Labeling Claims

I went grocery shopping today, so get my observations, free of charge...no coupons needed. Not that it was an eventful trip, but I had plenty of time to shop. This led me to look and analyze the state of product displays. What I found is that the items are not offered as much on the basis of the tried and true consumer desire, that of price. Instead, most food items are now advertised on the basis of "healthy" value.

It seems every product alludes to how "healthy and natural" it is. This is curious because Americans keep getting fatter and sicker every year. I think those "healthy" foods are not holding up their end of the bargain. Take cereals for instance. No matter they be dry cereals (the kind with all that sugar inside) or grains like oatmeal and grits (polenta). Every one claims to be the healthiest, yet never gives a specific explanation beyond citing one attribute like " high fiber" or "all natural ingredients".

On a more intense glance at the labels on those cereals one comes to a conclusion. It is that that they are all about the same, and the only product differentiation is the many claims each make for itself apart form the others. The federal Food and Drug Administration is supposed to enforce truth in the package advertising, but time and again manufacturers lie or mislead without consequences. This is why I ignore all 'healthy" claims and buy whatever tastes best. Clogged arteries are not a bad thing if you enjoy clogging them along the way.

However, if an educated consumer looks behind the headline labeling and reads the required label giving ingredient and nutritional content, he or she a can understand better the claims made on the packaging. But here are some of the more ridiculous claims made that have been very successful in selling the products with these clams.

* "Supports brain development and the immune system"- One has to wonder if the "vitamin water" with that label is a drug or a leisure soda. Too, what does "support" mean. How much constitutes support? Drinking water surely supports the body but does it really develop the brain?

* "No trans fats" - Trans fats are to food what CO2 is to "global warming" wackos. They are both said to be lethal. But any product labeled as having no trans fats will probably have saturated fats that are just as hard on the body as the trans fats.

* All natural- it is said to mean there are no artificial ingredients whatsoever in the product. this is impossible because shelf life will not allow it. Too, "natural" isn't necessarily healthy. Nature has thousands of natural products that can kill one rapidly if ingested.

* "Light"- in reality, light means the product has water added to think it out and also has artificial sugars to make it taste better without upping the caloric count. At any rate, light products are often very unhealthy ones to eat.

* "Fresher"- I hate this term because it is completely subjective. The Subway Sandwich fast food chain has been suing that claim falsely for years and consumers have been sucked in by it in enormous numbers. In fact Subway is uses no fresher ingredients than any of the other fast food chains. Distribution and shelf life make all of the chain fast food sandwich shops the same as to freshness of ingredients used.

Those are few of the phony claims that will hit you hard when you enter a market to buy food. But looking on the blank faces of the shoppers in that store today I doubt any of them even want to know whether the claims are true or false. It's because the biggest lie of all would be to claim "educated consumers here".