Misleading Labels

This week when I was grocery shopping at a local discount grocery store, I stopped to read the labels on bread. I was in a store I don't usually shop in and they had different brands so I felt I should compare.  First I picked up the package for the Whole Grain bread that was with the "healthy breads" the ones the store groups together. It had the fancy label and highlighted that the bread was whole grain. I will say it looked good :) I read the label and each slice was 100 calories with 3 grams of fiber. It was the "best" of the healthy breads in this discount grocery store so I tossed it in my cart.

I walked down a few feet and saw that hiding among the rest of the bread was another loaf of whole grain bread.  It's package didn't differ from the white bread except for a very small 100% whole wheat on the top.  I figured I should read the label just to see what this store had to offer.  The slices were a little smaller, the size of a regular bread pan not the wide pans that companies use to make whole grain bread.  I HATE when they do that.  So as I looked at the Nutrition Facts Panel, I found it only had 50 calories per slice and 2 grams of fiber.  So per calorie, I got more fiber and I could have two pieces for the same 100 calories.. I continued to compare the labels and found it had less sodium too! Then when I looked at the ingredient list I saw that sugar was lower on the ingredient list. SOLD!!!

Just behind me were two ladies shopping together.  One saw me reading the labels and watched me put down the "healthy package" loaf and pick up the other so she grabbed it too.  Her friend looked at the labels and insisted she by the Whole Grain loaf I originally had because it had more fiber. She put back the one she originally had and grabbed the loaf her friend suggested. I was tempted to turn around and try to educate them on reading the entire label not just one item but I did that once and ended up almost teaching a class in the middle of the store.

Companies will do what they need to do to sell you their product. Marketing and packaging are used to the product.  The food industry knows you want the fiber so they will highlight it on the package.  Remember, there is always more to the store and reading the entire label is the only way you will know which is the better choice.  Of course, it takes time to read all of those labels. But remember if you are buying mostly fresh and frozen fruits and veggies and lean meats, that doesn't leave too many things you have to read the labels on.  Plus you can remember you favorite brands. 

This past week the Institute of Medicine recommended a food rating system with criteria and standardized labels for packaging that would standardize the qualifications for labeling food as healthy and making the criteria the same across packaging.  It could be a great idea but I suspect it will not happen overnight due to conflicting views that will develop over what the criteria will be.  In the mean time, take the time to read the whole label.  If you have questions about it, just send me a message and I'll be glad to help :)