June 26th, 2009 @ 7:36 pm
GoodGuide.com has a great post (http://www.goodguide.com/issues/2009/3/26/goodguide-transparency-manifesto). In it, they discuss the need for new labeling requirements for food – and I wholeheartedly agree. However, I won’t hold my breath! The FDA is so understaffed and underfunded that I think it will be years before they move toward this comprehensive list of changes.
But there are lots of things that they are proposing that are very interesting. They are requesting new requirements that include listing:
1. Where it came from:
-
Disclosure of where ingredients were grown and processed. For meats, this should include where the animal was born, raised, and slaughtered.
-
Tracking and labeling throughout the supply chain, with a process for tracing contaminant issues.
2. How it was made:
-
The use of synthetic pesticides.
-
The use of hormones.
-
The application of antibiotics.
-
The presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
-
Animal cloning in meat and milk production.
-
Food Irradiation
-
USDA Organic production standards.
-
Explanation of a company’s food tracing and contaminant control program from farm to table.
3. What’s in it:
-
Complete ingredient lists, with details of common allergens, applied to restaurant items as well as store-bought foods.
-
Nutritional information normalized to a standard serving size.
-
Explanation of levels of nutrients that may be harmful (such as saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and sugar).
-
Contaminants such as pesticides, methyl mercury, or PCBs that remain in the product, even in trace amounts.
I don’t know about you, but increasingly I feel like I have little idea of what goes into what I’m eating. We have become accustomed food that is so processed – with ingredients sourced from so many places. Movies like Food, Inc. will be very eye-opening for many people, and hopefully will have an impact on the industry. Fingers crossed!
