'Nutritarian' diet is easy; just try to eat a rainbow | CapeCodOnline.com

'Nutritarian' diet is easy; just try to eat a rainbow | CapeCodOnline.com

For everyone who can't, won't or don't eat the recommended 9 to 13 servings a day of fresh, raw, vine ripened fruits and vegetables there is the next best thing: www.sherryfritz.com

Country of Origin Labeling begins this week...

Thursday, Oct. 02, 2008
Country-of-origin labeling begins this week
By JOAN OBRA - The Fresno Bee

The San Luis Obispo Tribune Thu, 02 Oct 2008 9:49 AM PDT
Finally, after six years of waiting, country-of-origin labeling has arrived. Starting this week, retailers are required to tell shoppers if their fresh fruits and vegetables, beef, lamb, pork, chicken, goat, fish, shellfish and certain types of nuts come from a different country. What does this mean for consumers? Look more closely at food packaging for words such as "Product of the USA," "Produce of the USA," "Grown in Mexico," or "China." The words will appear on placards, signs, labels, stickers, twist-ties and other displays, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

http://www.fresnobee.com/
Enforcement of the new rules will begin on April 1, 2009. Violators will be fined $1,000 per violation.

It's not the first time we've seen such labels. U.S. customs rules of origin require packaged and imported foods to indicate the country they come from. And country-of-origin labeling (also known as COOL) for fish and shellfish started earlier.

Full implementation of the legislation, part of the 2002 Farm Bill, was delayed amid food companies' grumbling that compliance would be costly. An example is large meat companies that import cattle. Instead of processing cattle separately according to where they were imported from, the companies have the option of choosing a label that indicates several possible countries of origin.

The American Farm Bureau Federation has protested the loophole, as have 30 U.S. Republican and Democratic senators, including presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama.

"It is not the intent of Congress that all U.S. product or such product from large segments of the industry be combined with the multiple countries of origin category nor was it dictated by statute," states a letter from the senators to Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer. "The purpose of COOL is to clearly identify the origin of meat products, providing consumers the most precise information available. This interim final rule, if left without clarification and proper guidance on this issue, has the real possibility of undermining the program...."

So far, the USDA hasn't tightened the rule.

For their part, consumer groups aren't concerned with adjustments companies have to make. Given recent food-safety scares, they welcome the labels.

"If a food safety problem is identified in a particular imported product, as happened with jalapeno and serrano peppers from Mexico earlier this year, then consumers will be able to avoid that product," says Jean Halloran, Director of Food Policy Initiatives for Consumers Union, nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports. "On the other hand, some people like to buy certain imported products, like New Zealand lamb or Holland tomatoes. Still others just want to buy local produce. Either way, the new labels will give consumers important new information."

Current country-of-origin regulations only cover fresh foods, however, so concerned shoppers need to study the rules. For example, ham, bacon, peanut butter and roasted nuts are not subject to the new labels because they are processed. Fresh fruit salad, frozen stir-fry vegetables, and mixed salad greens also don't require labels because they are mixtures.

For shoppers' convenience, Consumers Union has created a printable guide to country-of-origin labeling. Download it at consumersunion.org/pdf/CU-Cool-Tool.pdf.

And for the most country-of-origin labels, shop at supermarkets. Only stores defined by the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act - ones that buy more than $230,000 of fresh and frozen produce yearly - must comply with COOL rules.

That means you won't find the labels at seafood markets, meat markets or restaurants.

The columnist can be reached at jobra@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6365.

Real Heros Promote Healthy Foods

Real heroes promote healthy foods
Ads - Entertainment industry urged to tie characters to more nutritional foods
Wednesday, July 30, 2008 KEVIN FREKING
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Imagine Superman promoting fresh fruits and vegetables instead of a cereal.

Children are confronted with such a barrage of advertising for food and drink -- much of it unhealthy -- that the entertainment industry should take steps to tie popular TV and movie characters to more nutritional products, the Federal Trade Commission says.

The recommendation was part of a report showing that the nation's largest food and beverage companies spent about $1.6 billion in 2006 marketing their products -- especially carbonated drinks -- to children and adolescents.

The report, released Tuesday, stems from lawmakers' concern about growing obesity rates in children. It gives researchers new insight into how much companies are spending to attract youth to their products and what venues companies use for marketing. To come up with its estimate, the FTC used confidential financial data that it required the companies to turn over.

Overall, the spending was less than previous estimates had indicated. Still, it represents a large pot of money that is being used to entice children to foods that are often unhealthy choices, said Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who sought the study.

"This study confirms what I have been saying for years. Industry needs to step up to the plate and use their innovation and creativity to market healthy foods to our kids," Harkin said. "That $1.6 billion could be used to attract our kids to healthy snacks, tasty cereals, fruits and vegetables."

The commission studied spending directed at children ages 2-17. Spending on soda marketing came to $492 million, with the most directed toward adolescents. Restaurants reported spending close to $294 million, which was divided about evenly between children and adolescents. For cereals, companies spent about $237 million, with most targeted to children younger than 12.

The 44 companies reviewed spread their marketing across all segments of the media, the commission found. Television ads provided a theme that usually carried over to packaging and displays in stores, and to the Internet, where entry of a code on a package allowed children to participate in games or contests with prizes.

For example, "Superman Returns" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" were prominently linked to many food products last year. Companies created limited-edition snacks, cereals, waffles and candy based on the movies. They offered prizes on the Internet to buyers of those products that ranged from video games to trips to Disney World to a $1 million reward for the capture of villain Lex Luthor.

"The Internet -- though far less costly than television -- has become a major marketing tool of food companies that target children and adolescents, with more than two-thirds of the 44 companies reporting online, youth-directed activities," the commission report said.

The FTC made several recommendations:

Media and entertainment companies should limit the licensing of characters to healthier foods and drinks.

Schools should adopt meaningful nutrition standards for the foods that are sold there, and companies should cease all in-school promotion of products that don't meet such standards.

Companies that market food and drinks to children should expand public-outreach efforts to educate children about the importance of healthy eating and exercise, with particular attention aimed at minority populations that are disproportionately affected by childhood obesity.

The commission noted that its review came during a year in which food and beverage companies had committed to curtailing the marketing of unhealthy products. For example, it noted that 13 companies representing more than two-thirds of advertising spending directed toward children had pledged to not direct their ads to children under 12 -- unless the foods met specific nutritional standards.