are other, less progressive manufacturers out there that continue to make these false claims. My challenge to you is this:
1) READ THOSE LABELS,
2) REFUSE to support those products that make false claims, and
3) SPEAK OUT & CHALLENGE these companies to make changes.
Remember, baby steps...
3 comments:
Yeah! I love that you're talking about this. Our favorite bars: larabars...and Joie even likes them! The girl who fights consuming anything that has been labeled fruit, vegetable, or whole food...they're good. And I think they have only 2 or 3 ingredients in the whole bar, which is even better...dates, nuts and...that's it.
Hmmm. I will have to take a look at those Larabars. I'm glad to know that there are very few ingredients. I think that is key to packaged food. The less there are, the better. Have you read In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan? Anyway, in his book he gives grocery shoppers some tips on buying real food:
1) our grandmothers would recognize it as actual food
2) there are less than 5 ingredients
3) you can actually pronounce all of the ingredients
I can't remember the others but so true, don't you think?
Love you Malia! My best friend's dad used to call the vague ingredient natural flavor 'chipmunk poop' because for all we know it could be that. Probably not a comment for a public forum like this. erm...sorry.
The guy from Good Eats on the food network has a recipe for protein bars that I really want to try.
(miss you!) xx sarah
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