tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-257780182754522352024-03-09T18:46:33.490-08:00Fake Food WatchFolly, Fun, and Fraud in U.S. Industrial Food Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.comBlogger99125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-17371246986548768872016-01-13T13:41:00.001-08:002016-01-13T14:33:25.637-08:00Kudos to Campbell Soup for GMO Labels, Pushing Big Food to Follow Example<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY2IVsaiLWBwbzpBfOoVcUZbd4J9ytd3rI7BNSepEImgnDVfWUzhtdRFXu61Gdr8fzBqolgfgT5gDkaICEpcVTzL138hm3aketaqOJl09UuuItRL4RgqzL2FFY76fKGxnsR3edFd-uLYo/s1600/CampbellsBuilding.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY2IVsaiLWBwbzpBfOoVcUZbd4J9ytd3rI7BNSepEImgnDVfWUzhtdRFXu61Gdr8fzBqolgfgT5gDkaICEpcVTzL138hm3aketaqOJl09UuuItRL4RgqzL2FFY76fKGxnsR3edFd-uLYo/s400/CampbellsBuilding.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's something I rarely embrace: an international mega-corporation that manufactures canned, packaged, and frozen food products, and generates upward of $8 billion in annual revenues.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But let's give credit where courageous credit is due. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kudos to Campbell Soup Company, the 150-year-old American company still headquartered on U.S. shores, in New Jersey. A company with products sold in more than 120 countries. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last week, Campbell broke ranks with its Big Food industry corporate competitors by declaring that all its products will clearly disclose the presence of genetically modified ingredients. Wrote Campbell in its <a href="http://investor.campbellsoupcompany.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=88650&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2127542%20">January 7, 2016 press release</a>:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"Campbell Soup Company today announced its support for the enactment of federal legislation to establish a single mandatory labeling standard for foods derived from genetically modified organisms (GMOs). </span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"Campbell believes it is necessary for the federal government to provide a national standard for labeling requirements to better inform consumers about this issue... </span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"As a result... Campbell will withdraw from all efforts by coalitions and groups opposing such measures... Campbell is prepared to label all of its U.S. products for the presence of ingredients that were derived from GMOs... </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">With 92 percent of Americans supporting the labeling of GMO foods, Campbell believes now is the time for the federal government to act quickly to implement a federal solution."</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Finally!</i> A Big Food company that respects basic consumer rights to know what's in their food. To let consumers decide for themselves whether or not to buy GMO foods to serve at home.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.campbellsoupcompany.com/newsroom/news/2016/01/07/labeling/">Campbell President Denise Morrison penned</a>:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We put the consumer at the center of everything we do. That’s how we’ve built trust for nearly 150 years. We have always believed that consumers have the right to know what’s in their food...</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">In addition, we have declared our intention to set the standard for transparency in the food industry. We have been openly discussing our ingredients, including those derived from GMO crops, through our WhatsinmyFood.com website... We have announced the removal of artificial colors and flavors from our products."</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Big Food Has Fiercely Fought the Right to Know</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Campbell Soup's newly enlightened direction is a dramatic break from Big Food's fierce fight against federal legislation and state ballot propositions to mandate labeling on GMO foods. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6IWMlTZppKaDtXxklj4WNu6hNxKKEBK1K-NI6sCSis_tTDi_DyJpi0jmmoUwukNdq4y9tPJ6jDMN5YSDDAdWhyphenhyphenzdrsLtBZvlwLe1a8WqoC-yCHNnzmjRhV96iHEOY2ysWb1KM2hmbbSE/s1600/JustLalbelIt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6IWMlTZppKaDtXxklj4WNu6hNxKKEBK1K-NI6sCSis_tTDi_DyJpi0jmmoUwukNdq4y9tPJ6jDMN5YSDDAdWhyphenhyphenzdrsLtBZvlwLe1a8WqoC-yCHNnzmjRhV96iHEOY2ysWb1KM2hmbbSE/s200/JustLalbelIt.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/09/gmo-foods-do-americans-have-right-to.html#more" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 2012,</a><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.48px;">the Who's Who of Modern Industrial Food... Monsanto, DuPont, PepsiCo, Coca Cola, Nestle USA, Campbell's, Kellogg, J.M. Smucker, General Mills, many more... defeated California's Prop 37 (for GMO labeling) with<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/09/gmo-foods-do-americans-have-right-to.html#more"> powerful political might and hundreds of millions in advertising</a>.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.48px;"> Similar measures were narrowly defeated in Oregon, Washington and Colorado, and passed in Vermont. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.48px;">Twenty states currently have pending or proposed legislation to require labeling for GMO foods.<i> (source -<a href="http://www.justlabelit.org/press-center/press-items/gmo-labeling-isnt-dead-see-which-states-are-leading-the-fight/"> JustLabelIt.org</a>) </i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.48px;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/09/gmo-foods-do-americans-have-right-to.html#more">In the U.S</a>., almost all non-organic corn, sugar beets, soybeans, rice, canola, and cottonseed oil are genetically modified, and by large industrial food corporations. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.48px;">One or more of GMO ingredients is present in virtually all processed food sold in U.S. markets and grocery stores, from cereals, cookies, and crackers to ice cream, peanut butter, oils, deli items, and, well, everything. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><b>Not Pledged to Remove GMO Ingredients</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.48px;">Mind you, Campbell Soup has not pledged to remove GMO ingredients from its products, but merely to disclose their inclusion to consumers, who can then judge for themselves to buy or not to buy. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.48px;"><a href="http://www.campbellsoupcompany.com/newsroom/news/2016/01/07/labeling/">Campbell President Denise Morrison explained</a>:</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"... we’re in no way disputing the science behind GMOs or their safety. The overwhelming weight of scientific evidence indicates that GMOs are safe and that foods derived from crops using genetically modified seeds are not nutritionally different from other foods... </span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"Ingredients derived from these crops are in many of our products. We also believe that GMOs and other technologies will play a crucial role in feeding the world."</span></blockquote>
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<b style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Support Campbell for Doing the Right Thing</b><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kudos to Campbell Soup Company for leading the way by breaking the GMO stalemate between consumers and Big Food mega-corporations. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I believe in rewarding corporate leadership that does the right thing by consumers.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That means when I must buy processed foods with GMOs.... and in grocery stores today, nearly all products (except certain fruits, vegetables and meats) are or contain GMOs... I will reach first for Campbell's products, which include these brands:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5iyeYsJthWVk0zScjmBP_rKnZpbKGfNbrl4MDGqk9XK4Pi5JPq5Q5Cpx96BZAcZ8StSVif1GRSZUwRrG7x6WnhpsHHfk2ZP-Qqni9El0x4qXM-Cb6Znvwu_Hxp0257zQjwruMDQacQtM/s1600/Campbellsbrands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="141" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5iyeYsJthWVk0zScjmBP_rKnZpbKGfNbrl4MDGqk9XK4Pi5JPq5Q5Cpx96BZAcZ8StSVif1GRSZUwRrG7x6WnhpsHHfk2ZP-Qqni9El0x4qXM-Cb6Znvwu_Hxp0257zQjwruMDQacQtM/s320/Campbellsbrands.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Campbell's soups and related</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Prego</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pace</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">V8</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Swansons</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pepperidge Farm</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Goldfish</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Garden Fresh Gourmet</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Please join me in reaching first for Campbell Soup Company products over processed foods by companies that don't support our right to know what's in our food. By taking our business to companies, as Campbell Soup, who do the right thing, we will encourage others to follow their good example.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Power to the people!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Related "Fake Food" Reading</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/09/gmo-foods-do-americans-have-right-to.html">GMO Foods: Do Americans Have the Right to Know What They Eat?</a></span></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/03/autism-and-gmo-foods-pesticides.html">Autism and GMO Foods, Pesticides, Industrial Foods</a></span></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/12/about-waffles-fried-chicken-and-freedom.html">About Waffles, Fried Chicken and Freedom of Food Choice</a></span></h3>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-67191993894582471672015-10-20T09:45:00.001-07:002015-10-20T09:45:51.446-07:00What the World Thinks of GMOs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZmUypQRHS1tlpS5JCPRh1XJL8YV2P1Ci0Y5dlZnbGszLoJ1G7EweNqTiM5vm9XL9dQ2_JSq-SbGhsuLklgKAXPK_82GuEgX4r5MQZl_d5pjCcnsEZpCT2FXMRmEKYHjoO_ti9X5zMN_Q/s1600/RodaleGMOtomato.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZmUypQRHS1tlpS5JCPRh1XJL8YV2P1Ci0Y5dlZnbGszLoJ1G7EweNqTiM5vm9XL9dQ2_JSq-SbGhsuLklgKAXPK_82GuEgX4r5MQZl_d5pjCcnsEZpCT2FXMRmEKYHjoO_ti9X5zMN_Q/s320/RodaleGMOtomato.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #660000;">"There’s been a lot of hubbub surrounding our domestic battles to mandate labels for genetically modified organisms, or GMO foods. </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />"So much din, in fact, that you might not have noticed other countries out there, wrestling with their own policies on the controversial products. In fact, Scotland just made history by opting out of growing all genetically modified crops. And it might set a precedent...<br /><br />"Outside the U.S., many governments have followed the “precautionary principle,” a risk management strategy that requires scientific consensus on whether something is harmful. In essence, it puts the burden of proof on GMO proponents to show these foods are safe beyond a reasonable doubt.<br /></span><div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"This principle has been employed in a whole range of circumstances around the globe. Take Haiti, for instance. After the brutal earthquakes in 2010, Monsanto announced it would donate tons of its ever-so-controversial Roundup-ready corn seeds. Haitian farmers rejected the donation, even after Monsanto back-pedaled and said they would send non-GM seed. Back in 2002, Zambia similarly rejected food aid that included GM products....<br /><br />"Here’s a list of countries that currently require some form of labeling for products with GMO ingredients:..."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To read the full article, <a href="http://www.rodalesorganiclife.com/food/what-world-thinks-gmos?cid=NL_YourOrganicLife_-_101915_GMOWorld_Article&smartcode=YN_0009784284_0001529441">click here at Rodale's Organic Life</a>. </span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-85143673294175879282015-08-05T13:16:00.003-07:002015-08-05T18:36:31.530-07:00McDonald's, KFC, Taco Bell Rated Worst by Customers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK9APeB0W8KShzMnepeWstv1sXK6iOMQVLAYv5FYd4v7AlPpPiUiQwgaLlUIoztI8lTTtQbQEOLiNmixtxgqkmKawSnXs91Lb69TcX0FEnfY_iuw9LUXe2pSoPIJbs_n8RGAKjKhszeeg/s1600/KFCsymbol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK9APeB0W8KShzMnepeWstv1sXK6iOMQVLAYv5FYd4v7AlPpPiUiQwgaLlUIoztI8lTTtQbQEOLiNmixtxgqkmKawSnXs91Lb69TcX0FEnfY_iuw9LUXe2pSoPIJbs_n8RGAKjKhszeeg/s320/KFCsymbol.jpg" width="253" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Three cheers for 2015 fast-food aficionados! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Selling 20th century-style greasy, salty, cheap fast food is a loser in the 21st century, per a recent nationwide survey of 70,000 customers. </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Customer preferences in 2015? </span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fast and casual food eateries that have eliminated artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives from their fare. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Meats produced without antibiotics and synthetic hormones. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Produce grown in a sustainable manner, so pesticides aren't necessary to grow crops. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food not dripping with grease, and often including freshest produce. </span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Think Chipotle, Panera Bread, and Chick-fil-A, the three top vote-getters</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> in the annual <a href="http://www.theacsi.org/the-american-customer-satisfaction-index">American Customer Satisfaction Index</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Think 21st-century corporations that equate healthier fare... for customers and for the environment... with healthier profits. Corporations with founders or management that act like they give a damn about community and world. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The losers in the 2015 American Customer Satisfaction Survey of fast and casual food corporations? <i>From the bottom:</i></span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>McDonald's</b> - Rock-bottom last (by a wide margin)</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Taco Bell</b> - Tied for second-to-last </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Burger King</b> - Tied for second-to-last </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Jack-in-the-Box</b> - Tied for second-to-last </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>KFC</b> - One point from tying for second-to-last </span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/food/mcdonalds-comes-in-dead-last-place-in-fast-food-125261238691.html">Observed survey authors</a>,</span> "<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Customers seem to perceive the traditional burger chains as increasingly tired brands — industry competition is fierce, and shifting consumer preferences for healthier food is taking a toll."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Customer satisfaction winners in 2015? The top four are:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#1 - <b>Chick-fil-A</b>, which includes in its <a href="http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Company/Environmental"><i>Environmental Stewardship</i> </a>and <a href="http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Company/Responsibility-Overview"><i>Social Responsibility</i> </a>website sections, company policies on recycling, water usage, energy efficiency, air quality, and waste, and states that "</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We know that how food is grown and sourced is of importance to customers. We are working to understand and take the right actions to ensure a sustainable and competitive menu in the future."</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ah1VuK-uSvVpIofA6eMAal-OZAoLYxxzezPT3bbziTCDKQB0_v8988Ff7HMSN2a6jb8Ad9EiFkSqPbL92wBCqOqgp9bXPqGy0SrudxyzVAF7KALIZz8rZCNPn-cJCQ0fjnAccSqvO8A/s1600/Chipotlerestaurant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ah1VuK-uSvVpIofA6eMAal-OZAoLYxxzezPT3bbziTCDKQB0_v8988Ff7HMSN2a6jb8Ad9EiFkSqPbL92wBCqOqgp9bXPqGy0SrudxyzVAF7KALIZz8rZCNPn-cJCQ0fjnAccSqvO8A/s200/Chipotlerestaurant.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#2 - </span><b style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chipotle Mexican Grill</b><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, a company dedicated to <a href="https://chipotle.com/food-with-integrity">Food with Integrity</a>, which means:</span></div>
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<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"...vegetables grown in healthy soil, and pork from pigs allowed to freely root and roam outdoors or in deeply bedded barns."</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"There's no place for non-therapeutic antibiotics and synthetic hormones on the farms that produce our ingredients."</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px; text-align: center;">We serve more local produce than any restaurant company in the U.S.</span></span><span style="color: #444444;"> In 2014, we served over 20 million pounds of locally grown produce, and plan to increase our numbers every year."</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"We set minimum space requirements for the animals producing the meat and dairy products that end up in our restaurants. We work with our suppliers to ensure the highest possible animal welfare standards."</span></li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ5XRClKWsLP57FKzbx2MD13Aa0Bq33xhhMAa5nrRSpKtExSUG0xKBAU5NQNCwiOaBoIh9HiZky6HluaXgqFyinaYz7610iahPwqREhCQpUpyepieFlr3N4yBnn5QW6gDv-TOUa4kT0ho/s1600/Paneralogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="104" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ5XRClKWsLP57FKzbx2MD13Aa0Bq33xhhMAa5nrRSpKtExSUG0xKBAU5NQNCwiOaBoIh9HiZky6HluaXgqFyinaYz7610iahPwqREhCQpUpyepieFlr3N4yBnn5QW6gDv-TOUa4kT0ho/s200/Paneralogo.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#3 - <b>Panera Bread</b>, which sets forth under <a href="https://www.panerabread.com/en-us/home.html">Our Beliefs - Food as it Should Be</a>, goals of:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Clean Ingredients</i> -</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> " We’re committed to sourcing and serving high-quality ingredients without artificial additives including added MSG, artificial trans fats, and ingredients we don’t believe need to be in your food."</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Transparent Menu</i> - </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"We’re committed to transparency that empowers guests to choose how they want to eat."</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Positive Impact</i> -</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> "Panera is on a journey to ensure the highest possible animal welfare standards (including)... our reduction in use of antibiotics and confinement."</span></li>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">#4 - <b>Papa John's Pizza</b>, which promises <a href="http://www.papajohns.com/better/">"Better ingredients. Always had them. Always will."</a> and specifically lists all ingredients on their website. Among company commitments:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2CtZ3s_SXFs99BOis0sDjYtCodOuaC_j1ZoBTF0uxPXP0gvwFOwYEJqFlkPngBxGm244Jekflv9RfDEkfGam_KsA_D4U8ZpUNiC_fKHw6RK9elHM4WZM0PNvuc0F_7wY_kaICI9aao0/s1600/PapaJohnslogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="123" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2CtZ3s_SXFs99BOis0sDjYtCodOuaC_j1ZoBTF0uxPXP0gvwFOwYEJqFlkPngBxGm244Jekflv9RfDEkfGam_KsA_D4U8ZpUNiC_fKHw6RK9elHM4WZM0PNvuc0F_7wY_kaICI9aao0/s200/PapaJohnslogo.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No trans fats</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No fillers in our meat toppings</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No cellulose</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No partially hydrogenated oils</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eating home-cooked meals made with freshest ingredients is far healthier than a steady diet of fast food, no matter what their corporate promises. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But we all eat out, and these days, we usually opt for convenience as well as taste. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Three cheers for 2015 fast-food aficionados, which includes... well, all of us, it seems. We're making better choices for our health and for our communities and world. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And finally,,, finally!... customer choices are sinking the cynical fortunes of those industrial corporate bastions of </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> cheap </span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">20th century-style greasy, salty, sugary fast food</span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> filled with chemicals, additives,preservatives, fillers and artificial flavors, colors and textures. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Power to the people! </span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-87369359127987887282015-06-04T09:35:00.000-07:002015-06-04T11:38:31.565-07:00Fast-Food Tainting: Rare but Real, Scary (McDonald's, Chick-fil-a, Burger King, Wendy's?) <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjdqYG3fRx7h9FYduLKOI4q65eeW_wcHiGOFkYnOilQpEBe5OZ8bJ4nuZcfji5ojlkY769PVsEM3leW3ER7yagGjPe3sb26Kd96kumszDSfehkosbLQ5vTgZwrWTJNxr6_S7W1GzWhHxs/s1600/CoffeeinPaperCup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjdqYG3fRx7h9FYduLKOI4q65eeW_wcHiGOFkYnOilQpEBe5OZ8bJ4nuZcfji5ojlkY769PVsEM3leW3ER7yagGjPe3sb26Kd96kumszDSfehkosbLQ5vTgZwrWTJNxr6_S7W1GzWhHxs/s320/CoffeeinPaperCup.jpg" width="274" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food tampering is a federal offense, punishable by prison... if caught. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By all reports, food tampering is rare, but it's also rarely caught. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's also another healthy reason to avoid fast food eateries, and instead, enjoy home-cooking with known ingredients made by trusted home cooks. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food tainting, intentional and unintentional, is mainly a corporate-owned fast-food industry problem, which employs a largely low-wage workforce of young, inexperienced workers to flip burgers, make and pour coffee, and the like. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>(Below, see Tips to Avoid Food Tainting)</i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Among recent public examples of food tampering crimes are...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In 2012</i>, 19-year-old "...Marvin Washington, Jr., an employee at a Simpsonville, South Carolina McDonald’s, was arrested for allegedly spitting phlegm and 'bodily fluid' into a mother and daughter’s unsweetened tea." <i> (Source - <a href="http://www.webpronews.com/mcdonalds-employee-faces-up-to-20-years-in-prison-for-spitting-in-drinks-2012-04">WebProNews, Huffington Post</a>)</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In 2008, </i>"Two men were arrested last week for spitting in a police officer's chicken sandwich at the McDonald's on Route 481 in Fulton, police said today..." One worker informed the other "he was making food 'for a cop' and told him to 'make it special,' Fulton police said."<i> (Source - <a href="http://syracuse.com/">Syracuse.com</a>)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>In 2009</i>, "In what became a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYmFQjszaec">YouTube</a> sensation, a Domino’s Pizza worker in North Carolina was filmed by a female accomplice doing things such as sticking shredded mozzarella up his nose, spitting on sandwiches, and rubbing a sponge on his naked ass before using it to clean dishes. Since it was never proved that the food was served, he only received two years of probation for the felony charge." <i>(Source - <a href="http://thoughtcatalog.com/jim-goad/2014/05/food-and-beverage-tampering-18-items-you-may-want-to-avoid/">Thought Catalog</a>)</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Food-Tainting Claims by Anonymous Employees</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hundreds of food-tainting examples posted by anonymous fast-food employees range from careless to repulsive to dangerous, and are mostly believable. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A small sampling of credible-seeming comments posted at one site, </span><a href="http://ask.metafilter.com/65771/Tainted-fast-food" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ask.Metafilter.com</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, includes... </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #660000;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #660000;">"Once when I worked at a <b>Boston Market</b>, I saw someone drop a meatloaf on the floor and then cut it up and serve it."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"I worked at a<b> Chick-Fil-A </b>restaurant for about five years in high school and through college... the worst I ever saw was that while filleting the chicken breasts and one would fall on the floor, the owner would say wash it off and it would be ok...."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"...my girlfriend...worked at an<b> ice cream parlor</b>. She was cutting up a banana split, and sliced her finger open. Blood ended up, among other places, in the banana split... her boss inquired about what happened. When she told him, and specifically mentioned that she'd make a new one since she bled in the first one, he told her to serve it anyway."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"I was night manager at a pretty busy freestanding <b>Chick-fil-a</b> for almost 3 years and I never saw anything deliberate to mess with someone...There were plenty of times where we would use 2-3 day old salad ingredients because they still looked ok and we had to get rid of them, or use hour old nuggets because some idiot cooked a whole damn bag of them when we didn't need anymore, and you can't throw out $300 of food, right? The most consistant shady thing was serving old/cold food after 8:30 or 9 when everyone is just trying to shut down and go home."</span><br />
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"I've worked at both <b>McDonald's</b> and <b>Wendy's</b>, and never saw anyone intentionally messing with food... I also have to say that I will never, ever consume <b>Wendy's chili</b>. At the store I worked at, at least, it was made by taking any overcooked, dropped, or expired sandwich patties and tossing them into the pot. I once watched the store manager cutting mold off of uncooked burgers and then putting the rest of the burger in the chili vat."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"Our local<b> Burger King </b>had an incident where a cop did tests on a burger that he ordered and found saliva in it. The BK was either shut down because of this or just went out of business because no one wanted to eat there afterwards."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"I worked for a very short time at a<b> McDonald's</b> when I was in high school. I never at any time noticed any deliberate tampering with the food, but it was VERY common for employees to be coughing & sneezing without covering their mouths / noses and without washing their hands... So, I agree with those who say that a general lack of hygeine is probably a much more common issue than deliberate food tampering. That said, I would never deliberately piss off someone who can spend some private time with something you are about to eat, fast food or not."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"4 ½ years at a <b>Burger King</b>... there are strict rules for how long you can keep food around in the various staging areas (steamers, heat lamps, heat drawers) and they were almost NEVER followed. Most of the time food sat around until it was served, even if those half-cooked fish patties were sitting in the drawer half the night."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000;">"<b>Wendy's</b> and <b>Godfather's</b> here, over 20 years ago now. No deliberate tampering that I knew of...<span style="font-family: Source Sans Pro, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 17px; line-height: 24.2856884002686px;"> </span></span>The only thing at <b>Godfather's</b> was that it was hellishly hot next to the open, 600 degree ovens, so there was a lot of sweat dripping on the pizzas... I'll echo the point about <b>Wendy's</b> chili, to a point--I never saw anything truly nasty go in the chili, but that is, indeed, what happens to burgers that have sat on the grill too long."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>And from a movie theater complex..</b>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaocijVn05mNWFjUJ3VTlLRCoHT_s6rWblDGMCNiOjtCoV0pjD1THnn4c-GMlTZYB-5F8zYyD_N6qyOXDpxvmCzGWucfSkqUYbsGX44yLJZSlirM5tYucf04ZC8rfhHIEIxQUXJ4YFdbo/s1600/Moviepopcorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: #660000;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaocijVn05mNWFjUJ3VTlLRCoHT_s6rWblDGMCNiOjtCoV0pjD1THnn4c-GMlTZYB-5F8zYyD_N6qyOXDpxvmCzGWucfSkqUYbsGX44yLJZSlirM5tYucf04ZC8rfhHIEIxQUXJ4YFdbo/s1600/Moviepopcorn.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"I worked for a summer at a movie theater concession stand in Houston... as everyone has said, cutting corners and hygiene were issues, no doubt (old hot dogs/buns, stale nachos and cheese that had been sitting around for longer than it should have, workers probably not washing their hands).</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"The two somewhat gross practices were actually mandated by the management. In the evening, one of the jobs of the people closing was to clean out the popcorn machine. You'd put the popcorn in a big trash bag and tie it up. Next morning, the opening crew dumped that back in the machine, and voila, that's your first batch of popcorn (mixed in, of course, with a fresh batch or two, to disguise it).<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; line-height: 24.2856884002686px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">"The really sick thing, though, bugged the hell out of me. We had those big bulk candy containers, where customers would scoop out whoppers and gummi bears and what-have-you and buy it by the pound... customers were always spilling out lots of candy on the ground. Well, the managers made us sweep it up and put it in the 'Super Mix' container. I remember once when one of the managers gave me a big bag of candy that had been sitting in the stock room for months told me to clean it off and put it in the super mix."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Tips to Avoid Food Tainting</b></span></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be a pleasant, courteous customer. "Worst customer gets the worst food" is a universal rule. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don't order at restaurants that are not busy, or near closing time.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Order at restaurants where food-preparers and servers are in plain view.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If employees seem disgruntled, the food will be affected.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If the restaurant appears dirty or shabby, food preparation is more likely be shoddy. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do your research at Yelp, county health inspection records, and similar. </span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Idle hands are the devil's playground, order your food when the restaurant is busy and your food won't be intentionally tainted," advised one poster. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The best advice, though?</i> Protect your health by instead, enjoying food made at home with known, healthier ingredients lovingly prepared by you or trusted cooks, not by corporate-hired, greatly underpaid, inexperienced, hourly workers. </span><br />
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-23021346310091481392015-04-09T11:22:00.000-07:002015-04-09T14:22:19.145-07:00Kale Chips, Styrofoam and Michael Pollan: The Problem with Processed Health Foods<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx1DrMbQW8ErJXIXOfr3goivnuYTMtO6t1tkbWLIkLdJsZz4-6v4csCELz0R4F1WJDa1Dz7DU_SPJlwJZ1Q4VT-MiDMExvQc1UWVBjNLjQ0vYFLJKqfjehPL8VRTsspkR_Wzre_M8U6fM/s1600/KaleChips.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx1DrMbQW8ErJXIXOfr3goivnuYTMtO6t1tkbWLIkLdJsZz4-6v4csCELz0R4F1WJDa1Dz7DU_SPJlwJZ1Q4VT-MiDMExvQc1UWVBjNLjQ0vYFLJKqfjehPL8VRTsspkR_Wzre_M8U6fM/s1600/KaleChips.jpg" height="400" width="297" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I thought I'd hit a healthy-food bonanza in a Big Lots store... crunchy, salty, yummy kale chips, Low in calories and guilt, yet still chips. Luscious chips.</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After all, every aspiring foodie knows that unique, good-quality gourmet treats are found in nooks and small corners of certain bargain stores... Ross, Big Lots, Marshall's. <i>(Oh, the Italian-made artisan pastas in Big Lots!)</i> </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The chips were a steal at $2. Goldbaum's multigrain Kale Chips with a Touch of Salt sell for $5 a 3-oz pack on Amazon, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Goldbaums-Kale-Chips-Touch-Ounce/dp/B00LWZZ0DY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1428600901&sr=8-1&keywords=goldbaums+kale+chips">you're forced to buy a case of 12 for $60</a>. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I snatched up a bag of these guilt-free chips, and rushed home to savor a snack that's:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Certified gluten-free</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">GMO free</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Preservative free</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trans-fat free</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">MSG free </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Additive free</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kosher certified</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Baked</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All natural</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Low in sugar</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>At last!</i> The perfect snack for those who won't sacrifice noshing while trodding the road to better health. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Problem is... these chips are tasteless. Beyond bland. They have the texture and taste of cheap styrofoam. Or a much-used cardboard box. <i>(These chips are salted? Really?) </i> </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I suppose slathered with heaps of guacamole or a high-calorie dip, the unfortunate mouth-feel of these processed kale chips would disappear. But that misses the whole point of buying guilt-free chips for snacking. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk1XbC3SQoQtQ_E9rmns62qP9HEeVKwj60sqkqo4xC0nG265KSIlFtMRdWV04s8QyZ0IW5c8t-pCzPvyXzvm0CbapkL9hsTZENPK8F9p9p7h18MTenAS0LAAREAhYsr070Wv2Zxl-18h0/s1600/MichaelPollanFoodRules.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk1XbC3SQoQtQ_E9rmns62qP9HEeVKwj60sqkqo4xC0nG265KSIlFtMRdWV04s8QyZ0IW5c8t-pCzPvyXzvm0CbapkL9hsTZENPK8F9p9p7h18MTenAS0LAAREAhYsr070Wv2Zxl-18h0/s1600/MichaelPollanFoodRules.jpg" height="320" width="203" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Which brings me back to the two premises of <a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/04/real-food-diet-dilemma-of-michael.html">author Michael Pollan's seminal "Food Rules: An Eater's Manual."</a> </span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don't eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food.</span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Whether intended as "healthy" or who-gives-a-damn delicious, processed food are processed, and not Real Food. Not produce nor meat nor dairy. Fake foods. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was the fool, taken in by the "health halo" effect of pretty, window-free packaging with promises of guilt-free eating pleasure. And like most supposedly super-healthy processed foods, it tasted horrible. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Kale powder" is listed as the 7th of 8 ingredients in these sallow-yellow chips. No actual kale is shown as used. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Homemade kale chips are green, made from kale leaves sprinkled with olive oil and salt, then baked until crunchy. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At least I only paid $2, a small price to relearn Michael Pollan's smart lessons for eating.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for the chips, I threw them into our rose planters to mix with the aging redwood bark cover. Might do some good there. And I have a hunch the bugs won't eat them, either. </span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-10670399522707783482015-03-25T12:36:00.001-07:002015-03-25T13:42:14.743-07:00Twinkies and Skittles for Breakfast? The Cereals that Damage Kids, Adults<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QuJd_us5JqD9jBKaIRFJiZZaziiZk7sZ3Ej1stgXiIWLU0h3rFxMjwvlvPV6mu74s2TjNUqN5WllELrdT64OhoMbg3NiIfR4YmD6IyffuN7zag9AUbAGcnW0_YKNAYbQFo1_EBE-ykA/s1600/Bowlsofcereal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QuJd_us5JqD9jBKaIRFJiZZaziiZk7sZ3Ej1stgXiIWLU0h3rFxMjwvlvPV6mu74s2TjNUqN5WllELrdT64OhoMbg3NiIfR4YmD6IyffuN7zag9AUbAGcnW0_YKNAYbQFo1_EBE-ykA/s1600/Bowlsofcereal.jpg" height="194" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eating most U.S. cereals for breakfast is akin to eating a heaping bowl of pure sugar. Or a pile of candy bars and Twinkies. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
Just as Big Food corporations planned, U.S. breakfast cereals are designed to hook you as customer-for-life via addiction to a super-sweet, sugary surge to start your day...</span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
Americans now consume 22 teaspoons of sugar a day, on average, added to processed foods. Breakfast cereals are among the highest sources of added sugar in our daily diet. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
Sugar-saturated, carb-heavy, chemical-drenched breakfast cereals take a poisonous toll on personal health, especially that of children. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Physical health and fitness, dental health, even mental health and focus in both children and adults are proven conclusively to be damaged by high daily doses of sugar.</span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
Yet Big Food corporations aggressively market breakfast cereals, especially to to young children, in greedy hopes of hooking them, too. Consider these facts: </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq2wCxuK9EmUgTynskjpFkugCyzgmSoko_gjodYIYWU3AygOiWTNd6XR8zLXiXqh3g_YBuBOSDeY8ttXV1yv9zKuxTOXrTImKr4ab7erBQp5L1zUCQmQbnwDOcHWlPE0W3pm3wRvcX3Bw/s1600/Kidandfrootloops.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq2wCxuK9EmUgTynskjpFkugCyzgmSoko_gjodYIYWU3AygOiWTNd6XR8zLXiXqh3g_YBuBOSDeY8ttXV1yv9zKuxTOXrTImKr4ab7erBQp5L1zUCQmQbnwDOcHWlPE0W3pm3wRvcX3Bw/s1600/Kidandfrootloops.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">181 cereals are directly marketed in the U.S. to kids.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kids' cereals with cartoon characters are among the most highly sweetened of all</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On average, sugar is 34% of calories in cereals marketed to U.S. children</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sugar is more than 50% of calories in many cereals aimed at kids. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">More than 60 percent of children’s cereals contain a spoonful or more of sugar in every three spoonfuls of cereal.</span> </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>(Source - <a href="http://www.ewg.org/research/childrens-cereals-sugar-pound/executive-summary">"Children's Cereals: Sugar by the Pound,"</a> a research project by the Environmental Working Group) </i></span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyone eating a typical serving of kids' cereals would consume more than 10 pounds of sugar just from their breakfast bowls each year. <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.2000007629395px;">Cereals marketed to kids have <a href="http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/11/14/ten-worst-breakfast-cereals.aspx">85 percent more sugar, 65 percent less fiber and 60 percent more sodium </a>than those aimed at adults.</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19.2000007629395px;"> </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A box of Kellogg's <a href="http://www.ewg.org/research/childrens-cereals-sugar-pound/cereals-contain-far-more-sugar-experts-recommend#hallofshame">Sugar Smacks is more than 56% sugar</a>, by weight. Incredibly, a box of one store brand,<span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><a href="http://www.ewg.org/research/childrens-cereals-sugar-pound/cereals-contain-far-more-sugar-experts-recommend#hallofshame">Lieber's Cocoa Frosted Flakes, tested as 88% sugar</a>. </span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">Don't depend on the FDA to protect Americans with warning labels that ultra-sugary breakfast cereals are dangerous to your health. In the 21st century, federal agencies fiercely protect Big Food corporations over public interest. </span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's my question: If you wouldn't eat a heap of Hostess snacks... Twinkies, Ding Dongs, Ho Hos, Sno Balls, Zingers and Honeybuns... for breakfast, why would you eat a brimming bowl of sugary breakfast cereal?</span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you wouldn't serve to your kids a mound of Butter Fingers, Skittles, Milky Ways, Hot Tamales and Sour Patch Kids for breakfast, why would you give them a generous helping of cereal loaded with sugar, carbs, fillers, chemicals, and artificial colors and flavors?</span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can't your kids depend on you to guard their health and welfare by feeding them nutritiously, rather than carelessly? </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stop eating and serving sugar for breakfast. You'll feel better and likely live longer, and so will your kids. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And as a bonus, you'll thwart Big Food corporations from targeting and harming you, your loved ones and all Americans for the sake of profits. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Related Reading</u></span><br />
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/04/lucky-charms-poster-child-for.html">Lucky Charms: Poster Child for Industrial Junk Food? Fat Profits, Fat Kids</a></span></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html">"Salt Sugar Fat" - Stunning Big Food Tactics to Hook, Trick, Harm Americans</a></span></h3>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-22450229822273581802015-02-05T12:09:00.000-08:002015-02-05T12:37:45.931-08:00Target, Walmart Selling Fake Ginkgo, Garlic, Ginseng Thanks to Political Loophole<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeiNe4qEYZzyQDXrvzy-jSj5dzz1qXJYeSA36CFu_RQgmXLIOmeNVR3tbbdYDJUWuCWEVtsxHwJe_2OMvW5_jvgW-GmeugBGogEg3J4Xz4Gq-_j7uLd4yTfeUHPQCXDGufkw74-_55DbQ/s1600/DietarySupplements.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeiNe4qEYZzyQDXrvzy-jSj5dzz1qXJYeSA36CFu_RQgmXLIOmeNVR3tbbdYDJUWuCWEVtsxHwJe_2OMvW5_jvgW-GmeugBGogEg3J4Xz4Gq-_j7uLd4yTfeUHPQCXDGufkw74-_55DbQ/s1600/DietarySupplements.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week, the New York State Attorney General charged Walmart, Target, Walgreens and GNC with selling </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"mislabeled" and "adulterated" dietary supplements. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No surprise, at least to Fake Food Watch readers. <i>(See below for my list of other dietary supplements that should also be investigated by authorities... ) </i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many health supplements are fakes. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Most, actually. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Frauds. Bogus, pricey bait for consumers. Neither effective, nor worth the billions Americans waste annually in vain hopes of improving their health. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's because "T<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">hese drugs are not subject to the F.D.A.’s approval because of a loophole in a 1994 federal law (spearheaded by </span>Utah Sen Orrin G. Hatch<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"> who received funding from supplement makers), fraudulent products can easily reach consumers without accountability or oversight," <a href="http://www.salon.com/2015/02/03/walmart_target_walgreens_gnc_accused_of_selling_scam_herbal_supplements/">per Salon.com</a>. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">Republican Sen. Hatch berated 2012 proposed legislation created to force greater accountability in the lucrative dietary supplement industry. </span></span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2012/5/hatch-leads-efforts-to-prevent-overregulation-of-dietary-supplements">Sen. Hatch bitterly railed </a>against an amendment that would ..</span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">."</span></span><i style="line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">require facilities engaged in the manufacturing, processing, packing, or holding of dietary supplements to register with the FDA, provide a description with a list of all ingredients, as well as a copy of the labeling for each dietary supplement product. Additionally, the facilities must also register with respect to new, reformulated, and discontinued dietary supplement products. </span></i></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i style="line-height: 20px;"><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">While I appreciate my colleague’s commitment, his amendment is based on the misguided presumption that the current regulatory framework for dietary supplements is flawed..." (Source - <a href="http://www.hatch.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2012/5/hatch-leads-efforts-to-prevent-overregulation-of-dietary-supplements">U.S. Senate website of Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah)</a></span></i></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzXFTcKqfjzuSiqCUd2KghOCj2zUThnP7Ydf_FJyi51i9nGuVBuhy6lEx8Dh6Y0dk_1ZKtz5dfWlnRIx7tyh0ALcE9bJBorCHjFfWPVBiLnpqKoVVbFPDiKRYJ3LvSArB8gvKzx23w3-g/s1600/WalmartwithSenior.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzXFTcKqfjzuSiqCUd2KghOCj2zUThnP7Ydf_FJyi51i9nGuVBuhy6lEx8Dh6Y0dk_1ZKtz5dfWlnRIx7tyh0ALcE9bJBorCHjFfWPVBiLnpqKoVVbFPDiKRYJ3LvSArB8gvKzx23w3-g/s1600/WalmartwithSenior.jpeg" height="131" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Findings of the New York State Attorney General? Of 390 DNA barcoding tests performed on 78 samples of 24 generic products sold at the four retailers: </span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>At Walmart</b>, "4 percent actually contained the ingredients listed on the label."</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>At Walgreens</b>, 18 percent contained the listed ingredients.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>At GNC</b>, 22 percent contained the listed ingredients.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>At Target,</b> 44 percent contained the listed ingredients.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>(Source - <a href="http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2015/02/major-retailers-ordered-to-stop-selling-adulterated-and-mislabeled-supplements/#.VNO9zp3F9z8">Food Safety News</a>)</i></span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #4c1130;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Each sample was tested five times; samples were selected from all regions of New York state. T</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">he dietary supplements tested were garlic, ginseng, gingko biloba, St. John's wort, echinacea, valerian root, and saw palmetto.</span></span></div>
<div>
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<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Even I'm amazed at the incredible array of fake fillers found in these supplements in lieu of ingredients listed on the labels. "In many cases, the authorities said, the supplements contained little more than cheap fillers like rice and house plants, or substances that could be hazardous to people with food allergies," <a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/sidebar-whats-in-those-supplements/">per the New York Times</a>.<br /><br />Specific ingredients found in supplements tested often included:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgcGR9l__q0Hg6R-VR75aUgV7w7m0zBYXQ0Ojd2kIPSnPpfPheqcimc27Bc0O8ekH8yghTmgRIIl6qRhrnK-pmxv-GVYQIesuLDZV3PBrbsuwzRvQWgr6VRjIdTWTzjzvI8E_E99p3q7w/s1600/dracaena.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgcGR9l__q0Hg6R-VR75aUgV7w7m0zBYXQ0Ojd2kIPSnPpfPheqcimc27Bc0O8ekH8yghTmgRIIl6qRhrnK-pmxv-GVYQIesuLDZV3PBrbsuwzRvQWgr6VRjIdTWTzjzvI8E_E99p3q7w/s1600/dracaena.jpg" height="314" width="320" /></a><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Dracaena, a houseplant (right photo)</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Rice</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Wheat</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Spruce</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Pine</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Palm</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Wild carrot</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Grass</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Allium, from the garlic family</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Radish</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 23px;">Daisy</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 23px;">Mung bean</span></span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #4c1130; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Friends, don't waste your hard-earned money on dietary supplements. The industry is barely regulated. And profiteers, of course, prey on this regulatory loophole to line their rich pockets at your expense and the expense of your health hopes. <br /><br />Among other products I urge state and federal regulators to also investigate for misleading consumers about the health benefits and/or ingredients are:</span></div>
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Raspberry ketones - See<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/05/raspberry-ketones-another-industrial.html"> "Raspberry Ketones: Another Industrial Food Quasi-Scam?</a>"</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Olive leaf extract - See<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/01/olive-leaf-extract-industrial-food.html"> "</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/01/olive-leaf-extract-industrial-food.html">Olive Leaf Extract: Industrial Food Quasi-Scam with Clever Story"</a></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Ensure - See "</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/08/ensure-drink-sugary-fake-food-pseudo.html">Ensure Drink: Sugary Fake Food Pseudo-Wonder Tonic by Vicodin Maker"</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Coconut water - See <a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/07/coconut-water-fad-hucksterism-health.html">"</a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/07/coconut-water-fad-hucksterism-health.html">The Coconut Water Fad: Hucksterism, Health Elixir or Quasi Fraud?"</a></span><br />
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-63851362475700017942015-01-30T10:43:00.001-08:002015-01-30T10:59:10.901-08:00Detecting Fake Food: Take this App to the Market<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipsqkz8GaoH_0uc4xD0nbae74Uij9nGWIGaq4doX2J9NTv91Sg1OoEUiw3-rFLlXvWfiTcJ2Wb2VhdSyeLp6hTVnbE7o4mLUFIc8u-dGEsaAsZpouaCJvDw7TQDa6tYMQZPYTzSrtpFAU/s1600/EWGfoodscorelogo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipsqkz8GaoH_0uc4xD0nbae74Uij9nGWIGaq4doX2J9NTv91Sg1OoEUiw3-rFLlXvWfiTcJ2Wb2VhdSyeLp6hTVnbE7o4mLUFIc8u-dGEsaAsZpouaCJvDw7TQDa6tYMQZPYTzSrtpFAU/s1600/EWGfoodscorelogo.png" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not an app person. Most make life busier and more complicated, not easier. And like all of us, my smart-phone romance is already too intense. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But I found one, free of charge, that fits the bill: super easy and fast for anyone to use and understand, and with a database of 80,000 grocery products found in U.S.stores.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I strongly recommend that you take this app to the market, and use it. (Yes, that includes tech-befuddled baby boomers!) </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodscores">Food Scores by The Environmental Working Group</a>, released in late 2014, assigns to each product an overall score from 1.0 ("best score") to 10.0 "worst score"), and below, shows the Score Breakdown by:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nutrition Concern</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ingredient Concern</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Processing Concern.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Below that is a third, succinct section that lists Top Findings, both positive and negative, for that product. A fourth, more detailed section follows with Other Information.</span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One feature I especially like: products can be quickly either scanned or keyed into the app. No holding up aisle traffic or restless kids. </span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQFMD5A0mk5GAnDR8yb0KM0xv7HU7kuD1HA4gtgWILnJUs_eBEMdSMqX9nmMSyRWWz8jrgLy91VYYXV-dcDy6luetpN3vpi7KWnx4Z_pUpbPJMz9IQEbWNIhqfLGvDfKees25VvYH7-fc/s1600/EWGfoodscoreapp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQFMD5A0mk5GAnDR8yb0KM0xv7HU7kuD1HA4gtgWILnJUs_eBEMdSMqX9nmMSyRWWz8jrgLy91VYYXV-dcDy6luetpN3vpi7KWnx4Z_pUpbPJMz9IQEbWNIhqfLGvDfKees25VvYH7-fc/s1600/EWGfoodscoreapp.jpg" height="192" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food Scores by The Environmental Working Group can be downloaded for free at the iTunes and Google stores. All information about this app, including score formulations, can be found at <a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodscores">The Environmental Working Group website</a>. </span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Use this handy tool to easily detect and rank fake food in the grocery store. </span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Use it to sort through the marketing BS, the pretty packaging, and the intentionally misleading lures of industrial corporations. </span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Use it to improve the your health and that of your loved ones. Today. </span><br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Related Reading</b></span><br />
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/11/top-12-worst-food-additives-in-american.html">Top 12 Worst Food Additives in American Meals</a></span></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/06/top-15-most-pesticide-free-fruits.html">Top 15 Most Pesticide-Free Fruits, Vegetables</a></span></h3>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/05/pesticide-ridden-produce-12-most.html">Pesticide-Ridden Produce: The 12 Most Infected Fruits, Vegetables</a></span></span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-51038490511287751162014-11-30T15:00:00.000-08:002014-12-02T16:09:41.266-08:00Top 12 Worst Food Additives in American Meals<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitT_rnZWKTO3rkSydMu7i7Lm9j-OLlxAFnjNUYXygU5IOtj4WOxTlOHL0yv8uTMeuStdEeWdiFeVH8GSoQeLsSa4yUapbGp7JiiJ1nwwEo39dpyaY2uMwIR37E6KJJNymvFEfExrz6N28/s1600/ArtificialColors.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitT_rnZWKTO3rkSydMu7i7Lm9j-OLlxAFnjNUYXygU5IOtj4WOxTlOHL0yv8uTMeuStdEeWdiFeVH8GSoQeLsSa4yUapbGp7JiiJ1nwwEo39dpyaY2uMwIR37E6KJJNymvFEfExrz6N28/s1600/ArtificialColors.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first "Dirty Dozen List of Food Additives" was released last month by the Environmental Working Group. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0c343d;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The new guide-list of chemical-based food additives is based on extensive scientific studies and on EWG's massive new database, <a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodscores?_ga=1.253065984.821928385.1415907944">Food Scores: Rate Your Plate</a>, which catalogs "more than 80,000 foods and 5,000 ingredients from about 1,500 brands." </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d;"><br /></span>
<div>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.ewg.org/release/new-guide-warns-dirty-dozen-food-additives">Per EWG</a>:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">The guide covers food additives associated with serious health concerns, ingredients banned or restricted in other countries, and other substances that shouldn't be in food. It turns the spotlight on some of the worst failures of the federal Food and Drug Administration’s regulatory process for additives...</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">" '<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">With thousands of ingredients lurking in food, EWG wanted to bring attention to additives that may have implications for human health, and we wanted to expose how the food regulatory system has failed us,' Johanna Congleton, Ph.D., EWG senior scientist, said."</span></span></blockquote>
<u style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Dirty Dozen Guide to Food Additives</b></u><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">Food should be good for you. But some is not. More than 10,000 additives are allowed in food. Some are </span><em style="border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">direct additives</em><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"> that are deliberately formulated into processed food. Others are</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"> </span><em style="border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">indirect additives</em><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"> that get into food during processing, storage and packaging...</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
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</div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5px;">"The guide covers ingredients associated with serious health concerns, additives banned or restricted in other countries and other substances that shouldn’t be in food."</span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">1. </span><u style="color: #0c343d;"><b>Nitrites and nitrates</b></u><span style="color: #0c343d;"> - "Used as a color fixative in cured meats, bacon, bologna, frankfurters, deviled ham, meat spread, spiced ham, Vienna sausages, smoked-cured tuna fish products, and in smoke-cured shad and salmon." </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;"> (Source - "A Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives", 2009) </span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; line-height: 19.5px;"><i>"</i></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; line-height: 19.5px;">In 2010, scientists at the World Health Organization... declared that ingested nitrites and nitrates are probable human carcinogens... </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">Studies have linked nitrites to stomach cancer. Some data also suggest an association with cancer of the esophagus; one study showed an increased risk in people who eat cured meats more often. There is also evidence that nitrites may be associated with brain and thyroid cancers... </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://www.ewg.org/research/ewg-s-dirty-dozen-guide-food-additives/food-additives-linked-health-risks">Environmental Working Group</a>)</span></i></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMRz-gpbdGu7KrYsmSsyHatWA7lysuf0Icli1loRpzmSNHauM7rS2Oxv7jY6wYxQWie5i7ywpRzyKunaMHMSPgW5PWSJC8Ssm8kCBydsB1xafnCp7wmdFx35Vyu0QCjdRKsnZQLUX1t4I/s1600/BurgerKingTripleCheeseburger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMRz-gpbdGu7KrYsmSsyHatWA7lysuf0Icli1loRpzmSNHauM7rS2Oxv7jY6wYxQWie5i7ywpRzyKunaMHMSPgW5PWSJC8Ssm8kCBydsB1xafnCp7wmdFx35Vyu0QCjdRKsnZQLUX1t4I/s1600/BurgerKingTripleCheeseburger.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><i>2. </i><b><u>Potassium bromate</u></b><i> - </i>"This dough conditioner and bleaching agent, which was once widely used in bread baking, is considered... possibly carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. In 1993, the World Health Organization recommended its removal from all food, and though it's banned in many countries, it's still permitted in the United States and Japan, where it continues to be used in buns at Burger King, Arby's, and Wendy's, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest...</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">"Very toxic when taken internally. Burns and skin irritation have been reported from its industrial use. In toothpaste, it has been reported to have caused inflammation and bleeding of the gums. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;">"The JECFA said in 1993 that new data about potassium bromate showed long-term toxicity and carcenogenicity including kidney tumors, tumors of the lining of the stomach, and thyroid tumors in rats..." </span></span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5px;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - "A Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives", 2009) </span></i><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5px;">3.<b><u><a href="http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredient/705335/PROPYLPARABEN/#"> Propyl paraben</a></u></b> -</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;"> "Parabens are... widely used as preservatives in foods, cosmetics, toiletries and pharmaceuticals... In a previous study, it was demonstrated... that exposure of post-weaning mammals to butyl paraben adversely affects the secretion of testosterone and the function of the male reproductive system. In the present study, it is shown that propyl paraben also adversely affects the hormonal secretion and the male reproductive functions." </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12419695">National Institutes of Health, 2002 study</a>) </span></i></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.6200008392334px;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">Of greatest concern is that parabens are known to disrupt hormone function, an effect that is linked to increased risk of breast cancer and reproductive toxicity... Parabens are also linked to cancer, reproductive toxicity, immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity and skin irritation." </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://safecosmetics.org/article.php?id=291">The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics</a>)</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.6200008392334px;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">4.<a href="http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredient/700740/BHA/"><i> </i><b><u>Butylated hydroxyanisole</u></b></a> (BHA) - </span></span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Here's a question for you: What food additive does the Food and Drug Administration deem 'generally recognized as safe,' while the National Institutes of Health, says it's 'reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen?'<br /><br />"Here's a hint: It's a preservative, and you can find it in (drum roll, please): potato chips, lard, butter, cereal, instant mashed potatoes, preserved meat, beer, baked goods, dry beverage and dessert mixes, chewing gum, and other foods. Oh, also: rubber, petroleum products, and, of course, wax food packaging. </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">The molecule in question is butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)... " </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source -<a href="http://www.livescience.com/36424-food-additive-bha-butylated-hydroxyanisole.html"> LiveScience.com</a>) </span></i></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"BHA is a petroleum-derived food additive that reduces the rate at which food spoils. It... is now used in a wide range of foods to prevent fat from going rancid. </span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BHA is used in beverages, ice cream, snack foods, breakfast cereals, dehydrated foods and mixes, beer, chewing gum, candy, baked goods, instant mashed potatoes, and sausage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">California’s Proposition 65 recognizes BHA as a carcinogen. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances lists BHA as a suspected gastrointestinal or liver toxicant, neurotoxicant, and respiratory toxicant. The Japanese National Institute of Health Sciences’ World Wildlife Fund lists BHA as a suspected endocrine toxicant. The Relational Database of Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases lists BHA as a suspected immunotoxicant and skin or sense organ toxicant." </span><i><span style="color: #0c343d;"> </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://www.nutrition411.com/patient-education-materials/ck98-miscellaneous-topics/item/2337-butylated-hydroxyanisole-bha/">Nutrition411.com, "Where Health Care Professionals Go for Information"</a>) </span></i></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><i>5. </i><b><u>Butylated Hydroxtoluene (BHT</u>)</b><i> - </i></span></span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) is a lab-made chemical that is added to foods as a preservative. People also use it as medicine. BHT is used to treat genital herpes and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Some people apply BHT directly to the skin for cold sores." </span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <i>(Source -<a href="http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-1071-bht%20butylated%20hydroxytoluene.aspx?activeingredientid=1071&activeingredientname=bht%20butylated%20hydroxytoluene"> WedMD.com</a>)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">"Extensive research has shown high doses of this ingredient to cause significant damage to the lungs, liver and kidneys. Oral consumption of this ingredient has also been shown to have toxic effects on the body's blood coagulation system...</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #0c343d;">"Because there lies a significant amount of conflicting research regarding the carcinogenic effects of BHT, it remains a controversial ingredient around the world. The US has banned it from being used in baby food because of its potential association with hyperactivity in children. It's also banned from food in Japan." </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source -<a href="https://www.truthinaging.com/ingredients/butylated-hydroxytoluene-bht"> TruthInAging.com</a>)</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The FDA says that the possibility that BHT may convert other ingested substances into toxic or cancer-causing additives should be investigated. BHT is prohibited as a food additives in the United Kingdom."</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"> <span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> (Source - "A Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives" by Ruth Winter, 2009)</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19.5px;"><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>6. </i><b><u><a href="http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ingredient/705311/PROPYL_GALLATE/">Propyl Gallate</a></u></b><i> -</i> Propyl Gallate is "</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">a preservative that is often used in conjunction with BHA and BHT. It is used as a food preservative in foods that contain oils and fats, to stop food from spoiling. Some foods that commonly contain Propyl Gallate include... vegetable oil, meat products, soup bases, cereals, chewing gum... </span><br /><br /><span style="color: #0c343d;">"Propyl Gallate can cause allergic reactions in the form of an asthma attack in some people. It can also cause stomach and skin irritation, liver damage, kidney damage and has the potential to increase your chances of having cancer."</span><i> <span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source -<a href="http://www.stopkillingmykids.com/the-dangers-of-propyl-gallate/"> StopKillingMyKids.com</a>)</span></i></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPtIRi1P_IykxWvBKB5CiwKn3vaPSHspHpf-9njotJecfsjlY_kNTzo1i9qnhftAaqKsrA-IcvIn1gD-wQACQNuGRIPSHOI2pp1WTrAhen06TnG3_p9PQXuIKkwT50ea6eRSkX4IHMhKI/s1600/CocoaPowders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPtIRi1P_IykxWvBKB5CiwKn3vaPSHspHpf-9njotJecfsjlY_kNTzo1i9qnhftAaqKsrA-IcvIn1gD-wQACQNuGRIPSHOI2pp1WTrAhen06TnG3_p9PQXuIKkwT50ea6eRSkX4IHMhKI/s1600/CocoaPowders.jpg" height="244" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="color: #0c343d;">"New research suggests the dog food preservative, propyl gallate, may be responsible for causing a potentially dangerous health issue for dogs. That’s because of the chemical’s unique ability to mimic the negative effects of the female hormone, estrogen.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #0c343d;">"... recent studies have linked propyl gallate with a special group of hormone-like compounds known as xenoestrogens (which) have the potential to adversely affect reproductive health.</span><a href="http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/red-flag-ingredients/propyl-gallate-in-dog-food/#fn-1940-3" style="color: #0c343d;">3</a><span style="color: #0c343d;"> In humans, they have the ability to transform a normal breast cell into a cancer cell. Propyl gallate can also affect a developing fetus as well as decrease the sperm count in males."</span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;"> (Source -<a href="http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/red-flag-ingredients/propyl-gallate-in-dog-food/"> DogFoodAdvisor.com</a>)</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">7. <b><u>Theobromine</u></b> -</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;"> "A study conducted in Utah between 1983 and 1986, and published in 1993, showed a possible association between theobromine and an increased risk of </span>prostate cancer<span style="color: #0c343d;"> in older men.... Prenatal and infant exposure to theobromine appeared possibly associated with </span>hypospadias<span style="color: #0c343d;"> and testicular cancer in one population study.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #0c343d;">As with caffeine, theobromine can cause sleeplessness, tremors, restlessness, anxiety, as well as contribute to increased production of urine. Additional side effects include loss of appetite, </span>nausea<span style="color: #0c343d;">, </span>vomiting<span style="color: #0c343d;">, and withdrawal headaches." </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theobromine#Humans">Wikipedia</a>)</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"...closely related to caffeine. It (theobromine) is used as a diuretic, smooth muscle relaxant, heart stimulant, and blood vessel dilator. " </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 19.5px;"> (Source - "A Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives" by Ruth Winter, 2009)</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">Hundreds of American foods, most containing processed cocoa or chocolate, include theobromine. </span><a href="http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-000132000000000000000-1.html" style="color: #0c343d;">Click here for a list of the 189 Foods Highest in Theobromine</a><span style="color: #0c343d;">. </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-000132000000000000000-1.html">Nutrition Data at Self.com</a>: Know What You Eat) </span></i></span></div>
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">Other </span></span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Top 12 Worst Food Additives</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">8. <b> Secret flavor ingredients</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">9. <b>Artificial colors</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10.<b> Diacetyl</b> - </span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Diacetyl is a butter flavoring used in some food products like butter, butterscotch, butter flavored popcorn and some alcoholic beverages, especially beer and chardonnay wines. </span> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgockEdxe_M_wGpe_FL097KiqUHx7SOLY_hXoemBmBmzPhDbJ4Qa8cqeZo_8-OCDz-TnG69Yok4EOpzn5Rf1lcFtNHUNB8AJgNhK2VYEAkcPsHTP2K-pqzIK98n5v68eYaom1ZPWdJcUTs/s1600/MicrrowavePopcorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgockEdxe_M_wGpe_FL097KiqUHx7SOLY_hXoemBmBmzPhDbJ4Qa8cqeZo_8-OCDz-TnG69Yok4EOpzn5Rf1lcFtNHUNB8AJgNhK2VYEAkcPsHTP2K-pqzIK98n5v68eYaom1ZPWdJcUTs/s1600/MicrrowavePopcorn.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The United States National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has suggested diacetyl, when used in artificial butter flavoring, may be hazardous when heated and inhaled over a long period. Workers in several factories that manufacture artificial butter flavoring have been diagnosed with bronchiolitis obliterans, a rare and serious disease of the lungs. The cases found have been mainly in young, healthy, nonsmoking males.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Two bills in the California Legislature seek to ban the use of diacetyl. A 2010 U.S. OSHA Safety and Health Information Bulletin and companion Worker Alert recommend employers use safety measures to avoid exposing employees to the potentially deadly effects of butter flavorings and other flavoring substances containing diacetyl or its substitutes." </span><i style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> (Source - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diacetyl#In_food_products">Wikipedia</a>)</span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11. <b>Phosphate-based food additives</b> -</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0c343d;"> "</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.9987621307373px;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">Recently, a high-normal serum phosphate concentration has also been found to be an independent predictor of cardiovascular events and mortality in the general population. Therefore, phosphate additives in food are a matter of concern, and their potential impact on health may well have been underappreciated." </span><i><span style="color: #cc0000;"> (Source -<a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3278747/"> National Institutes of Health, 2012</a>)</span></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12. <b>Aluminum-based food additives</b> -</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <span style="color: #0c343d;">"There are six aluminum salts that have been approved as food additives in the United States. The salts most commonly used are sodium aluminum phosphates. They are added to cake mixes, frozen dough, pancake mixes, self-rising flours, processed cheese and cheese foods and beer (in aluminum cans). Just one slice of individually wrapped processed cheese can contain up to 50 mg of aluminum. It is thought that the cheeseburger may contain one of the highest aluminum contents of any food...</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d;">"<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dangers of Aluminum Toxicity -</span></span><br />
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<li>It is particularly poisonous to the nervous system with a range of symptoms that can include disturbed sleep, nervousness, emotional instability, memory loss, headaches, and impaired intellect.</li>
<li>It can stop the body's ability to digest and make use of calcium, phosphorus and fluoride. This prevents bone growth and reduces bone density...</li>
<li>Toxicity can also result in aching muscles, speech problems, anemia, digestive problems, lowered liver function, colic and impaired kidney function." <i style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.7999992370605px; text-indent: 33px;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source - <a href="http://www.drpepi.com/los-angeles-chiropractor.htm">Dr. Anita Pepi</a>)</span></i></li>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Many... question the safety of these (aluminum-based) food additives, however. The group known as the Department of the Planet Earth petitioned the FDA in September 2005 to rescind the GRAS (acceptable) rating for these additives, citing studies linking aluminum food additive ingestion to Alzheimer’s disease." </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">(Source -<a href="http://www.livestrong.com/article/540321-what-foods-contain-harmful-aluminum/"> LiveStrong.com</a>)</span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>What Should You Do?</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Study up! Start by reading the <a href="http://www.ewg.org/research/ewg-s-dirty-dozen-guide-food-additives"><i>Environmental Working Group's </i></a></span><a href="http://www.ewg.org/research/ewg-s-dirty-dozen-guide-food-additives"><i><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Dirty Dozen List of Food Additives." </span></i></a><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lose processed and packaged foods from your food choices, and from that of your loved ones. Now. Today. If not fully feasible, become an avid label reader. Make informed food choices.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do it for your health. Please!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0c343d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>More from the Environmental Working Group</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/06/top-15-most-pesticide-free-fruits.html">Top 15 Most Pesticide-Free Fruits, Vegetables</a></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/05/pesticide-ridden-produce-12-most.html">Pesticide-Ridden Produce: The 12 Most Infected Fruits, Vegetables</a></span></h3>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-55525987960251577672014-10-31T10:15:00.000-07:002014-10-31T13:18:21.997-07:00Carl's Jr. Salt-Bomb Wins Vote for Most Disgusting New Fast Food<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGILzUcM0gtTXHMEHnYQBBJ-KqNJE87O6EuqnE4UugiO6EjIkgMvEEwroFQhEiDE6WmFCVZmS7vBPXJOsI8YxZR3ao2u43e-xAFPvAAxrjugiujH88TX8Vno0hgwbT5QJaI5CsCR7ncBQ/s1600/Carls-Jr-Hardees-Double-Loaded-Omelet-Biscuit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGILzUcM0gtTXHMEHnYQBBJ-KqNJE87O6EuqnE4UugiO6EjIkgMvEEwroFQhEiDE6WmFCVZmS7vBPXJOsI8YxZR3ao2u43e-xAFPvAAxrjugiujH88TX8Vno0hgwbT5QJaI5CsCR7ncBQ/s1600/Carls-Jr-Hardees-Double-Loaded-Omelet-Biscuit.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Driving home from our son's wedding in Northern California last weekend, we were hoping to find fast, healthy food offerings near the freeway. Foolishly hoping, it seems. </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Healthy options were scarce, and limited to sugary yogurts and a few sandwiches on whole grain bread <i>(Starbucks)</i>, and several carb-and-salt-heavy 6-inch subs loaded with fresh-like veggies <i>(Subway)</i>. </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Culinary weapons-of-human-destruction were easy to spot, though, at all the usual fast-food suspects... and were garishly hawked by Taco Bell, Jack-in-the-Box, McDonald's, and Carl's Jr, among others.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We voted Carl's, Jr's brand-new <i>(introduced on October 22)</i> Double Loaded Omelet Biscuit our most disgusting fast-food sighting of this road trip. And for good reason... </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, san-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://investor.ckr.com/press-release/carls-jr/carls-jr-and-hardees-double-deliciousness-famous-made-scratch-biscuits">Brad Haley, chief marketing officer for Carl’s Jr., boasted </a>"The new Double Loaded Omelet Biscuit, packed with three different breakfast meats... We make them fresh every morning by folding crumbled sausage, chopped bacon, diced ham and shredded Jack and cheddar cheeses into an egg omelet. Then we stack two of them inside one of our signature Made from Scratch Biscuits that we make by hand and bake fresh every morning. That great combination of eggs, sausage, bacon, ham and cheese – times two – will be sure to fill you up in the morning in an absolutely delicious way.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mr. Haley failed to mention the <a href="http://www.carlsjr.com/menu/nutritional_calculator">1,960 mg of sodium</a> (salt) in one of these drippy concoctions. That's equal to the salt in 15 small orders of McDonald's fries. Equal to the <a href="http://www.fritolay.com/snacks/product-page/doritos/doritos-nacho-cheese-flavored-tortilla-chips">salt in 9 servings of Doritos Nacho Cheese tortilla chips</a>. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYXKYBJiTDZZ10sm4z1oEJ1o7WsNbhd9a2Etkr3NVrzlFKUB4EGmIBFurDuIOwNIJNjcMT9oGHP2lWwLzTlKcEUJuXFSYfN_K0l3eVPDCTKCwdIT8yTGqv0m4wrAJaXrkRtVf7HRubjVk/s1600/CarlsOozyDoubleLoadedOmelet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYXKYBJiTDZZ10sm4z1oEJ1o7WsNbhd9a2Etkr3NVrzlFKUB4EGmIBFurDuIOwNIJNjcMT9oGHP2lWwLzTlKcEUJuXFSYfN_K0l3eVPDCTKCwdIT8yTGqv0m4wrAJaXrkRtVf7HRubjVk/s1600/CarlsOozyDoubleLoadedOmelet.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He also failed to mention the <a href="http://www.carlsjr.com/menu/nutritional_calculator">820 calories</a> (equal to <a href="https://www.hersheys.com/reeses/products/reeses-peanut-butter-cups/milk-chocolate.aspx">4 two-packs of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups</a>) and <a href="http://www.carlsjr.com/menu/nutritional_calculator">58 grams of fat</a> (equal to 2 Big Macs) found in Carl's Jr.'s oozing </span><span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Double Loaded Omelet Biscuit. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And, of course, he failed to mention <a href="http://www.fooducate.com/app#page=product&id=52DC766F-DFD5-D611-4F9F-A214D5E2DBD4">more than 100 chemicals, emulsifiers, additives, fillers, and artificial flavors and colors</a> included as ingredients in this salty-fatty food bomb. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Clearly, and by a wide margin, Carl's Jr.'s fevered bid to build and proudly sell an astonishingly unhealthy breakfast product wins our vote for the most disgusting fast-food last week along Highway 101. </span><br />
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My question continues to be... why the heck does our government allow this and similar addictive, poisonous fake foods to be sold to hook the American public into ruining their health? </span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why does our government, which is tasked to protect Americans, allow mega-corporations to deliberately fatten and poison people in order to fatten corporate profits?</span><br />
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><i>Related Reading</i></u></span><br />
<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Salt Sugar Fat" - Stunning Big Food Tactics to Hook, Trick, Harm Americans</a><br />
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/09/walmart-target-fatten-profits-by.html">Walmart, Target Fatten Profits by Fattening Football Fans, Children</a></span></h3>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-50147788723845943962014-09-25T10:24:00.001-07:002014-09-25T18:14:16.746-07:00Walmart, Target Fatten Profits by Fattening Football Fans, Children<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfhmmMVrbY9bKICIZyiJO531WOZi_LpidGsBiqUWldgsY4J_9pFhEyl4h5IBOI8RRoQRu3uH3MyEi1ZImx4dQRAP5yO1ieFnB3RNuhtRPB8BLTOIWXgAlEXJIr5ka3cENa7N3c0VFR7zc/s1600/WalmartJunkFoodad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfhmmMVrbY9bKICIZyiJO531WOZi_LpidGsBiqUWldgsY4J_9pFhEyl4h5IBOI8RRoQRu3uH3MyEi1ZImx4dQRAP5yO1ieFnB3RNuhtRPB8BLTOIWXgAlEXJIr5ka3cENa7N3c0VFR7zc/s1600/WalmartJunkFoodad.jpg" height="400" width="290" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This recent Walmart "Game Time" ad colorfully promotes a party meal of:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Red Baron Pepperoni Pizza, frozen</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lay's or Doritos "Party-Size" Bag of chips</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Great Value Chicken Wings "Sections," frozen </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gatorade Sports Drinks, 8 20-oz bottles</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Velveeta (a "<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Pasteurized Recipe Cheese Product</span>) </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nabisco Ritz Crackers, Oreo and Chips Ahoy! cookies in "Family-Size" packs</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">M&M's Peanut Candies, 42-oz package</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Football-topped cupcakes</span></li>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And Ro-Tel, canned tomatoes and green chilis (plus salt. calcium chloride, citric acid, and unidentified "spices") presumably to be mixed with Velveeta, and then dipped with Doritos chips. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Walmart's fun "Game Time" meal is a time-bomb of salt, sugar, and fat cleverly engineered by industrial mega-corporations to maximize sales and profits. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(For details, read <a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html"> </a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html"><i>"Salt Sugar Fat" - Stunning Big Food Tactics to Hook, Trick, Harm Americans</i></a>.) </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Problem is... that time-bomb will detonate in your body. In most countries, this highly-processed industrial-concocted "meal" would be viewed as an inedible morass of amped-up salt and sugar flavors. Disgusting fake food. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This "meal" is guaranteed lethal to your health. A diet of salt, sugar, and fat, laced heavily with hundreds of chemicals...preservatives, fillers, emulsifiers, artificial colors and flavors... has been scientifically linked over and over to diseases including diabetes, heart disease, even cancers. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/09/diet-exercise-and-weight-cause-cancer/380213/">massive new study by the American Association for Cancer Research</a> found that 25% of cancer diagnoses are directly related to "poor dietary habits" and "obese or overweight," usually stemming from poor diet and exercise. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't mean to call-out Walmart as singularly responsible for ruining Americans' health. Most major U.S. food retail corporations are to blame for fattening profits by selling products that fatten customers. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtus-cflFv_aQHJa2DFhDmE7Dq-Zmiva4RU3poNpZNRZRAsPgTWeo_Lc5QNcdfq5OG5bzAzxp0kEPQEvAJjwOWuWLxLenJy7x343u0t6QICGbK5UNhUnpoSsn0N9_Zfpxlo9NYqMBnb48/s1600/TargetAdAugust23+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtus-cflFv_aQHJa2DFhDmE7Dq-Zmiva4RU3poNpZNRZRAsPgTWeo_Lc5QNcdfq5OG5bzAzxp0kEPQEvAJjwOWuWLxLenJy7x343u0t6QICGbK5UNhUnpoSsn0N9_Zfpxlo9NYqMBnb48/s1600/TargetAdAugust23+(1).jpg" height="221" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Take, for instance, this Target ad, which was wrapped around a late August "Back-to-School" promotion. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Target ad prominently pushes the big three of highly processed, intentionally addictive U.S. junk food favorites of children... Kraft macaroni & cheese, Coca-Cola soft drinks, and Doritos chips. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Convenience foods for cheap prices. At back-to-school time when time and money are scarce for lower-income parents. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The solution?</i> Don't buy this junk. And as much as possible, don't buy from corporate retailers who sell this junk. Buy from farmer's markets and green grocers. Buy from stores that specialize in higher quality products. In my neighborhood, that includes Sprouts, Whole Foods, and often, Trader Joe's. </span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Remember.. Products that don't sell will be dropped by markets and ultimately discontinued by manufacturers. And retailers with sale drops will respond by changing their product lines.</span><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We, the consumers have all the power. Let's use it to dump highly processed fake-foods from our football parties, from our childrens' palates, and from our tables. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let's use our power as consumers to take back our health.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><i><b>Related Reading</b></i></u></span><br />
<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html">"Salt Sugar Fat" - Stunning Big Food Tactics to Hook, Trick, Harm Americans</a></span></h3>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/06/soy-sauce-fakes-how-to-avoid-industrial.html">Soy Sauce Fakes: How to Avoid Industrial Corn-Syrup Soy Sauce</a></span></h3>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/search/label/Taco%20Bell">Taco Bell Salad: Why No Warning Label for Lethal Salt Content?</a></span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-51482784168707117022014-09-03T15:44:00.003-07:002014-09-03T22:05:28.874-07:00Pumpkin Spice Lattes: To Drink or Not to Drink?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpprZwvhf_s76PR3H-iFtUiaoF-JJ1fqO0fsBAiglzfvCZgfaXH7PtBM_cMGD0pFcj6HlgKBTf-81kDlm5F91Ihem5sbMQd6gud47nINtonAgexfSvEwM2irJcFvpXahyImS0j6OtQsjU/s1600/PumpkinSpiceLatteSign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpprZwvhf_s76PR3H-iFtUiaoF-JJ1fqO0fsBAiglzfvCZgfaXH7PtBM_cMGD0pFcj6HlgKBTf-81kDlm5F91Ihem5sbMQd6gud47nINtonAgexfSvEwM2irJcFvpXahyImS0j6OtQsjU/s1600/PumpkinSpiceLatteSign.jpg" height="320" width="305" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Summer is over, and so is my two-month sabbatical from Fake Food Watch. </span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(I spent my hiatus developing a sister project, <a href="http://www.lostamericanrecipes.com/">LostAmericanRecipes</a>.com, which features U.S. heritage recipes, both homespun and hoity-toity, all without highly processed ingredients. But I digress... )</span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For Starbucks aficionados. the demise of summer means the aromatic return of Pumpkin Spice Lattes, my favorite Fall concoction. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apparently nearly everyone's favorite Starbucks fare, judging by how early PSLs seasonally reappear at the coffee shop retailer with $15 billion in U.S.sales in 2013.<i> (Yes, that's billion, not million!)</i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But this year, the burning PSL question is:<i> To drink or not to drink?</i></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Recently, a top health blogger shrilly berated Starbucks to "<a href="http://foodbabe.com/2014/08/25/starbucks-pumpkin-spice-latte/">Stop putting toxic chemicals in your Pumpkin Spice Lattes</a>," and sharply warned all of us to "<a href="http://foodbabe.com/2014/08/25/starbucks-pumpkin-spice-latte/">think before we drink</a>." Her message went semi-viral in food digital circles. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Are the blogger's complaints credible? She makes some good points. Other points, though. seem obvious and severely overstated. Among her objections to Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Lattes (and my brief reactions) are:</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>No actual pumpkin in PSLs</i></b> - Someone thought there was actual pumpkin in PSLs? They didn't realize that flavored, sweet syrups are commonly used in beverages? The syrups openly displayed in every Starbucks on planet Earth?</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>"Toxic" dose of sugar</b> </i>- A grande (16 oz) PSL contains about 12 teaspoons (50 grams) of sugar. That's a lot of sugar for anyone. But toxic? Medically, maybe for diabetics. For non-diabetics, depends on how loosely "toxic" is defined, and on each person's daily diet. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Made with "Monsanto Milk"</i></b> - Starbucks' suppliers use milk from "cows fed GMO corn, soy, and cottonseed." All non-organic milk in the U.S. is from cows nurtured on GMO feed. In fact, unless bearing the USDA Certified Organic label, organic milk might also trace back to cows fed GMO crops. <i> ("Monsanto Milk" is quite the slick phrase, I must admit. Sounds scary but it's actually the norm in the U.S.)</i></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjprXxQMIf_btoF91zeWeTNMW7Jy2KoXAGToAWhWMj7_zs5Z2rQTtT2ALGYKA12TSicXGUkGBMV_Uasbt-AFCXsXVH_2M38QyN3mc8tX2NoraYNOqzvTx1pW59j4svP2JyC9WPELfPeMGg/s1600/;umpkinspicelatte.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjprXxQMIf_btoF91zeWeTNMW7Jy2KoXAGToAWhWMj7_zs5Z2rQTtT2ALGYKA12TSicXGUkGBMV_Uasbt-AFCXsXVH_2M38QyN3mc8tX2NoraYNOqzvTx1pW59j4svP2JyC9WPELfPeMGg/s1600/;umpkinspicelatte.jpg" height="400" width="335" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>Possible Pesticide Residue</b> </i> - Always true for any crop, including coffee beans, that are not organic. True of every non-organic coffee, which is most coffee sold worldwide. Eating only organic is a personal choice. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Caramel Color Level IV</i></b> - Artificial food coloring is brewed from chemicals, and never carries nutritional benefits. Caramel food coloring is no exception. Per this blogger's tiniest fine-print, "It's the most widely used food coloring in the world, which makes it easy to consume excessive amounts." </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She's correct that artificial coloring in anything can cause allergic reactions. Also, if ingested in inhumanly extreme amounts, some artificial ingredients can prove carcinogenic. And indeed, "there are safer alternatives available to food manufacturers."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But toxic due to an occasional Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte? <i>Hogwash. Near impossible</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Ambiguous Natural Flavor</i></b> - The blogger gratuitously adds, "... that can be made from substances like petroleum." The same can be said for more than 95% of all processed foods, which represents about 90% of foods sold in supermarkets and 99% of fast food outlets.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Preservatives & Sulfites</i></b> - Again, she's piling on scary superlatives. T</span><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">he same can be said for more than 95% of all processed foods, which represents about 90% of foods sold in supermarkets and 99% of fast food outlets.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>To Drink or Not to Drink?</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm an unabashed supporter of organic foods, free of chemicals, additives, fillers, preservatives, and artificial colors and flavors. I'm a staunch supporter of freedom of both informed choice and clear labeling of all ingredients. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm also a supporter of commonsense, fact-based journalism. I don't know much about this particular blogger, who<a href="http://foodbabe.com/investigations/"> glamorously prides herself on leading "investigations" to help "show you how to get the healthy body you want.</a>" </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Others do hold strong views on this blogger though. Click here for an article by Science-Based Medicine.org, <a href="http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/vani-hari-a-k-a-the-food-babe-the-jenny-mccarthy-of-food/">The Jenny McCarthy of Food: Enter the Font of Misinformation that is The Food Babe</a>.</span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for me, will I treat myself to an occasional Pumpkin Spice Latte? Of course. In fact, I'm heading to Starbucks right this moment for my delectable first PSL of the season!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Related Fake Food Reading</u></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/03/starbucks-trying-harder-than-taco-bell.html" style="text-decoration: none;">Starbucks: Trying Harder than Taco Bell to Do the Right Thing</a></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/04/brouhaha-in-strawberry-frappuccino.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Brouhaha in a Strawberry Frappuccino: Starbucks Tries to Get It Right But Falters</span></a></h3>
<br />Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-76543010035226193962014-06-30T15:50:00.002-07:002014-12-02T14:56:35.431-08:00Top 15 Most Pesticide-Free Fruits, Vegetables <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9DFPVbPl67mXHvpSJhmdSksjn_0M1WlPdkKqvW8n5SqJcW7wFK_ePlhdNxiUDDtuavkRt9_9-FXM7XXZl0WBLNs5qUlIdwfRQzliwpqMXhXkldPiA9vfW4aG3o5dLSZlR9aovLirkyA/s1600/avocadoes+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9DFPVbPl67mXHvpSJhmdSksjn_0M1WlPdkKqvW8n5SqJcW7wFK_ePlhdNxiUDDtuavkRt9_9-FXM7XXZl0WBLNs5qUlIdwfRQzliwpqMXhXkldPiA9vfW4aG3o5dLSZlR9aovLirkyA/s1600/avocadoes+(1).jpg" height="281" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For freshest taste, always choose organic produce over non-organic grocery store produce, which is lavishly treated with chemicals to prolong shipping time and shelf life. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fifteen fruits and veggies grown conventionally, though, are largely free of pesticides, per the Environmental Working Group's (EWG) annual survey of the dirtiest and cleanest produce grown in the U.S. </span><br />
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<i><span style="color: #741b47;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(The EWG <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">publicly ranks results of USDA and FDA testing each year of 32,000 samples of 48 non-organic fruits and veggies commonly found in the U.S. Click here for </span></span> "<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/05/pesticide-ridden-produce-12-most.html">Pesticide-Ridden Produce: The 12 Most Infected Fruits, Vegetables.</a>")</span></span></i><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For these 2014 Clean Fifteen, there's no need to spend your hard-earned money on organic if your goal is to avoid ingesting the poisons of pesticides, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">herbicides, and fungicides. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #741b47;">Noted the EWG about Clean Fifteen vegetables. "Detecting multiple pesticide residues is extremely rare... only about 5.5 percent... had two or more pesticides." About fruits, the EWG reported, "No single fruit sample from the Clean Fifteen tested positive for more than 4 pesticides." (Yes, some of the dirtiest produce tested positive for up to 13 pesticides. One grape was found with residue of an incredible 15 pesticides...)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><span style="color: #741b47;"><b>The Good News: Top 15 Produce Least Likely to be Infected with Pesticides</b></span></u></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #741b47;"><b>1. Asparagus</b></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIBiLXxOm0O5hDsZ6qROnFxrVsoum3VH0JBQBvnF8_m0GkIf0Vq_cvCFqiefwrQKnXdo_tQ5LTikpC20kJm49-GnvCWdYkyxNx-GqsvziELCGTZHF0q81qo2rLhRJWbkZIfVHngxad4uo/s1600/papayas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIBiLXxOm0O5hDsZ6qROnFxrVsoum3VH0JBQBvnF8_m0GkIf0Vq_cvCFqiefwrQKnXdo_tQ5LTikpC20kJm49-GnvCWdYkyxNx-GqsvziELCGTZHF0q81qo2rLhRJWbkZIfVHngxad4uo/s1600/papayas.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #741b47;"><b>2. Avocados</b> - "Avocados were the cleanest; only 1 percent of avocado samples showed any detectable pesticides."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #741b47;"><b>3. Cabbage</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #741b47;"><b>4. Cantaloupe</b> - 61 percent of cantaloupe tested had no pesticide residue.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>5. Cauliflower</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>6. Eggplant</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>7. Grapefruit</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>8. Kiwi</b> - 82 percent of kiwi </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">tested had no pesticide residue.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>9. Mangoes</b> - 88 percent of mangoes tested had no pesticide residue.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>10. Onions</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvdQqLjIVxkh0_42gm_i9gIl-vPZ-9Vb9AGOF4YaQFTjmSkp0jPR6HkRK0E8SHo1xraDR6stGONEB-CnlOynQuHOFg5U_0zedOgG7mNOsB6C4nu663lfEdQQNNb6mJl-j4DePvi1pB73M/s1600/Pineapples.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvdQqLjIVxkh0_42gm_i9gIl-vPZ-9Vb9AGOF4YaQFTjmSkp0jPR6HkRK0E8SHo1xraDR6stGONEB-CnlOynQuHOFg5U_0zedOgG7mNOsB6C4nu663lfEdQQNNb6mJl-j4DePvi1pB73M/s1600/Pineapples.jpg" height="252" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>11. Papayas</b> - 80 percent of papayas </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">tested had no pesticide residue.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>12. Pineapples </b>- 89 percent of pineapples </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">tested had no pesticide residue.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>13. Sweet corn</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>14. Sweet peas</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>15. Sweet potatoes</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Avocados. Mangoes. Sweet corn. Pineapples. Cantaloupes. Cabbage for cole slaw. Sounds like the makings for a scrumptious summer party! </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enjoy!!! And pass the guacamole to me... </span><br />
<br />Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-48123232318500996342014-05-30T17:05:00.001-07:002014-12-02T14:56:50.060-08:00Pesticide-Ridden Produce: The 12 Most Infected Fruits, Vegetables<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguwN33O50043AVST_QDWa6Y92k5_kS0e4SstzNZCr28ORLk1gkCFYFN19qn20LnHr9fY7lPxjXxaIFQTO3hpZitepeG0XRMJkTa_cgH5TD1lu0WwmPG9DO5m9QWM34vQ9FeSRTR-7Togw/s1600/dirtydozen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguwN33O50043AVST_QDWa6Y92k5_kS0e4SstzNZCr28ORLk1gkCFYFN19qn20LnHr9fY7lPxjXxaIFQTO3hpZitepeG0XRMJkTa_cgH5TD1lu0WwmPG9DO5m9QWM34vQ9FeSRTR-7Togw/s1600/dirtydozen.jpg" height="295" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Americans can slash most pesticide residue from their foods by replacing only the most pesticide-ridden produce with organic fruits and veggies, per the medical and public health communities. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Environmental Working Group <i>(EWG)</i> recently released its <a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/">annual Dirty Dozen list</a>, which publicly ranks results of USDA and FDA testing of 32,000 samples of 48 non-organic fruits and veggies commonly found in the U.S. </span><br />
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<i><span style="background-color: white; color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Note: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_Working_Group">The Environmental Working Group </a>is a non-profit devoted to</span> <span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"research and advocacy in the areas of toxic chemicals, agricultural subsidies, public lands, and corporate accountability." The 22-year-old group's mission is "to use the power of public information to protect public health and the environment.")</span></i><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Two-thirds of produce samples in recent government tests had pesticide residues," <a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/">writes the EWG</a>. "Don't want to eat bug- and weed-killers?... We highlight the cleanest and dirtiest conventionally-raised fruits and vegetables." </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Without further ado, the EWG's 2014 Dirty Dozen are listed below. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next week, check back for the EWG's 2014 Clean Fifteen, listing the most pesticide-free non-organic produce currently sold in the U.S.<i> (Hint! Avocados are #1 cleanest. Bring on that guacamole...)</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>EWG's 2014 Dirty Dozen</i></b> - "Each of these foods contained a number of different pesticide residues and showed high concentrations of pesticides relative to other produce items."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1.<b><i> Apples</i></b> - "99% of apple samples tested positive for at least one pesticide residue."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. <b><i>Celery</i></b> - Single samples "tested positive for 13 different pesicides apiece."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. <b><i>Cherry Tomatoes</i></b> - </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Single samples "tested positive for 13 different pesticides apiece."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. <b><i>Cucumbers</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5.<b><i> Grapes</i></b> - "A single grape tested positive for 15 pesticides."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6. <i><b>Nectarines</b></i> (imported only, not grown in the USA) - "Every sample of imported nectarines tested positive for at least one pesticide residue."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">7. <b><i>Peaches</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">8. <b><i>Potatoes</i></b> - "The average potato had more pesticides by weight than any other food."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">9. <b><i>Snap Peas</i></b> (i</span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">mported only, not grown in the USA) - </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Single samples "tested positive for 13 different pesicides apiece."</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10. <b><i>Spinach</i></b></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11. <b><i>Strawberries</i></b> - </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Single samples "tested positive for 13 different pesicides apiece."</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12. <b><i>Sweet Bell Peppers</i></b></span></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-51491864000516856832014-04-16T16:07:00.001-07:002014-04-16T16:07:27.753-07:00"Real Food" Diet Dilemma: Of Michael Pollan and the California Drought<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-2lfJ8kDIwGylO2EYoBTFprclkovgSrWSaMzATvVpER8pgjb7-MpPJCKlOV3QjF0CK4JrLJQrXhrP1OF8zT5_nRVVo88UpebUS4OV8NDztAgoS5hOy7p9O-5u5RICib8J2ZHhEBlYgCA/s1600/PortlandMarket+(1).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-2lfJ8kDIwGylO2EYoBTFprclkovgSrWSaMzATvVpER8pgjb7-MpPJCKlOV3QjF0CK4JrLJQrXhrP1OF8zT5_nRVVo88UpebUS4OV8NDztAgoS5hOy7p9O-5u5RICib8J2ZHhEBlYgCA/s1600/PortlandMarket+(1).JPG" height="191" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The results are in, and to no thinking-person's surprise, the best diet is no diet at all. The best diet is real food.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The top "best diets" were tested by Dr. David Katz of Yale's Prevention Research Center, and published in scientific journal Annual Reviews:</span></span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="line-height: 23.200000762939453px;">In it, they compare the major diets of the day: Low carb, low fat, low glycemic, Mediterranean, mixed/balanced (DASH), Paleolithic, vegan, and elements of other diets. Despite the pervasiveness of these diets in culture and media, Katz and Meller write, 'There have been no rigorous, long-term studies comparing contenders for best diet laurels using methodology that precludes bias and confounding. For many reasons, such studies are unlikely.'</span><span style="line-height: 23.200000762939453px;"> </span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="line-height: 23.200000762939453px;">They conclude that no diet is clearly best, but there are common elements across eating patterns that are proven to be beneficial to health. 'A diet of minimally processed foods close to nature, predominantly plants, is decisively associated with health promotion and disease prevention.'"</span> <i>(source - <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/03/science-compared-every-diet-and-the-winner-is-real-food/284595/">The Atlantic, March 24, 2014</a>)</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just like Michael Pollan advised when he penned simply <i>"Eat food. Not too much. Mainly plants." </i>in slim best-seller Food Rules: An Eater's Manual.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVrjQTcwJjCYY9BpghpAYai_cl6yxPL1V53Fw8kSxyZ08cfvg8auwDwKP9jzFQO-TetxaFY6EUvJ0iNKIrkKhbykMX17I82P4U37_UQisHtmUOAVgY9XRhAfzbEWstdf0zO42ekVcvZFE/s1600/pollanfoodrules+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVrjQTcwJjCYY9BpghpAYai_cl6yxPL1V53Fw8kSxyZ08cfvg8auwDwKP9jzFQO-TetxaFY6EUvJ0iNKIrkKhbykMX17I82P4U37_UQisHtmUOAVgY9XRhAfzbEWstdf0zO42ekVcvZFE/s1600/pollanfoodrules+(1).jpg" height="200" width="126" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just like New York Times columnist Mark Bittman reiterated when he <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/26/opinion/bittman-butter-is-back.html?_r=0">recently proclaimed "Butter is back!"</a> in response to an Annals of Internal Medicine article comparing 72 nutrition science studies:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"... <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 23px;">the </span>real villains<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 23px;"> in our diet — sugar and ultra-processed foods — are becoming increasingly apparent. You can go back to eating butter, if you haven’t already.</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 23px;">This doesn’t mean you abandon fruit for beef and cheese; you just abandon fake food for real food, and in that category of real food you can include good meat and dairy.</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 23px;">"</span><i> (source - <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/26/opinion/bittman-butter-is-back.html">New York Times, March 25, 2014</a>)</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #444444;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All well and good. Americans seem to finally be grasping that good food supports good health. And that highly processed industrial-made fake foods have a negative impact on health. </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>But Houston, we still have a problem.</i> </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just as Americans relearn to appreciate real food, especially fruits and veggies, a profound shortage of US-grown produce is developing... and for a reason that most Americans selfishly believe doesn't affect them: the massive California drought. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">California produces the <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/files/2agovstat10_web-1.pdf">vast majority of U.S.-grown produce</a>, including: </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5-7-rjCfv6oEth0haK9Ucf9698OWZ4_YR2giCCdymdLbnPmtahFwoPXyLsUiKbfFNQfuOSeJdQgLdASOTnvtxY_zSBgIM8xDDkY6e-omvp6j9USNi4wNyIZ4O_Vf9EQqkhqFRhi4Rzk/s1600/califstonefruitfarmersolsonfarms.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5-7-rjCfv6oEth0haK9Ucf9698OWZ4_YR2giCCdymdLbnPmtahFwoPXyLsUiKbfFNQfuOSeJdQgLdASOTnvtxY_zSBgIM8xDDkY6e-omvp6j9USNi4wNyIZ4O_Vf9EQqkhqFRhi4Rzk/s1600/califstonefruitfarmersolsonfarms.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">99% of walnuts</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">99% of almonds</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">99% of artichokes</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">97% of plums</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">97% of apricots</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">96% of nectarines</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">96% of olives</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">95% of celery</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">90% of broccoli</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">89% of cauliflower</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">89% of strawberries</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">88% of lemons</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">76% of avocados</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">71% of spinach</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">69% of carrots</span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The U.S. Midwest mainly farms three crops... corn, soybeans, and grains... to be used for highly-processed industrial-made foods. Midwest farmers are richly rewarded by mega-corporations and subsidized by Congress for focusing on fodder for fast and processed foods manufactured in the U.S. </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So most of America is heavily dependent on California for its harvest of fruits and vegetables in order to chow-down a "real food" diet. </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The loss of California’s output would create a dire situation for at least a decade" <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/explainer/2013/07/california_grows_all_of_our_fruits_and_vegetables_what_would_we_eat_without.html">observed Slate.com</a>. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And this week, <a href="http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/California-Drought-Driving-Up-Food-Prices-255468211.html?_osource=Newltr_Station_Hdlines_LA">NBC News reported</a>, "California's severe drought is causing a drastic increase in food prices."</span><div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>What's the Solution?</b></span><div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What's the solution to make a "real food" diet reality for all Americans? The long-tern solutions are political, simple and painfully obvious:</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio7d035kmfgbq-2HC51FQEYSD1bYop6gTErUTlS3sf66MhyphenhyphenUOP9RtEYfgUs7dpQdfCQA2zbKMw3WJ5ouvcgu_VSXK723kvJ-YwAca0peRKgRtTi49aVt2GA6CEnvoLswMCO8ect-CkUNg/s1600/Portland+Oct+15-22,+2010+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio7d035kmfgbq-2HC51FQEYSD1bYop6gTErUTlS3sf66MhyphenhyphenUOP9RtEYfgUs7dpQdfCQA2zbKMw3WJ5ouvcgu_VSXK723kvJ-YwAca0peRKgRtTi49aVt2GA6CEnvoLswMCO8ect-CkUNg/s1600/Portland+Oct+15-22,+2010+004.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The federal government should stop <a href="http://usliberals.about.com/od/FoodFarmingIssues/a/What-Are-Farm-Subsidies.htm">spending billions annually to subsidize crops</a> for the processed food-like products made by mega-corporations.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Instead, the federal government should put its money where its health-conscious mouth is, and subsidize fruits and vegetables, and high-quality dairy and meat intended for direct sale to U.S. consumers.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">California farmers should receive maximum possible government support to help stay afloat and hydrated during this drought crisis. </span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the short term, what's a smart consumer to do to afford a healthier "real food" diet for her loved ones?</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Buy real foods, rather than processed food products, as much as practicable. Prices are often lower at farmer's markets. </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Conserve,don't waste foods.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Grow a garden in your yard, in balcony and patio pots and planters, or community patch. </span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And remember: "</span><i style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Eat food. Not too much. Mainly plants." </i></div>
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<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-67503630537145025922014-04-03T11:30:00.000-07:002014-04-03T11:54:22.055-07:00Lucky Charms: Poster Child for Industrial Junk Food? Fat Profits, Fat Kids<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltIU_s_5xHh8VqA9lOpRT2EOhhmCAZFp4Iw9Cjk7hyGOij3Qv7G8LAq8YKc5E6IW4HWSIupyhUapRBLbFm8niubazRiZJxwnM4uG2-AiHucA3L_Dsp4YiPlx7hbVtoj7MmfyOS92k80w/s1600/Luckycharms.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjltIU_s_5xHh8VqA9lOpRT2EOhhmCAZFp4Iw9Cjk7hyGOij3Qv7G8LAq8YKc5E6IW4HWSIupyhUapRBLbFm8niubazRiZJxwnM4uG2-AiHucA3L_Dsp4YiPlx7hbVtoj7MmfyOS92k80w/s1600/Luckycharms.png" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lucky Charms manufacturer, General Mills, is celebrating the sugar-laden cereal's 50th birthday this year. </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, why shouldn't mega-corporation General Mills celebrate? Lucky Charms is the 10th best selling cereal in the U.S., a stand-out milestone in a lucrative product field of hundreds upon hundreds of breakfast cereals. Very few fake foods have achieved such lofty sales volumes. </span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And after half a century on supermarket shelves, Lucky Charms sales are surging. <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-06-28/behind-the-surge-in-lucky-charms-sales-grownups">Reported Businessweek</a> about first quarter 2013:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"IRI, a Chicago-based market research firm, estimates that Lucky Charms sales this year are up 14.5 percent to $145.9 million so far. By contrast, the company’s overall U.S. sales were up just 2 percent in the latest quarter and 1 percent in fiscal 2013." </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A reason for the newest upsurge in Lucky Charms' popularity? Adults, who were targeted in clever new marketing campaigns. "The company claims more than 40 percent of Lucky Charms eaters are adults,"<a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-06-28/behind-the-surge-in-lucky-charms-sales-grownups"> per Businesswee</a>k. </span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"'We know that adults have always loved Lucky Charms and by reconnecting them with the brand, we have reignited their love of one of their favorite things from childhood,' says Carla Vernon, General Mills’ marketing director for Lucky Charms." (source -<a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-06-28/behind-the-surge-in-lucky-charms-sales-grownups"> Businessweek</a>)</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Exuded another marketing guru about Lucky Charms' 50th birthday:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"For 50 years, Lucky Charms has been delighting kids and kids at heart with our wonderful combination of frosted toasted oats and magical marshmallows," Jenny Zechmeister, marketing manager for Lucky Charms, told HLN" (source -<a href="http://www.hlntv.com/slideshow/2014/03/17/lucky-charms-50th-anniversary"> HLNTV, a Time-Warner Compan</a>y)</span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-oNCGrXK2Oq88TyF7F-ETJgMfSgUbDLA2pZ6o8Nmx99_wRGpjvkx89YW4eneDjr7FINjiBU7m6uCv8MBD1OdlLG1zri5tTPIAEpBbTOoJ3XQDhV5caZbvysS1vRAULvjU66mowq3nZs/s1600/bowlofluckycharms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-oNCGrXK2Oq88TyF7F-ETJgMfSgUbDLA2pZ6o8Nmx99_wRGpjvkx89YW4eneDjr7FINjiBU7m6uCv8MBD1OdlLG1zri5tTPIAEpBbTOoJ3XQDhV5caZbvysS1vRAULvjU66mowq3nZs/s1600/bowlofluckycharms.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>What was General Mills thinking?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> As I pondered the appalling public health impact of this beloved "cereal" fake food comprised of 37% sugar and a plethora of artificial colors and flavors, I wondered... </span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What was General Mills ("GM") thinking when it created Lucky Charms? </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Was child nutrition or public health ever seriously considered? </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Or is Lucky Charms the perfect poster child for industrial-made junk food aimed solely at maximum corporate profitability? </span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Seems that Lucky Charms was created on a dare in 1962 by GM Research Labs to Vice-President John Holahan.<i> A business dare</i> to create a new product in six months, rather than the usual two to three years, and for that product to use existing manufacturing capacity at its Cheerios or Wheaties plants. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While perusing supermarket aisles, Holahan conjured the idea of combining Cheerios with bits of Brach's bright orange Circus Peanuts marshmallow candy. Per <a href="https://www.ecu.edu/cs-bus/faculty/tutent.cfm">Dr. Tracy Tuten</a>, marketing professor at East Carolina University:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="line-height: 18.900001525878906px;">The General Mills cereal scientists worked with the Kraft marshmallow scientists to develop a cereal marshmallow with the right properties. The Circus peanuts had much more water content than most cereal pieces. They had to develop a marshmallow with low water content that would last on the store shelves for months... The new extrusion process also allowed them to form shapes and different colors..." (source - <a href="http://tracytuten.com/lucky-charms-a-story-in-creativity-success-creativitychat/">TracyTuten.com, July 5, 2013</a>)</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Three enthusiastic focus groups of mothers and their young children, and GM ignored its normal product-development protocol process to rush Lucky Charms into supermarkets across the nation. Exuded one mother,<i> "If it keeps the kids quiet and happy at breakfast, bring it on!</i>"</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHEnxwsMb3DpvmgY-tK4VmAGsxJI377BwEe8wGyyfESlit5Dxj4nQqOlrOQbD7tuuNNb6Rfw5w0WU4joDZXnuWvb2bV1nNB7uRVsf2sAxZXEjoRdm1RhQ_r3GN_NUdKeFCXFoqj4AlTKQ/s1600/chocluckycharms.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHEnxwsMb3DpvmgY-tK4VmAGsxJI377BwEe8wGyyfESlit5Dxj4nQqOlrOQbD7tuuNNb6Rfw5w0WU4joDZXnuWvb2bV1nNB7uRVsf2sAxZXEjoRdm1RhQ_r3GN_NUdKeFCXFoqj4AlTKQ/s1600/chocluckycharms.jpg" height="200" width="132" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Marbits, short for marshmallow bits, are and always have been 25% of Lucky Charms cereal. But that apparently wasn't enough sugar to <i>"keep the kids happy at breakfast."</i> </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"The oat cereal was not originally sugar coated. After initial sales failed to meet expectations, the oats were sugar coated, and the cereal's success grew. The recipe for the cereal remained unchanged until the introduction of a new flavor: Chocolate Lucky Charms, in 2005...</span></blockquote>
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"Following the product launch, the General Mills marketing department found that sales performed dramatically better if the composition of the marbits changed periodically. Various features of the marbits were modified to maximize their appeal to young consumers. In focus groups and market research, more brightly colored charms resulted in better sales than did dull or pastel colors. Holahan called Lucky Charms a 'lesson in creative marketing.'" (source - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucky_Charms">Wikipedia</a>)</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The answers to my three questions appear to be...</b> </span><br />
<i style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What was General Mills ("GM") thinking when it created Lucky Charms?</i><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cut product development time by 70%</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not incur additional manufacturing facilities costs</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Long store shelf life</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Something super-sugary to please the palate</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Something fun to attract and amuse kids</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Creative marketing" to spur sales</span></li>
</ul>
<i style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Was child nutrition or public health ever seriously considered? </i><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">No, apparently neither played any role whatsoever in GM's creation of Lucky Charms cereal.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Is Lucky Charms the perfect poster child for industrial-made junk food aimed solely at maximum corporate profitability? </i>That's the logical conclusion<i>. </i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>What is General Mills celebrating?</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So what, exactly, is General Mills celebrating when it joyously marks the 50th birthday of its Lucky Charms cereal product line? </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Clever marketing, especially to children. Very long sales life. Addictively sugary taste, ensuring repeat buyers. Fast-track product development. Hefty profits for mega-corporation General Mills. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nutrition for kids be damned. Public health be damned. Mere impediments to corporate profits from Lucky Charms, perfect poster child for industrial-made junk food. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy Birthday to Lucky Charms for 50 years of fat profits and fat kids! </span></div>
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<br /></div>
Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-46242741783800938482014-03-13T11:57:00.001-07:002014-03-13T12:24:00.894-07:00Starbucks: Trying Harder than Taco Bell to Do the Right Thing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwQ1YqSVDQa4kNqWZLMmuEANercRVUqIm_jOiKfDQ1eI5mN6xqXxy0glLay7gy7jgnBhKOuQ-NKdiEcMamgjKy_FK0hbNLy4TsQhssCwjO915YJSywXH1_sqA2SPouQSkQafs45oD8jOY/s1600/newstarbuckssandwich.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwQ1YqSVDQa4kNqWZLMmuEANercRVUqIm_jOiKfDQ1eI5mN6xqXxy0glLay7gy7jgnBhKOuQ-NKdiEcMamgjKy_FK0hbNLy4TsQhssCwjO915YJSywXH1_sqA2SPouQSkQafs45oD8jOY/s1600/newstarbuckssandwich.jpg" height="199" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Give Starbucks credit for offering options to the public for better quality fast food.</span><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Starbucks really does try harder than most fast foodies to offer</span><i style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> some</i><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> fare that's healthier, and less laden with sugar, fat, and salt. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not talking about Starbucks' endless array of delectable cakes, muffins, pastries, doughnuts, and super-sized cookies, of course. Coffee culture will always serve sweet bakery goods with aromatic java, thankfully regardless of the Food Police. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Consider Starbucks' newest menu offering, the Vegetable & Fontiago Breakfast Sandwich, a 470-calorie vegetarian meal made of:</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">a fried egg</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">a fusion of Asiago and Fontina cheeses</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">small amounts of fresh spinach and caramelized onions</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">sun-dried tomato spread</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">all on a multigrain ciabatta roll</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglId1VvFdRBEzeoAYsEhmy0gzaparjnoQvd8FU2UPZUc17wRMvaZ9sESTBuGTEuwrFzQMCLTV-wXt_O9OA9BX3QG5OmlOAHshFe4uHV2l1e20L2Y_i24raRwxRLpiE4ug2XwBzoGsx5Wg/s1600/tacobellwaffletaco.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglId1VvFdRBEzeoAYsEhmy0gzaparjnoQvd8FU2UPZUc17wRMvaZ9sESTBuGTEuwrFzQMCLTV-wXt_O9OA9BX3QG5OmlOAHshFe4uHV2l1e20L2Y_i24raRwxRLpiE4ug2XwBzoGsx5Wg/s1600/tacobellwaffletaco.jpg" height="112" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Contrast that with Taco Bell's new breakfast concoction <a href="http://www.tacobell.com/food/menu/breakfast-menu">set to debut on March 27</a>: a sugary waffle, tucked taco-style around a greasy sausage patty, topped with scrambled eggs, then drizzled with Taco Bell's orange liquid cheese. Optional "syrup" packet for dipping. No nutritional info has yet been released publicly, for good reason. Although anyone ordering this fat-sugar-salt bomb is unconcerned with balancing their diet... </span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I tasted Starbucks' </span><span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Vegetable & Fontiago Breakfast Sandwich, and thought it satisfying and delicious with Mediterrenean flavor. The bread was fresh, the cheese was evenly melted, and the veggies and sauce tasted tangy, not dull. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is hardly farm-to-table fresh produce, mind you, much less organic or non-GMO foods. The pale-yellow egg was obviously pre-formed. And at 910 mg of sodium, this new menu item contains nearly 40% of recommended daily salt intake for an adult. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cooking this breakfast at home, using organic produce, farm-fresh eggs, and artisan cheese and bread, is certainly a better and more additive-free choice. But on busy weekdays, who has time for toiling in the kitchen?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Give Starbucks credit for offering the public options for better quality fast food. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">U.S. public health would be greatly improved if all fast food mega-corporations... especially Taco Bell, McDonald's, and Carl's Jr/Hardee's... made more serious attempts at higher quality menu options, as does Starbucks. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #073763; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I say, when faced with a choice, take your fast food business to Starbucks. Let's reward those corporations trying harder to do the right thing nutritionally. </span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-74199092074058320702014-03-06T11:13:00.000-08:002014-03-06T11:52:51.060-08:00Taco Bell Salad: Why No Warning Label for Lethal Salt Content? <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8moPIaIt6cDsDI-8OeN1aBk1qWXtR-tj0kJdQ28t1UwTFDyf4JODIGjyvH9GlVW6T2CmAy3pF0Im1PyXlGG-efZPXEBbQAcnvGZcvuOvt3XdrwU0VTPWJXaE_8jl5xNrWUd4cFhcFKG0/s1600/tacobellsfiestasalads.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8moPIaIt6cDsDI-8OeN1aBk1qWXtR-tj0kJdQ28t1UwTFDyf4JODIGjyvH9GlVW6T2CmAy3pF0Im1PyXlGG-efZPXEBbQAcnvGZcvuOvt3XdrwU0VTPWJXaE_8jl5xNrWUd4cFhcFKG0/s1600/tacobellsfiestasalads.png" height="160" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>"Beware the killer salad"</i> sounds like the title of a bad movie or shrill invective from yet another annoying Food Puritan. </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hear me out, though. For children, aging seniors, and sensitive and ailing individuals, heavy doses of some fast and processed foods can be downright deadly. </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Take, for instance, </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Taco Bell's Fiesta Taco Salad, m</span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">y 86 year old father-in-law's favorite go-to fast food.</span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He relishes the dish because it tastes delicious to him. Because it satisfies his hankering for salty and savory. Because a "salad" seems healthier. Because eating fast food dotted with shreds of tomato and lettuce feels more nutritionally virtuous than quaffing other Taco Bell choices. </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Recently, Dad was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, and experienced pulmonary edema (i.e. fluid in his lungs). After a five-day hospital stay, he's home and on the fragile mend. But he must make vital lifestyle changes, especially a rethinking of his food choices. </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />Salt is his nemesis. He <i>must</i> radically curtail his salt intake or fluids will again overtake his lungs and hijack his health. This for a man who's enjoyed blessedly robust health for 86 years. Who's never needed to learn about nutrition, or been advised to cut back on... well, anything. </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He believes that cutting back on salt means not salting food at meals, and using less salt in cooking. Like most Americans, Dad is blissfully unaware of massive amounts of salt hidden in fast, processed, and restaurant foods. </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizr87nx3Mdmq57HpD5fJmAP2FD3mrm4iRSle5chyjawaFLS-gvZLrqF2-Qhjq_fN6KzSUtAONsZyVsFMOqRJXHxFSjDNhQ2C5pReuaKoRbueNG43XwDAI8tSbZNGc43D1jExKdGpY89tE/s1600/mcdonaldsfries.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizr87nx3Mdmq57HpD5fJmAP2FD3mrm4iRSle5chyjawaFLS-gvZLrqF2-Qhjq_fN6KzSUtAONsZyVsFMOqRJXHxFSjDNhQ2C5pReuaKoRbueNG43XwDAI8tSbZNGc43D1jExKdGpY89tE/s1600/mcdonaldsfries.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sure, he understands that his beloved nacho-flavored Doritos are salty. But a salad? Salads are good for you, right? </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Under the guise of healthy, restaurants and fast food outlets rely on public ignorance to push a panoply of salt-laden "salads" dripping with fatty condiments and sugary-filled dressings. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(See <a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/05/kfc-jack-in-box-mcdonalds-legal.html">KFC, Jack-in-Box, McDonald's: Legal Deception on "Healthy" Choices</a><b> </b>.)</span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And, for Taco Bell's Fiesta Taco Salad, nestled in a scrumptious, deep-fried pastry shell. <a href="http://www.tacobell.com/nutrition/information">The Fiesta Taco Salad - Beef boasts 1,590 mg of salt</a>, equal to:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10 orders of McDonald's small fries, or</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5 Jack-in-the-Box crunchy tacos,or</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.sparkpeople.com/calories-in.asp?food=movie+theater+popcorn">3.5 large servings</a> of movie theater popcorn</span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If Dad now regularly partakes of his favorite Taco Bell Fiesta Taco Salad, his health will deteriorate. And yes, he has been cautioned by doctors and nurses that too much salt intake can be deadly for congestive heart failure patients. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> For children, aging seniors, and sensitive and ailing individuals, heavy doses of some fast and processed foods can be downright deadly. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I ask you....</i></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why are these salt-bomb weapons of human-health destruction not required to carry warning labels? </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why are industrial mega-corporations allowed to knowingly hawk unhealthy food products to the public, with no accompanying public warnings?</span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How is this different than legally mandated warning labels for cigarettes or alcohol? </span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<i style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Beware the killer salad"</i><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> may sound like the title of a bad movie or shrill invective from yet another annoying Food Puritan. But for some people, deceptively salty, sugary, fatty fast-food salads can prove lethal. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-72894355096535146352014-02-12T13:32:00.004-08:002014-02-12T16:24:06.423-08:00Chick-Fil-A, Subway, Kraft, Cheerios: Changes Made at Public Demand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKIb1RRon41Iz84jU6qxD9Mmqy8tyzOdl-UXabI6UPtzuTw2vjRHE5JG53LmBA-VEC-eg9aRfzIuiicLYsy-b3JL4MruKbnqdt-DGax0PysnRJgqYeHMJK6u8aD63D9GA2adWnw3SXXeM/s1600/kraftsingles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKIb1RRon41Iz84jU6qxD9Mmqy8tyzOdl-UXabI6UPtzuTw2vjRHE5JG53LmBA-VEC-eg9aRfzIuiicLYsy-b3JL4MruKbnqdt-DGax0PysnRJgqYeHMJK6u8aD63D9GA2adWnw3SXXeM/s1600/kraftsingles.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">M</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ore good news that public opinion is working to force mega-corporations to make their highly processed food products healthier. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last month, I reported that public sentiment recently pressured <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">manufacturers and retailers to begin taking <a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2014/01/public-forces-food-industry-to-sell-non.html">bold steps to label or halt using GMO ingredients and foods</a>. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>Target</b> </i>quietly introduced its "Simply Balanced" brand of USDA-certified organic products.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>General Mills</b></i> altered original <i><b>Cheerios</b></i> to include only non-GMO ingredients</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>Whole Foods</b></i> will no longer sell <i><b>Chobani </b>yogurt</i> because of "the yogurt maker’s use of milk from cows whose feed is derived from genetically engineered crops."</span></li>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now comes terrific news of dozens more changes to highly processed foods... changes to remove ingredients that never belonged in healthy foods. Among these welcome changes...</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Kraft Singles</i></b>, manufactured since 1949 by <i><b>Kraft Foods</b></i>. will shed artificial preservative sorbic acid, to be replaced by natamycin, which Kraft dubs as "natural." The European Union, which has <a href="http://www.efsa.europa.eu/">notoriously higher food standards</a> than the USDA, has approved natamycin for use in cheeses. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Consumers are looking for those less artificial cues and messages. Those messages are more meaningful to consumers than they have been in the past." observed Gavin Schmidt, manager of cheese research and development at Kraft.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eliminating artificial preservatives won't make Kraft Singles devoid of chemicals or a real, rather than fake, food. But it's a definite step in the right direction for Americans' health. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Subway</i></b>, the world's largest fast food restaurant, is removing a chemical, azodicarbonamide, from its breads, in response to public outcry started by one astute blogger's petition. The chemical is used as a dough conditioner, but is also found in yoga mats, shoe rubber, and synthetic leathers. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzSLzJaFrfNOxL3DE7iarml0RtaW82pXAENGWz5fcNPD7cMiG6NrrdCP9GDKP6O2a_iOwyStiJ0nwshgFbDK9fl_fGNV5X62noDUnfYvMLKO7QmOk5yCTM-391TV9skDMys1MFNemkc0Q/s1600/subway.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzSLzJaFrfNOxL3DE7iarml0RtaW82pXAENGWz5fcNPD7cMiG6NrrdCP9GDKP6O2a_iOwyStiJ0nwshgFbDK9fl_fGNV5X62noDUnfYvMLKO7QmOk5yCTM-391TV9skDMys1MFNemkc0Q/s1600/subway.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Azodicarbonamide is banned from foods in Europe and Australia, but classified as "safe" by the USDA. <a href="http://consumerist.com/2014/02/10/which-other-restaurants-have-dough-conditioner-azodicarbonamide-on-the-menu/">Per the World Health Organization</a>:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="line-height: 20px;">Case reports and epidemiological studies in humans have produced abundant evidence that azodicarbonamide can induce asthma, other respiratory symptoms, and skin sensitization i</span><span style="line-height: 20px;">n exposed workers." </span></span></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Center for Science in Public Interest studies show that when <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">the chemical is baked in bread it creates the carcinogen urethane and "leads to slightly increased levels of urethane in bread that pose a small risk to humans."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Removing one chemical from the many dozens hidden in Subway sandwiches doesn't make its fare much healthier. But removal does make their bread less of a risk for health-sensitive consumers. (Read </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/06/subways-chemical-laced-sandwiches.html"><b>Subway's Chemical-Laced Sandwiches: Fooled by the Look, Taste of Freshness</b></a>.)</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Chick-Fil-A</i></b> announced that within five years, they will serve only chickens raised without antibiotics. This commitment will command extraordinary effort since more than 90% of all chickens destined for U.S. consumption are grown in factory farms heavily dependent on antibiotics. Chick-Fil-A sales topped $5 billion in 2013. <a href="http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Antibiotic-Free">Enthused management:</a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"When the people who matter most to you ask you to do something important --- you listen. So when our customers started asking us about antibiotics in chicken, we began exploring our options....</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"This is why we are collaborating with national and regional poultry suppliers to build a supply chain based on chickens raised with no antibiotics. We are asking suppliers to work with the USDA to verify that antibiotics are never administered from the hatchery to the processing plant...Changes like these take time, but we believe this is the next step in honoring our heritage and our continued commitment to service and quality."</span></blockquote>
<b style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Change Dictated by People, Not Political Leaders</b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Federal and state political leaders have failed to keep the U.S. food supply clean of chemicals, additives, emulsifiers, stabilizers, and artificial flavors and colors deemed unsafe and unfit for eating in much of the world, and certainly in all other developed, democratic countries.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYCD3rO2OSSWVZmpqll93nJl66sOjdeit0ykQsXi88DdIYZl93vkBflPh-2H-lAaFTQzPYHRwuXDg3i5B1fwonML3qunQ6JUexHMpWXO-CwHR7xPDOtqwwHTsgUIpmBDGT_Ytz44n7u8/s1600/McDonaldsarches.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYCD3rO2OSSWVZmpqll93nJl66sOjdeit0ykQsXi88DdIYZl93vkBflPh-2H-lAaFTQzPYHRwuXDg3i5B1fwonML3qunQ6JUexHMpWXO-CwHR7xPDOtqwwHTsgUIpmBDGT_Ytz44n7u8/s1600/McDonaldsarches.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But business market forces, fueled by public buying decisions, are exerting massive pressure on industrial fake-food mega-corporations to change their highly processed ways. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><i>McDonalds</i></b>, for instance, rang-up surprisingly sluggish sales for the fourth quarter of 2013, amid reports that it's "losing customers, as the world's largest hamburger chain struggles to attract diners with its higher-priced sandwiches and new offerings like Mighty Wings." </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Cited as the reason for falling sales at McDonald's? "A shift in eating habits toward foods people feel are fresher or healthier,"<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2014/01/23/business/ap-us-earns-mcdonalds.html?partner=rss&emc=rss"> per AP</a>. "We've lost some of our relevance"<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2014/01/23/business/ap-us-earns-mcdonalds.html?partner=rss&emc=rss"> lamented McDonald's CEO Don Thompson</a>. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So far, healthy changes have been minuscule to the U.S. food supply by major corporations. A mere French fry on a mountain of McDonald's finest fried GMO spuds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But the trend is good news! And made all the more good and powerful because, we, the people, are in charge. </span></span><br />
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-72461082737813591752014-02-05T13:23:00.001-08:002014-02-05T15:48:51.444-08:00Fake Food Products Endorsed by Doctors: Bogus Claims, Empty Promises?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArQZPJAXEfwACir-IVz5nN_8UV0OWgu1UmcCVXOkJGPuJeN8dkhh1Abzp6nU67P9ysze_enZmEbiFFeBGCSD8OvvoM5i9EEoKgwCv5R8J9W3qaqUKd0NgrPooysNNzK0O3sXOX_8SwWk/s1600/moredoctorssmokecamels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArQZPJAXEfwACir-IVz5nN_8UV0OWgu1UmcCVXOkJGPuJeN8dkhh1Abzp6nU67P9ysze_enZmEbiFFeBGCSD8OvvoM5i9EEoKgwCv5R8J9W3qaqUKd0NgrPooysNNzK0O3sXOX_8SwWk/s1600/moredoctorssmokecamels.jpg" height="320" width="249" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be wary of food products endorsed by doctors. <i>Very wary!</i></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"When you see a product that's endorsed by a doctor, keep in mind that the doctor is probably being paid for that endorsement, just as if he were an athlete or an actor, so take it with a grain of salt," <a href="http://www.ksla.com/story/6192735/consumer-reports-doctor-endorsements-not-always-what-you-think">warned one local TV station</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The medical establishment can be seduced by money to hawk all manner of questionable products, from dangerous prescription drugs to processed breakfast cereals, quasi-useless supplements, and genetically modified foods. <i>Yes, even cigarettes, years ago. </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not all in the medical establishment can be enticed by all-expenses-paid junkets, pricey speaking engagements, meals and gifts, scads of free samples, and <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/12/glaxosmithkline-to-stop-paying-doctors-for-endorsements/282433/">various forms of direct payments</a>. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But sadly, far too many succumb to financial temptation from vendors with something to sell.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Ensure Drinks, Supplements</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For example, take</span><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/08/ensure-drink-sugary-fake-food-pseudo.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Ensure "nutrition drinks" and "meal supplements,</a><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">" which are manufactured by </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="line-height: 17.91666603088379px;">Abbott Nutrition, part of Big Pharma corporate giant </span>Abbott Laboratories. Abbott Labs </span></b><b style="background-color: white; color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> is the maker of addictive painkiller Vicodin and dozens of other highly profitable drugs.</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></b></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">"#1 </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.899999618530273px;">doctor recommended </span></i><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 17.899999618530273px;"><i>brand" </i>blares on the label of every bottle of Ensure's various nutrition drinks. Yet, Ensure is formulated </span><b style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">mainly of sugar and water, spiked with innumerable chemicals, and loaded with preservatives, additives, and artificial flavorings and colors. </span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></b></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/08/ensure-drink-sugary-fake-food-pseudo.html">Writes the editor of NaturalNews.com of Ensure</a>:</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">"</span></b><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">.. the top two ingredients in Ensure are almost identical to the top two ingredients in soft drinks! ... </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">the top four ingredients (are): water, sugar, corn syrup and maltodextrin. That's basically </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">three sweeteners and water</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">. So if you were trying to be funny, you could call this product 'sugar-sugar-sugar-water,' because that is primarily what it's made of, according to the ingredients label... </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">So essentially, what you have here with </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">Ensure</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">, is a predominantly sugar-water product that has been fortified with a few vitamins and minerals. </span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"The phrase, 'Complete, balanced, nutrition,' in my personal opinion, is an outright lie. This product has nothing resembling complete, balanced nutrition..."</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 2012, sales of Ensure and Glucerna, its diabetic alternative to Ensure, <a href="http://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/Manufacturers/Abbott-cashes-in-as-aging-baby-boomers-turn-to-liquid-nutrition">were almost $2 billion</a>.... thanks mainly to credibility lent to the products by many in the medical establishment. </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Read <span style="background-color: white;"><b><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/08/ensure-drink-sugary-fake-food-pseudo.html">Ensure Drink: Sugary Fake Food Pseudo-Wonder Tonic</a></b> <b>by Vicodin Make</b>r for more.)</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>Wheaties Fuel Cereal</b></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZvReq-0NC0I/UvKpzrwunyI/AAAAAAAABQE/s4uKkq8PSU0/s1600/wheatiesfuelpic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZvReq-0NC0I/UvKpzrwunyI/AAAAAAAABQE/s4uKkq8PSU0/s1600/wheatiesfuelpic.jpg" height="251" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #20124d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Another example is Wheaties Fuel cereal, <a href="http://www.generalmills.com/ChannelG/NewsReleases/Library/2009/September/genmills_unveils_wheaties_fuel.aspx">introduced by General Mills in 2009</a>, which based its appeal on endorsement by</span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Dr. John Ivy, a world-renowned expert on the role of nutrition and exercise performance." <a href="http://www.generalmills.com/ChannelG/NewsReleases/Library/2009/September/genmills_unveils_wheaties_fuel.aspx">Commented Dr. Iv</a>y, a professor at University of Texas, Austin who is associated with <a href="http://www.atlxtv.com/our-experts/dr-john-ivy/">many consumer products</a>:</span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"We’ve learned a lot about the bond between nutrition and performance over the years and as today’s athletes continue to get bigger, faster and stronger, it was important to develop a cereal that evolved along with them,”</span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Five years later, Wheaties Fuel is hard to find, and for good reason: this cereal aimed at athletes is more costly, and yet, is essentially no healthier than run-of-the-mill Wheaties cereal. Maybe less healthy for most people... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #20124d;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Critiqued OutSports.com in 2010:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">As someone who is big on nutrition and an obsessive label-reader, one thing is obvious: Wheaties Fuel is basically Wheaties with more fat and sugar.</span></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"Regular Wheaties is a pretty simple cereal with only five ingredients: Whole grain wheat, sugar, salt, corn syrup and trisodium phosphate. One serving (3/4 cup) has 100 calories, .5 grams of fat, 4 grams of sugar, 15 grams of other carbs, 3 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein, along with some added vitamins. Wheaties Fuel, in contrast, loads up on the sugar, with some added fat.... </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Fourteen grams of sugar per serving is a lot for anyone who cares about their nutrition."</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Miracle Foods from Obscure Ingredients</b></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You've heard them hawked on infomercials and the internet, via multi-level marketing orgs... Acai berry, olive leaf extract, raspberry ketones... </span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's another: Skyfruit,<a href="http://www.xklworldwide.com/index.html"> touted as</a>...</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"... <span style="background-color: white;">only largely found in tropical areas in the South Pacific where its cleanest and unspoiled places like Solomon Islands. The people there have consumed Skyfruit internally for over 1000 years. It is known as the queen of plants and knowledge of its healthful properties has been handed down from generation to generation to the present day. Common in the South Pacific, Sky Fruit is also found in small quantity in other tropical areas of the world."</span></span></blockquote>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5tTV-pqtDRU/UvKroQ5vpnI/AAAAAAAABQQ/nDwi04r_0OU/s1600/SkyFruitimage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5tTV-pqtDRU/UvKroQ5vpnI/AAAAAAAABQQ/nDwi04r_0OU/s1600/SkyFruitimage.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">XKLWorldWide.com promotes that its "<span style="background-color: white;">Herb Food Concentrate is made from 100% natural Skyfruit that is being advanced bio-technologically processed and prepared. The quality of XKLCare?products has earned worldwide recognition.? </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i>Testimonials</i>? Of course,<a href="http://www.xklworldwide.com/testimonials.html"> with claims of </a>relief from inflammation, hypertension, backache, skin peeling, asthma, even diabetes. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><i><a href="http://www.xklworldwide.com/doctor.html">Doctor endorsements?</a></i> Absolutely. Five, including glowing statements:</span></span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="background-color: white;">We desperately need XKLCare™ product. Instead of waiting for your health care ship to come in, with this product you're already aboard."</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">"</span><span style="background-color: white;">It is with joy and pride that I endorseXKLCare™ product, the world's most potent natural food supplement."</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">"</span><span style="background-color: white;">"If you think XKLCare™ product is expensive, try disease. Based on the preventive effect and strong antioxidant activity of XKLCare™ product, I would like to say that it is indeed the most incredible dietary supplement I have ever come across."</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Also read </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2012/05/raspberry-ketones-another-industrial.html"><b>Raspberry Ketones: Another Industrial Food Quasi-Scam?</b></a> and </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/01/olive-leaf-extract-industrial-food.html"><b>Olive Leaf Extract: Industrial Food Quasi-Scam with Clever Story</b></a>.)</span></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be wary of products endorsed by doctors! Don 't buy into the credibility lent to quasi-healthy fake-food products by doctors and other medical professionals seeking to fill their coffers. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If tempted, do your homework. Check out both the medical professional and the product via a simple Google searches. And read the labels, friends. Be your own informed advocate. </span></div>
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<br />Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-67593204587399031092014-01-22T08:33:00.000-08:002014-01-22T09:30:20.852-08:00U.S. Food Supply Ranked Subpar to Other Major Nations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nfqTrN0p7W0/Ut7-7p7UMXI/AAAAAAAABPE/rrSirMYzLUk/s1600/oxfamintllogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nfqTrN0p7W0/Ut7-7p7UMXI/AAAAAAAABPE/rrSirMYzLUk/s1600/oxfamintllogo.jpg" height="164" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Attention Congress and USDA/FDA leadership</i>: the U.S. tumbled embarrassingly into 21st place in<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxfam"> OxFam's</a> worldwide ranking of 125 nations' healthy, plentiful food supplies and policies. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Iceland, Australia, most western European and all Scandinavian countries all scored well above the United States, which barely edged out Estonia, Slovakia, Hungary, Israel, and New Zealand. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what-we-do/good-enough-to-eat">Oxfam's in-depth survey</a>, taken from October through December 2013, tallied data on food reality worldwide using four categories. The U.S. ranked admirably in two categories, average in one, but fared shamefully low in one... </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Afford to Eat</b><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, or the price and price volatility of food - </span><b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">U.S. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/opinion/bittman-abundance-doesnt-mean-health.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0">ranked 1st</a> overall </b><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">in food affordability, mainly because food prices nationally are extremely stable and relatively inexpensive.</span><br />
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<b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food Quality</b><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, or the availability of clean water and nutritious foods - </span><b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">U.S. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/opinion/bittman-abundance-doesnt-mean-health.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0">ranked 4th</a> overall </b><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">in this category, despite ranking a painful </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/opinion/bittman-abundance-doesnt-mean-health.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">41st in access to clean drinking water</a><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. </span><br />
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<b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enough to Eat</b><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, or hunger within the country - </span><b style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">U.S.<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/opinion/bittman-abundance-doesnt-mean-health.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0"> ranked 35th</a> overall </b><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">among 125 nations. Although few U.S. children were underweight due to lack of food, many are malnourished. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Unhealthy Eating</b>, or frequent consumption of non-nutritious foods - <b>U.S. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/opinion/bittman-abundance-doesnt-mean-health.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0">ranked 120th among 125 nations</a>, </b>indicating that U.S. eating habits are causing obesity and diabetes among Americans. </span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These shocking results shout that most Americans have access to both healthy and unhealthy foods, and are choosing unhealthy foods for both adults and children.</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The U.S. is ranked the fattest and most diabetic nation among all major countries. The U.S. populace ranks as healthier </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">only than Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Mexico, Fiji, and Jordan. </span><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">in obesity and diabetes, two lethal health conditions.</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Critics firmly believe that American health has plunged radically in recent decades due to the extreme prevalence in the food supply of fast and casual foods larded heavily with salt, fat, and sugar, and of industrial-manufactured <a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html">"fake foods" riddled with salt, fat, sugar, chemicals, additives, fillers, and artificial flavors and colors</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(<a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html">Click here for </a></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.fakefoodwatch.com/2013/04/salt-sugar-fat-stunning-big-food.html">"Salt Sugar Fat" - Stunning Big Food Tactics to Hook, Trick, Harm Americans</a>.)</span><br />
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why do Americans have extremely easy access (and thus, temptation) to unhealthy foods, especially when compared to the other 124 nations? </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKUbYPUUs4-ZQ45M20jEy5tyEhfcDNLeot3qgHmaAhoVb5ZcARGgy1cuj3rMUgDKvIEwnILFuIhPqQk_ZY9WNnqvF1BNp6gMv-hR1WW8wePJc0u9yAG0bQ2s2UZwo43x0PFxiKgc9Ji70/s1600/wholefoodsproduce.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKUbYPUUs4-ZQ45M20jEy5tyEhfcDNLeot3qgHmaAhoVb5ZcARGgy1cuj3rMUgDKvIEwnILFuIhPqQk_ZY9WNnqvF1BNp6gMv-hR1WW8wePJc0u9yAG0bQ2s2UZwo43x0PFxiKgc9Ji70/s1600/wholefoodsproduce.JPG" height="200" width="195" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>One main reason</i>: lack of political will in Washington D.C. to stand-up to corporate political donors and lobbyists in order to bring the U.S. food supply up to international standards by mandating...</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Manufacturers to offer a higher percentage of food products with more nutritious and better quality ingredients</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Restaurants and fast food purveyors to eliminate and/or minimize purposely addictive levels of salt, fat, and sugar </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Markets across the country to prominently display and emphasize a plethora of fresh, healthy products, rather than continue to exclusively push industrial-made chips, cookies, candy, ice creams, cereals, crackers, hot dogs, baked goods, frozen fare, etc, etc etc.</span></li>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Congress, are you listening? USDA and FDA leaders, are you there?</i> Are you working for the health of our nation, or for mega-corporate interests and your donors and political patrons?</span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before answering that query, remember the warning of famed </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.479999542236328px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #741b47;">British historian and Oxford professor Arnold J. Toynbee (1889 - 1975) who observed and believed that the health of a nation is only as good as the health of its diet, and that a downward spiral in the quality of a nation's diet foretold a nation's cultural and political death spiral</span><span style="color: #274e13;">.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If unchecked, this U.S. tumble in Oxfam's data-driven survey of healthy diets around the world will be more than an embarrassment. This terrible tumble could be warning of a permanent downward spiral of our nation. </span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-14091882769011795402014-01-15T08:19:00.000-08:002014-01-15T08:50:42.203-08:00Public Forces Food Industry to Sell Non-GMO Products, Ingredients<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FtppdgS3MfY/UtWI4iOLaaI/AAAAAAAABOg/5BGhfZnOs-U/s1600/targetorganicchips.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FtppdgS3MfY/UtWI4iOLaaI/AAAAAAAABOg/5BGhfZnOs-U/s320/targetorganicchips.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The good news in 2014 is that market forces are alive, well, and working quite effectively to label GMO foods, or to remove them entirely from grocers' shelves. And instead, to pressure retailers to offer non-GMO foods for sale. </span><br />
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The political process may have failed, thus far, to label or halt GMO foods, but public sentiment is firmly forcing manufacturers and retailers to begin taking bold steps. </span><br />
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Per <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/richardlevick/2014/01/09/are-gmo-free-cheerios-the-first-domino/">Forbes this week</a>:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"... public opinion is reaching critical mass. Ninety-percent of Americans believe that GMOs are unsafe, 93 percent of Americans favor stringent federal GMO labeling regulations, and 57 percent say they would be less likely to buy products labeled as genetically modified." </span></blockquote>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Retailers and manufacturers respond when the public demands. Among big-deal changes in 2014 are...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #351c75;"><i>Target </i></b><span style="color: #351c75;">has quietly introduced its <a href="https://corporate.target.com/discover/article/Simply-Balanced-Target-s-wellness-Grocery-brand">Simply Balanced "wellness" brand</a> of foods to its grocery shelves, including the USDA-certified organic blue corn tortilla chips pictured above. The USDA-certified organic label means that all ingredients are non-GMO, as well as dozens other attributes. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #351c75;">(I bought two bag of these chips this past weekend for family football-watching munchies. The chips are delicious! Target got the requisite taste right.)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><a href="https://corporate.target.com/discover/article/Simply-Balanced-Target-s-wellness-Grocery-brand">The Target website exudes:</a></span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"The products include wholesome ingredients, and more than 40 percent of the assortment is organic. There are no products with hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils, high-fructose corn syrup, synthetic colors, artificial preservatives, artificial flavors or artificial sweeteners.</span></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"The good news doesn’t stop there: The majority of Simply Balanced items are made without genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and Target will eliminate all GMO ingredients from the line by the end of 2014. Target is also setting a goal to increase organic food offerings by 25 percent by end of fiscal year 2017."</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Cheerios</i></b>, original only, have been altered to include only non-GMO ingredients. General Mills spokesman <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2014/01/03/news/companies/cheerios-gmo/">Mike Siemienas commented</a>, "</span><span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 26px;">We switched from what we were using to non-GMO corn and non-GMO pure sugar cane... </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 26px;">We do value our Cheerios fans and we do listen to their thoughts and suggestions." <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2014/01/03/news/companies/cheerios-gmo/">Siemienas noted</a> that "</span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Lato, Arial, serif; line-height: 26px;"><span style="color: #351c75;">did not change the formula and has never used genetically modified oats."</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3sgs2B4EXuOtkdmJ-RMqihaggfnioWaNCAXFvIPL8SE7AcH50ES49jS9rvoFPtYGWdULUcEQ5pNSEvuiHaBJeQ0W6FVhCTGV73bWMxaNJzcIztnDMwsrJN9SQ6KokNzS3qAYUQ-7ies/s1600/wholefoodsnongmo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA3sgs2B4EXuOtkdmJ-RMqihaggfnioWaNCAXFvIPL8SE7AcH50ES49jS9rvoFPtYGWdULUcEQ5pNSEvuiHaBJeQ0W6FVhCTGV73bWMxaNJzcIztnDMwsrJN9SQ6KokNzS3qAYUQ-7ies/s1600/wholefoodsnongmo.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 26px;"><span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-family: Lato, Arial, serif;"><b><i>Whole Foods</i></b> recently announced that starting in 2014, Chobani Greek Yogurt will no longer be sold in its 370 stores because of </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"the </span></span></span><span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.0049991607666px;">yogurt maker’s use of milk from cows whose feed is derived from </span>genetically engineered crops<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.0049991607666px;">," <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/19/business/whole-foods-wont-sell-chobani-greek-yogurt-as-of-early-next-year.html?_r=0">per The New York Times</a>. Chobani yogurt sales topped $1 billion in 2013. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.0049991607666px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.0049991607666px;">Replacement of Chobani with other, non-GMO Greek yogurts is part of Whole Foods' larger, ambitious goal of removing or clearly labeling all GMO products from its shelves by 2018. Boasts the Whole Foods website:</span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22.0049991607666px;">"</span>We now have thousands of products within our stores verified as certified organic and/or Non-GMO Project Verified. In fact, we sell 4,800 Non-GMO Project verified products, more than any other retailer in North America."</span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, the American political process has, so far, failed to allow the law to reflect public will on GMO foods. Industrial food corporations </span><span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">outspent California grassroots voters $55 million to $9 million to defeat Prop 37 in 2012, yet won by a paltry margin of 51 percent to 49 percent, and spent $22 million in Washington state for another razor-thin victory. </span><br />
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But political prospects for GMO foods labeling are brighter in 2014 in state legislatures than ever before. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"<span style="line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">As many as 26 state legislatures could consider similar bills for labeling genetically engineered foods during the 2014 legislative season. Two Northeastern states, Connecticut and Maine, have passed bills requiring labeling of genetically engineered foods, but both of those laws are contingent on other states in the region taking the same action." <i>(Source - <a href="http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2014/01/old-failures-get-new-chance-as-2014-state-legislative-season-gets-underway/#.UtayQp5dWSo">Food Safety News, January 7, 2014</a>)</i></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Indeed, market forces are alive, well, and working quite effectively to label GMO foods, or to remove them entirely from grocers' shelves. </span><br />
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These positive changes by major corporations newly offering non-GMO products and clearly labeling or dumping GMO foods are potent reminders of the power wielded by the purse of the American people. Power to the people! </span><br />
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-51352233570368545212013-12-30T16:03:00.000-08:002013-12-30T16:54:06.285-08:00Boldly Healthy Christmas Dinner Earns Praise, Second Helpings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6OmXxV3kDSceEKyaDBfedq-0Yk-2pDUf0m7HnA_cFa1Wd0jTiUuk9k-jz4u7s_-NArExIpImxOfo68Op3WhY-TyL90sScaN_qlecsCkgZx_2ANcZqDik6L5N-adbVwqIhM6tUqDYjCI/s1600/christmasdinnertable.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6OmXxV3kDSceEKyaDBfedq-0Yk-2pDUf0m7HnA_cFa1Wd0jTiUuk9k-jz4u7s_-NArExIpImxOfo68Op3WhY-TyL90sScaN_qlecsCkgZx_2ANcZqDik6L5N-adbVwqIhM6tUqDYjCI/s320/christmasdinnertable.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;">They ate my thoughtfully planned, carefully crafted, boldly healthy dinner, and they enjoyed it. <i>Really enjoyed it, believe it or not. </i></span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;">"They" are my immediate family... four adult children, one fiance, and my husband of twenty-something years. </span><br />
<span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #38761d;">The dinner in question was Christmas dinner, a few days ago. My family invariably enjoys my meals, as I'm an experienced and fairly imaginative cook. In our home, meals are meant to be enjoyed, not endured. And my Yuletide fare is a special feast. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">This year's Christmas dinner, though, was different. Experimental, sort of. <i>It was vegetarian</i>. (Well, except for the Boar's Head ham on the side, for those who just couldn't hack a meatless holiday.)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Yup, I boldly ventured where few middle-class baby-boomer cooks tread on indulgent foodcentric holidays... vegetarian! Here was my scrumptious Christmas 2013 menu:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #38761d;">Penne pasta with elegant tomato-parsley sauce, Marcella Hazan rustic-style</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d;">Organic carrots, sauteed in butter, kissed with cinnamon</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d;">Organic greeen beans, sauteed in olive oil and soy, sprinkled with sesame seeds</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d;">Organic applesauce, spiced with light brown sugar, cinnamon</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d;">Asiago-rosemary rolls <i>(source: Trader Joe's)</i></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d;">And yes, a <a href="http://boarshead.com/products/ham">Boar's Head ham</a>, unglazed, succulent in its own juices</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d;">San Pellegrino water, fruit juices</span></li>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">All dishes and elements were homemade, except for the pasta (and except as noted). All produce was selected from our weekly CSA carton delivery, except vine-ripened tomatoes from Sprouts. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">As a delightful result, our family Christmas spread was healthy, low fat, largely devoid of dairy, and not loaded with carbs, salt, or sugar. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">I heard nothing but compliments on taste and that requisite feeling of satisfaction. Eating was hearty, and second helpings were scooped up by all. To several of us, it was a revelation that a holiday meal could quench our appetites, yet not leave our bellies uncomfortably stuffed. </span><span style="color: #38761d;">(I confess that three of us seven, including me, also sampled the ham. It, too, was delicious.) </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Would I serve vegetarian again at Christmas? Absolutely, although the group tentatively approved next year's theme to be Mexican cuisine. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Would I again serve a Christmas meal that was healthy, low fat, minimal dairy, and not saturated with carbs, salt, and sugar? Absolutely. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><i>In fact, consider it a new White family tradition. </i>It feels terrific to grasp that we can genuinely enjoy holiday meals, without our table groaning with 2,000-calorie meals so typical in American homes. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Yes, they ate my thoughtfully planned, carefully crafted, boldly healthy dinner, and they enjoyed it. </span><i style="color: #38761d;">Really enjoyed it. </i><span style="color: #38761d;">I am proud and pleased</span><i style="color: #38761d;">. </i></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-32515211641437190922013-12-10T12:47:00.001-08:002013-12-10T13:03:57.631-08:00FDA Blackballs Top Food, Clean Water Activist Group<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Consider <a href="http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/">Food & Water Watch</a> as you ponder year-end giving to worthy organizations. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Put </span><a href="http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food & Water Watch</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> at the top of your giving list for two main reasons:</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>First</i>, FFW is perhaps the most effective and prolific organization in working</span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"to ensure the food, water and fish we consume is safe, accessible and sustainably produced" both in the U.S. and around the world. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Second</i>, the FDA is apparently blackballing FFW, in a strong-armed attempt to intimidate and silence this "non-profit organization that advocates for common sense policies that will result in healthy, safe food and access to safe and affordable drinking water."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Through info research and dissemination, an authoritative website, events, media coverage, and protests, in addition to "tens of thousands" of petitions and comments filed with the FDA yearly, FFW is involved in dozens of vital issues, including...</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TLTbEikQc1c/Uqd2zaZuesI/AAAAAAAABNI/56dSsTN0JPA/s1600/FFWwatercampaign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TLTbEikQc1c/Uqd2zaZuesI/AAAAAAAABNI/56dSsTN0JPA/s320/FFWwatercampaign.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food safety, including factory farming</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food and water justice</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Groundwater protection, including fracking</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Water conservation</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Water privatization, including bottled water</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Federal budgeting</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Consumer food labels, including GMOs</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Congressional Farm Bill legislation</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Climate change</span></li>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Seems the FDA chafes at watchdog FFW's vigilance at protecting the public and public health. And FDA brass have apparently taken action to blunt FFW's influence and access... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/pressreleases/usda-bans-food-water-watch-from-building-for-two-cfc-events/">Reported FFW yesterday:</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #274e13;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; line-height: 16.796875px;">Last week, a representative from the USDA’s Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) Office informed Food & Water Watch staff that its invitation to participate in a USDA event featuring CFC registered organizations had been cancelled. The representative stated in an email on December 5, 'I regret to inform you that I’ve been notified your organization has not been approved for entrance into USDA to attend the USDA-CFC event on December 10, 2013. I do not have specific information on the reason approval was not granted...'</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"This email denial came two weeks after Food & Water Watch staff members were turned away from an earlier CFC event at the USDA on November 20, 2013 when an agency guard insisted the organization was not on the confirmed list for the event, contrary to an email confirmation Food & Water Watch received from the event organizer on November 12, 2013. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Food & Water Watch staff has attended multiple CFC fairs over the past several years without incident. <b>The CFC is the Federal Government’s workplace giving program that encourages federal employees’ charitable giving</b>... Despite inquiries, Food & Water Watch has yet to receive any further information from the USDA as to why the organization was refused entry to this charity-related event."</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is the FDA attempting to...</span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; line-height: 16.796875px;">Limit contributions given by federal employees to support FFW?</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; line-height: 16.796875px;">Inhibit FFW access to FDA resources and decision-makers?</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16.796875px;">Deter FFW investigations?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; line-height: 16.796875px;">Curtail FFW activism and advocacy?</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; line-height: 16.796875px;">Suppress FFW's free speech rights?</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16.796875px;">All of the above?</span></li>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16.796875px;">The terrific news is that Food & Water Watch is clearly putting strong pressure on the FDA to protect public health over corporate profits... or the FDA wouldn't push back, or push so hard, against FFW. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d; line-height: 16.796875px;">The FDA should know better: FFW is not going away. <i>Far from it.</i> </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Clearly, we are a thorn in the USDA’s side. But to block us from entry to this event by denying our security clearance is not only bogus—it’s intimidation. But we won’t be intimidated,” said <a href="http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/about/who-we-are/">Wenonah Hauter, Executive Director</a>. “We’ll continue to force the USDA to do its job to protect consumers, not corporate profits.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Show the FDA that you support the causes of safe food, clean water, and food and water fairness. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> I ask that you c</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">onsider </span><a href="http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Food & Water Watch</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> as you ponder year-end giving to worthy organizations. <a href="https://secure3.convio.net/fww/site/Donation2?df_id=2580&2580.donation=form1&s_src=www.foodandwaterwatch.org&s_subsrc=nav"><b>Click HERE to donate to Food & Water Watch.</b></a> </span></span></div>
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Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25778018275452235.post-58646664373678243552013-12-03T15:28:00.001-08:002013-12-03T15:34:16.034-08:00About Waffles, Fried Chicken and Freedom of Food Choice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I ordered a fried chicken and waffle plate last weekend at a local cafe. The trendy entree was on the eatery's Fall Special Menu, and it was<i> luscious</i>... a smallish round waffle with warmed maple syrup, and a freshly fried chicken leg and thigh. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Most of my meals these days are what friends would call healthy: Greek yogurt, whole-grain granola and seasonal fruit for breakfast; salads for lunch; and dinners filled with veggies, whole-wheat pastas, homemade soups. Not much bread. Often an apple for dessert. Coffee and water to drink. No soft drinks. Vegetarian days are not unusual. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel better when I eat this way... and frankly, feel lousy when I've eaten greasy, dense, sugary, or carb-heavy foods. But oh boy, once in a while, an indulgent dish such as <a href="http://www.fillingstationcafe.com/">The Filling Station</a>'s fried chicken and waffle plate satisfies to a full, pleased smile. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I tell you this to clarify the mission of my FakeFoodWatch.com blog: I don't directly eat for health. I eat to feel good, and to savor the experience of delicious food. </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I don't believe that scolding or nagging others ever leads to healthier eating habits.</span><i style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Ever. </i><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's simply not human nature! </span><br />
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">FakeFoodWatch.com is not a health site. Nor is it an animal rights advocacy site. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">FakeFoodWatch.com is a food policy and investigation site. I fervently believe that all people in free societies have a right to full facts about the foods they choose to ingest... origins, added ingredients, cleanliness, age, and processing, handling and storage protocols and realities. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The goal of FakeFoodWatch.com is to inform and surprise you, the reader, with info about:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">food commonly consumed in the U.S. and around the world;</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">how today's food supply affects public health; </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">how government food policies affect or could affect your home; </span></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">how food you eat affects how you feel, and ultimately how it affects your and your loved ones' health and longevity. </span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You see, I believe that we should have enough information to make well-informed choices about food. The federal government and mega-corporations should NOT be making those choices for us, and should NOT be allowed to cleverly obscure or hide accurate, understandable, relevant info from consumers. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sadly, the FDA in the 21st century acts far more interested in protecting corporate profits (and political donors) than the health and welfare of Americans. And industrial food mega-corporations are interested in only one goal: profits. Period. Your health matters naught to most fake-food makers and purveyors. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I believe that every American has the right to the real, old-fashioned food enjoyed by our grandparents and ancestors: food unadulterated by chemicals, additives, cheap fillers, artificial flavors, colors, and taste enhancers, or genetic engineering. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And every American has the equal right to indulge in fast, fried, and highly processed foods, and anything and everything legal and non-poisonous. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Indeed, everyone has the delightful right to feast on </span><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">a fried chicken and waffle plate, at their whim. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #274e13; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So please, don't mistake FakeFoodWatch.com for a health site. Think of this pet project of mine as a site that advocates for transparency in all things related to food. And respects your right to make your own choice. </span></div>
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<br />Deborah Whitehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07681456264047358861noreply@blogger.com1