Published by The Food Commission The Issue 72 Jan/Mar 2006 £4.95 An aid to healthy digestion FOOD MAGAZINE FOOD MAGAZINE Campaigning for safer, healthier food for all The Food Commission’s new website Chewonthis.org.uk aims to give an inside view on modern food production. T he Food Commission has launched a new website aimed at schools following concern that books, posters and websites currently offered to children paint a complacent and rosy picture of food production and marketing. Much of the material is produced by the food industry itself, or by its front organisations such as the industry-funded British Nutrition Foundation, European Food Information Council and International Life Sciences Institute. Using animation and cartoons to illustrate its points, the new website – available at www.chewonthis.org.uk – tackles four aspects of food: nutrition, labelling, marketing and ingredients, with links to good, independent sources of advice on healthy eating. Further sections are planned, looking at the environment, sustainable food production and animal welfare. Through humorous approaches, and amazing facts, the website examines marketing that targets children with unhealthy foods. Additives and other non-food ingredients are also explored, as is the excessive use of fat, sugar and salt in so many of the processed foods that are familiar to children. All of these issues are backed up with worksheets and teacher's notes. The material can be reproduced for non-commercial purposes under a ‘creative commons’ copyright. For more details, see pages 12 and 13 The website is at: www.chewonthis.org.uk For too long children have been taught about food and nutrition according to the whims of the food industry. The rot set in when the old Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food gave the industry-funded British Nutrition Foundation (BNF) a large grant to develop a teaching pack, which resulted in the widely distributed 'Food: A fact of life'. Last autumn, the BNF launched a similarly- themed website for schools, supported by producer organisations and individual companies (such as British Sugar, Kellogg’s and Nestlé). It contains lovely pictures and helpfully bland statements, such as 'All food comes from plants and animals' that bear little resemblance to the foods children really eat (Diet Coke, anyone?) Recipe suggestions are for making 'sandwiches, smoothies, biscuits and scones'. Yet fatty and sugary food get only the helpful suggestion: 'We should try not to eat too many of the foods from the 5th group, foods containing fat and foods containing sugar'. Product development is taught in terms of the marvellous skills of the food technologist, the package designer, the taste panels and the need to keep food safe and hygienic. There is no critique of additives or marketing, and no reference to pesticide problems or concerns over GM foods. To counter the complacency and give children a chance to consider alternative views, the Food Commission has launched its new website and urges teachers, parents and children to make full use of it. School classes are fed a processed diet Chew on this! Chew on this! Get the facts with the Food Magazine Nutrition, mental health and behaviour. The Food Magazine examines the research which suggests a healthy diet can do more than lead to a healthy body. See pages 14-15. Are common additive cocktails toxic? Research shows that combinations of common food additives could have a greater toxic effect in laboratory tests than the individual additives alone. See page 7. TV ads to be hidden in programmes. Under new proposals from the EU the incidence of covert advertising, known as 'product placement', is set to boom. See page 16. Terminator is back. ‘Terminator’ technology genetically modifies plants to produce only sterile seeds. This forces farmers to buy new seed each season and allows biotech companies’ monopoly control over seeds. See page 6. Also in this issue School children - a captive market for food companies!
Transcript
Published by The Food Commission
The
Issue 72 �� Jan/Mar 2006 �� £4.95
An aid to healthy digestion
FOOD MAGAZINEFOOD MAGAZINECampaigning for safer, healthier food for all
The Food Commission’s newwebsite Chewonthis.org.uk aimsto give an inside view on modernfood production.
T he Food Commission has launched a newwebsite aimed at schools followingconcern that books, posters and websites
currently offered to children paint a complacentand rosy picture of food production andmarketing. Much of the material is produced bythe food industry itself, or by its frontorganisations such as the industry-funded BritishNutrition Foundation, European Food InformationCouncil and International Life Sciences Institute.
Using animation and cartoons to illustrate itspoints, the new website – available atwww.chewonthis.org.uk – tackles four aspectsof food: nutrition, labelling, marketing andingredients, with links to good, independentsources of advice on healthy eating. Furthersections are planned, looking at the environment,sustainable food production and animal welfare.
Through humorous approaches, and amazingfacts, the websiteexaminesmarketing thattargets childrenwith unhealthyfoods. Additivesand other non-foodingredients are alsoexplored, as is theexcessive use offat, sugar and salt inso many of theprocessed foods thatare familiar to children.
All of these issues are backed up withworksheets and teacher's notes. The materialcan be reproduced for non-commercial purposesunder a ‘creative commons’ copyright.
� For more details, see pages 12 and 13� The website is at: www.chewonthis.org.uk
For too long children have been taught aboutfood and nutrition according to the whims ofthe food industry. The rot set in when the oldMinistry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food gavethe industry-funded British Nutrition Foundation(BNF) a large grant to develop a teaching pack,which resulted in the widely distributed 'Food: Afact of life'.
Last autumn, the BNF launched a similarly-themed website for schools, supported byproducer organisations and individualcompanies (such as British Sugar,Kellogg’s and Nestlé).
It contains lovely pictures and helpfullybland statements, such as 'All food comesfrom plants and animals' that bear littleresemblance to the foods children reallyeat (Diet Coke, anyone?) Recipesuggestions are for making 'sandwiches,smoothies, biscuits and scones'. Yet fattyand sugary food get only the helpfulsuggestion: 'We should try not to eat toomany of the foods from the 5th group,foods containing fat and foods containingsugar'.
Product development is taught in terms ofthe marvellous skills of the food technologist,the package designer, the taste panels and theneed to keep food safe and hygienic. There is
no critique of additives or marketing, and noreference to pesticide problems or concernsover GM foods.
To counter the complacency and givechildren a chance to consider alternative views,the Food Commission has launched its newwebsite and urges teachers, parents andchildren to make full use of it.
School classes are fed a processed diet
Chew on this!Chew on this!
Get the facts with the Food Magazine
Nutrition, mental health and behaviour. TheFood Magazine examines the research whichsuggests a healthy diet can do more than leadto a healthy body. See pages 14-15.
Are common additive cocktails toxic?Research shows that combinations of commonfood additives could have a greater toxic effectin laboratory tests than the individual additivesalone. See page 7.
TV ads to be hidden in programmes. Undernew proposals from the EU the incidence ofcovert advertising, known as 'productplacement', is set to boom. See page 16.
Terminator is back. ‘Terminator’ technologygenetically modifies plants to produce only sterileseeds. This forces farmers to buy new seed eachseason and allows biotech companies’monopoly control over seeds. See page 6.
Also in this issue
School children - a captivemarket for food companies!
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Food Magazine 72 2 Jan/Mar 2006
The Food Magazine is published quarterlyby The Food Commission, a national non-profit organisation campaigning for theright to safe, wholesome food. We relyentirely on our supporters, allowing us tobe completely independent, taking nosubsidy from the government, the foodindustry or advertising. We aim to provideindependently researched information onthe food we eat to ensure good qualityfood for all.
The Food Commission Research Charityaims to relieve ill health and advancepublic education through research,education and the promotion of betterquality food.
Director: Tim Lobstein Policy Officer: Kath DalmenyOffice Manager: Ian TokeloveAdministrative Officer: Graham HoodCartoons: Ben Nash
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It's all in the mind?
R eaders accustomed to the arguments linking food to healthwill be familiar with the facts on heart disease, obesity,cancer and the other familiar diet-related diseases. But
what about the greatest chronic disease of them all – mentaldisorders? This Food Magazine turns out to be a litany of examplesof how the food we consume is linked to behaviour and mentalhealth. Food and mental health is now the focus of serious attentionby researchers, health specialists and educationalists alike.
There are more than 450 million people with mental, neurologicalor behavioural problems throughout the world. In the UK, some25% of people seeing their family doctor have some form of mentalproblem, of which depression is the most common (17%). Suchproblems cause nearly half of the population's total health burdenmeasured in terms of years of life lived with ill health. And studieshave shown that more than one in five children in European citiesshow mental or behavioural disorders.
Food is not seen as a determinant of mental health – it is notmentioned as an environmental determinant in the major WorldHealth Report 2001 – and the usual assumption is that bad dietaryhabits are a result, not a cause of psychiatric problems. Certainlythere is a cluster of lifestyle concerns: alcohol and tobacco use,poor diet and risk-taking activities are part of the mix, but is diet apossible contributor?
Gradually the early pioneers of such views, such as ProfessorMichael Crawford in the 1970s, have found their theories of brainphysiology confirmed as research shows nutrition to be a key factorin neural cell development and function. Now a review by Sustain,in collaboration with the Mental Health Foundation, has summarisedthe science and made a strong case for adding mental disorder tothe list of diet-related diseases (see pages 11-15).
And it isn't just nutrition. As many parents have long suspected,additives have an influence on behaviour – and the combination ofartificial colours and flavour-boosters appear to have particularlydamaging effects on the growth of neural cells (see page 7).
And while we are talking of flavourings, food companies dependon them to ensure that their mass-produced gunk has the nose-and-tongue appeal needed to sell the product (see page 19),seeking to influence purchasing behaviour in their own right.
Isn’t it time that we recognised the profound links between whatwe eat and how we feel and think? We could start using our brainpower to ensure that children are given the best possible nutrition tofeed their minds. And we could put more thought behind policies toensure that the right foods are grown, and natural resourcesprotected to ensure good brain nutrition for generations to come.
Can the FoodCommission help you?� Are you planning non-commercialresearch that needs expert input onfood and health? � Do you need nutritional or productsurvey work undertaken? The FoodCommission may be able to help you.Contact Kath on 020 7837 2250.
NEW! Sign up for emails The Food Commission sends outoccasional news and information byemail. To receive such emails,please send your name to:[email protected] will not pass your name or email addressto any other person or organisation.
editorial contents
News Cadbury kingsizes 3Opportunities for junk food 3ASDA rated ‘worst’ for fish 4Small shops suffer 4Supermarkets rated for health 5Terminator is back 6Trans-fat labelling 6Additive cocktails 7
NutritionObesity rates climbing 8As good as fruit? 8Do we get what we expect? 11Nutrition, mental health and
behaviour 14
FarmingMineral loss in meat and dairy
foods 10
EducationChew on this website 1, 12-13
MarketingTV ads hidden in programmes 16Miraculous hangover cures 17Legal, decent, honest and true? 18Flavourings conjure up
‘Mediterranean Magic’ 19
ScienceWhat the doctor reads 20
BooksRecommended reads 21
FeedbackA dip into our mailbag 22-23
MarketplaceSubscriptions and posters 23
BackbitesOn the lighter side... 24
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Food Magazine 72 3 Jan/March 2006
The confectionery company Cadbury hasproved that pledges worth no more than thepaper (or packaging) that they're written on.Despite having announced in 2004 that itwould eliminate 'king size' chocolate bars to doits bit to help cut the nation’s calorieconsumption, large-size Cadbury chocolatebars are back. And Cadbury's chocolate fingerbiscuits (manufactured under licence byBurtons Biscuits) now come in 'the biggest boxever!'
Cadbury proudly announced that 'CadburySchweppes in the UK was the firstconfectionery manufacturer to discontinuesingle-serve king size lines'. However, it paysto read this commitment very carefully. What isa single serve? A single pack? Or a singlechunk of chocolate?
Regular Cadbury chocolate bars weigh 49g.In 2004, 'king-size' Cadbury milk chocolatebars weighed 85g. In 2005, Cadbury's answerto the 'king-size' problem was launched – new
75g chocolate bars.They are no longerdescribed as 'kingsize', but '8 chunk'. Ineffect, Cadbury's has cut up ourchocolate for us in order to be able tocontinue selling large-size bars and avoidthe criticism associated with 'king-size' and'super-size' products. The label says thatcutting up the chocolate helps it 'last longer'.
Cadbury will also be increasing the size oftheir regular 200g bar to 250g. The packagingwill emphasise that there is ‘more to share’ – orto put it another way – ‘bigger portions for all’.
In 2004, Cadbury signed up to a Manifestofor Food and Health, published by theindustry's Food and Drink Federation (FDF).The Manifesto contained seven pledges,including a commitment to controlling portionsizes. The manifesto was the industry's pre-emptive strike, ahead of publication of a publichealth white paper from government – a policy
paper that urged food companies to improvethe nutritional value of their food, controlportion sizes and curb marketing andpromotion of unhealthy food. The governmentthreatened that legislation would follow if thefood industry did not take voluntary action tohelp improve public health.
A Cadbury spokesman said: 'It's down to allsections of society – the Government, thepublic, food manufacturers – to play their part.This is our contribution.' On the subject ofking-size portions, the FDF's Martin Pattersonsaid that the federation wanted to give a sign toconsumers to eat in moderation.
In which case, what sort of sign should weunderstand by this enormous box of Cadburychocolate finger biscuits? It is manufacturedunder licence from Cadbury by BurtonsBiscuits, and described as 'the biggest boxever!' One of our researchers bought it inNovember 2005, in a branch of Somerfieldsupermarket.
In total, the box contains 128 biscuits foraround £5. Is this a sign to eat in moderation?Does this product live up to an industrycommitment ostensibly designed to helpconsumers control their calorie intake?
Oh, and next time you hear a manufacturersaying that packets are too small to carry fullnutrition information, then consider this. Themanufacturer has found room on the box togive us the information that 'if you placed eachfinger in this box end to end they would stretchfor an astonishing 8.3 metres'.
By our own calculations, the surface area ofthis Cadbury's Fingers box is over 2,000cm2,of which just 9.5cm2 is devoted to partialnutrition information. Yet, funnily enough, thereis no mention of either the sugar or saturatedfat content of the 128 chocolate-coveredbiscuits that the box contains. Too little space?Or is there something they don’t want us toknow?
Cadbury king-sizes by adifferent name
At last the language appears to be changing.Whereas food companies have spent 30
years or more telling us that people's diets are aresult of their choices, and that they need to beeducated to make the right choices, a newstudy – funded by Tate & Lyle – indicates thatbusiness is starting to admit to other possiblecauses of poor diets.*
Carried out in the USA, homeland of theconcept of freedom of choice, the study showsthat most Americans know what they should beeating but find it difficult to find the productsthat could help them.
The study also revealed that 90% of parentssaid they try to ensure their children have anutritious, balanced diet, but that they find itdifficult to find healthy products with 'childappeal'.
While consumers claim to check labels forfat and sugar content, they are not willing tocompromise on taste, states the report. It urgesfood and beverage manufacturers to
reformulate their healthier options so that theyare attractive and taste good, the report says.
"American consumers have a goodunderstanding of what constitutes 'healthyeating' yet there is a disconnect between whatthey know and believe and what they actuallydo in terms of eating," said Harvey Chimoff,Tate & Lyle's marketing director. "There aresignificant opportunities for food and beveragemanufacturers to make more healthful versionsof their products. While these new optionsmust be convenient and readily available forconsumers across purchase locations, theymust also be as tasty as regular products," headded.
Sadly, this probably means the same oldAmerican-style junk food, but using sucralose(Tate & Lyle's patented low-calorie sweetener)instead of sugar.
* See www.foodnavigator-usa.com 23 December 2005.
Through large-size products, Cadburydemonstrates its commitment to ‘portioncontrol’ with ‘biggest ever’ boxes of CadburyFingers and ‘8 chunk’ Dairy Milk bars
Junk food – new opportunities
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Six years ago the Competition Commissioninvestigated the dominance of the majorsupermarkets and concluded they were notabusing their market power. Then last year theOffice of Fair Trading (OFT) reviewed thesituation and in September 2005 decided therewas still no need to refer the supermarkets to theCompetition Commission.
However, the OFT is currently engaged in asix-month review of this decision, led by its ChiefExecutive John Fingleton. Fingleton has madeclear that the duty of the OFT is to protectcompetition, and not to defend particularcompetitors, and apparently sees no problemwith corporate giants crushing small shops.Whether it is 'fair' for supermarkets such asTesco to compete with traditional corner shopsis not a matter the OFT appears interested in.
While the OFT ponders its next move the AllParty Parliamentary Small Shops Group,consisting of about 150 MPs, is due to producea report entitled The High Street Britain 2015.The report, due out in late January or February,will warn that food wholesalers and independentnewsagents are ‘not expected to survive’ morethan 10 years because supermarkets willsqueeze them out. The report (which wasleaked earlier in January) argues that the buyingpower, low prices and convenience ofsupermarkets will trigger a ‘collapse’ in theretail supply chain by crushing the independentwholesalers who sell to small stores. Thetraditional corner shop, it warns, will disappearas a result. The owners of small shops alreadyreport that it can be cheaper for them topurchase goods for resale directly fromsupermarkets, rather than from independentwholesalers.
Jim Dowd, Labour MP and chair of the AllParty group told The Observer “Supermarkets areslashing prices now but if their rivals are obliter-ated prices could soar again. We’ve seen a lot ofevidence suggesting that's what would happen,and fair evidence it's already happened.”
According to Friends of the Earth, some2,000 independent stores such as butchers,bakers and convenience stores went out ofbusiness or became part of larger retail chains inthe last year alone. Meanwhile Tesco, whichtakes £1 of every £3 spent on groceries inBritain, has already captured over 5% of theconvenience stores' market.
Without government intervention theexpansion of the supermarkets may well lead tothe demise of independent retailers in Britain,destroying diversity and choice and siphoningmillions of pounds of revenue away from localcommunities and into the deep pockets of thesupermarkets.
Small shops suffer assupermarkets slug itout
Supermarket ASDA has promised to improve thesustainability of its fish supplies after cominglowest in a list of supermarkets rated for theirfisheries policies.
In the last edition of the Food Magazine, wewarned of the need to control and police ourexploitation of fish stocks. Following this a surveyby the environmental campaign group Greenpeacerevealed which of the retailers were selling fishfrom endangered or 'at risk' sources. The surveyhighlighted ASDA as the 'worst of the bunch', withMarks & Spencer and Waitrose top of thescorecard due to their having implementedsustainable seafood policies.
Greenpeace campaigner Oliver Knowlescommented that, 'ASDA did worse than we'dthought possible, and they fully deserve theirbottom-drawer ranking. They stock at least 13species of threatened fish and have no publicpolicy on the sustainability of the fish they sell.' Inresponse, ASDA (rather bizarrely) stated that'Greenpeace tell consumers to stop eating fishand replace it with walnuts. Our customers don'twant nut-fingers and chips for their tea.'
However, following rooftop demonstrations byGreenpeace activists and fishmongers at ASDAheadquarters, the company changed its tune, andorganised a hasty top-level meeting with thecampaigners.
As we go to press ASDA have promisedGreenpeace a review of their policies and animmediate withdrawal from sale of four species -ling, huss, skate and Dover sole.
ASDA bows to pressureover fish supplies
The most destructively fished (Marine Conservation Society grade 5 or equivalent)seafood species or groups sold by each UK supermarket
� For information about fish sustainability, see the MCS Fish Online website at www.fishonline.org � To check which fish to avoid see www.fishonline.org/advice/avoid � Fish that are considered by the MCS okay to eat are listed at www.fishonline.org/advice/eat
Table from: 'A recipe for disaster: Supermarkets' insatiable appetite for seafood', Greenpeace, 2005
Walnuts and chips? If ASDA doesn’t stopstocking endangered fish there may notbe any fish left to go with our chips.
Food Magazine 72 4 Jan/Mar 2006
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Supermarkets ratedfor healthThere are twice as many supermarket pricepromotions for fatty and sugary foodscompared to healthier options of fruit andvegetables, according to a new league tablepublished by the National Consumer Council(NCC) in November.
The NCC looked at over 2,000 supermarketprice promotions, such as 'buy one, get onefree' and 'multi-buy' offers and found theproportion of promotions for fruit andvegetables ranging from the lowest at 7% inSomerfield to a healthier 27% in Marks &Spencer. No supermarket hit the NCC's targetof 33% – the percentage that it isrecommended fruit and vegetables shouldmake up in a balanced diet.
The NCC's report is an innovative piece ofwork designed to shed light on supermarketpractices that affect health. It praises thosesupermarkets that support better health, and'names and shames' the laggards. Points wereawarded for reducing the salt content ofstandard own-brand foods, for giving goodnutrition labelling and interpretation, forproviding health advice to customers, forchucking snacks off the checkout, and forachieving a healthier balance of foods amongits range of promotions.
The Co-op achieved first place in the NCC'sHealth Responsibility Index; and ASDA came apoor ninth. Tesco, with over 30% of themarket, was described by NCC as 'notcompetitive on health'. The retail giant's in-store promotions were weighted towardsunhealthy foods – with only 14% for fruit andvegetables compared to 35% for fatty andsugary foods, and its helpline 'was the leasthelpful of all'.
Research and surveys for the NCC's reportwere undertaken by Food Commission staff,who also helped the NCC to design themeasuring system to compare thesupermarkets.
The National Consumer Council's full reportis available online, free of charge, at:www.ncc.org.uk/food/healthycompetition.pdf
Waitrose has been named as Britain's most farmanimal friendly supermarket for the second timein succession in Compassion in World Farming's'Compassionate Supermarket of the Year'Awards.*
The retailer achieved 49.3 points out of apossible 60 following CIWF's exhaustive surveyto monitor how well animals are reared,transported and slaughtered for the UK's leadingsupermarkets.
Waitrose was particularly praised by CIWF forits performance on the welfare of pigs, ducks,laying hens and farmed fish. But just five pointsseparated Waitrose from two other supermarketchains: � Marks & Spencer narrowly came second and
won the award for ‘Investment and Innovationin Farm Animal Welfare Research’
� Third placed supermarket was the Co-op,which was awarded the title of ‘MostImproved Supermarket’
Poorer results were shown by ASDA,Sainsbury's, Somerfield and Tesco. CIWF said
that it believes Britain's supermarkets are making'good progress' in many aspects of farm animalwelfare, but the campaigning organisation wasconcerned that supermarkets still permit someconcerning practices that leave farmed animalsopen to suffering:� Most supermarkets allow chickens reared
intensively for meat to be stocked at densitiesthat exceed government guidelines – at 17birds per square metre.
� Sainsbury's and Somerfield are still sellingsome own-label pig meat that is importedfrom stall systems which are banned oncruelty grounds in the UK.
� Despite a ban on routine tail-docking ofpiglets, 80% or more of the pig meat sold byall the supermarkets surveyed still comesfrom pigs that have been tail-docked.
� The majority of turkeys and ducks farmed forthe major UK supermarkets are intensivelyreared.
* See: www.ciwf.org.uk or contact CIWF, CharlesHouse, 5a Charles Street, Petersfield GU32 3EH
Waitrose wins award for thewelfare of pigs, poultry and fish
With 52% of the 13,134 votes cast, Wal-Marthas won the 5th annual on-line Grinch of theYear election in the US, sponsored by theadvocacy organisation Jobs with Justice.* Wal-mart is the US retail giant that bought and nowruns the ASDA supermarket chain in the UK.
Nominated by Wake-Up Wal-Mart,** thecompany is criticised for leading the global ‘raceto the bottom’ and accused of boosting profitsfor its executives on the backs of its employeesthrough low wages, insufficient healthcare and
discrimination. “With no end in sight for theircontinued poor treatment of workers, thecommunities they live in, and the environment,we suspect that they'll go for a third win nextyear,” said Fred Azcarate, executive director ofJobs with Justice.
* Jobs with Justice is a US campaign for workers'rights. See: www.jwj.org
** See www.wakeupwalmart.com – the Wake-Up Wal-Mart group also sells a campaign DVD entitled ‘Thehigh cost of low prices’
Wal-Mart ‘wins’ race to the bottom
Studies on the links between economicdeprivation and poor diets has recently focusedon whether people living in low-incomeneighbourhoods have adequate access to shopsselling healthy and affordable food.
Surveys of retailers in deprived areas havegiven mixed results: one research group found nosignificant trends across post codes in Glasgowbetween indicators of deprivation and theprevalence of out-of-home eateries, or fast foodoutlets alone, but they did find a close linkbetween deprivation and proximity to McDonald'srestaurants when taking Scotland as a whole –and the same applied in England.1,2
A study in the US found a link between bothethnicity and socio-economic composition ofneighbourhoods and the 'local food environment'.
They found minority and racially mixedneighbourhoods had more than twice as manysmall grocery stores as white neighbourhoodsand half as many supermarkets.3 Low-incomeneighbourhoods had four times as many smallgrocery stores as the wealthiest neighbourhoodsand half as many supermarkets.
In general, poorer areas and non-white areasalso tended to have fewer fruit and vegetableoutlets, bakeries, speciality stores, and naturalfood stores. Stores selling alcohol were morecommon in poorer than in richer areas.1 Macintyre S et al. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2005
Oct 25;2:16.2 Cummins SC et al. Am J Prev Med. 2005
Nov;29(4):308-10.3 Moore LV et al. Am J Public Health.(e) 2005 Dec 27.
Retail planning needed for health?
Food Magazine 72 5 Jan/Mar 2006
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The overwhelmingly discredited ‘Terminator’technology is being relaunched by biotechcompanies. Terminator technology, patentedin the US in 1998, sterilises seeds in order toforce farmers and gardeners to buy new seedeach season. If permitted, it will only increasethe biotech companies’ monopoly control overseeds.
Terminator technology genetically modifiesplants so they produce only sterile seeds.There is currently an international de factomoratorium on the testing andcommercialisation of Terminator technology,agreed in 2000 by the United NationsConvention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Ifthis moratorium gets overturned andTerminator is allowed, seed saving and foodsecurity will be threatened and GMcontamination of our food is likely to increase.
To prevent this happening, development,farming and environment groups arecampaigning to ensure that the UK and othergovernments do not allow the moratorium tobe overturned at the CBD Conference takingplace in Brazil in March this year.
In 2005, the Canadian Government initiatedthe attempt to overturn the moratorium. Theirefforts will be built upon by other countries.Also in 2005, new patents for Terminatortechnology were granted in Europe andCanada, and applications have been submittedin China, Japan and Brazil.
The potential impacts of this technologystill remain as clear as ever.
The main impact will be to prevent farmersand gardeners around the world saving theirown seed. Almost 1½ billion farmersworldwide depend on saved seeds and haveestablished exchange systems within theircommunities. This ensures seed securityappropriate to local conditions and is, ofcourse, a free resource.
Terminator technology will affect farmers'livelihoods, food security and the environment,and consumer choice will be further eroded asmore GM crops are grown. The UKGovernment is now in the position where itneeds to decide whether to put its efforts intosupporting a continuance of the current defacto moratorium.
Readers who care about this issue canwrite to their MP asking them to sign the EarlyDay Motion 1300 'Terminator Technology'.
Letters can also be sent to: MargaretBeckett at Defra, Nobel House, 17 SmithSquare, London SW1P 3JR, to ask the UKGovernment to oppose any attempt to lift theCBD de facto moratorium on Terminatortechnology, at the meeting in March 2006.
� You can get copies of a leaflet, withfull information about the campaignand actions, including a model letter,at www.eco-matters.org. For moredetails, visit the International BanTerminator website:www.banterminator.org
One of the advantages of the US public healthsystem is that it responds to privateenforcement, even if its public enforcement isall too shaky. A private prosecution of Kraft forlacing their Oreo cookies with hydrogenatedoils containing trans-fats (see FM63) forcedKraft to reformulate.
Kraft would not have wanted to be the onlybiscuit-maker to remove the cheap, long-shelflife fats, and no doubt helped lobby the USFood and Drug Administration to change thelaw for all companies. The FDA in turn did notwant to regulate but were persuaded by thecourt case and the 'consumer right to know'argument – and as a result, on January 1st thisyear, all foods in the US containing trans-fatshould declare the amount on the label.
There are two footnotes to this story,however.* The first is that the labels can showzero trans-fats if the amount is less than 0.5gper serving, which can be achieved by defininga single biscuit (0.4g, say) as a serving,
whatever the common practice might be. Thesecond is that the nutritional panel leaves ablank in the section about what your'percentage daily value' should be. There weremoves to put an asterisk and an explanationstating that trans-fat intake should be as low aspossible, but the food industry would notaccept this and the FDA capitulated.
Still, US consumers do have moreinformation than we do in the UK. Under Britishand EU law there is no statutory requirement todeclare the trans-fat content of products unlessa claim has been made about them on the label.In practice some foods show the trans-fatcontent, but others do not. There also remainssome confusion, because trans-fats should beincluded in the total fat declaration but notincluded in any of the usual sub-components(saturated, monounsaturated andpolyunsaturated) on the label.
* For details see: www.bantransfats.com
Trans-fat labelling law
Food Magazine 72 6 Jan/Mar 2006
Terminator is back Danish government tocompensate for GMOcontaminationThe Danish government has won approval for itsproposal to offer farmers compensation if theircrops are contaminated with genetically modified(GM) material from neighbouring farms.
The European Commission has authorised theuse of government payments to assist farmerswho can show that they have suffered economicloss as a result of GM crop contamination. Lastyear, Denmark approved a law on GM co-existence to take account of the different needsof organic, conventional and GM farmed crops.
Under the scheme, the government canapprove compensation payments to farmerswhose crops have been contaminated at levelsabove the 'adventitious' amounts permitted underEU law – 0.9% of the material. Below this levelthe product can be sold as non-GM, The ruleapplies to conventional and organic crops alike.
If compensation is paid, the government willthen seek to recover the money from the farmerwhose crop caused the contamination, taking thematter out of the hands of neighbouring farmersand, most probably, into the courts to become astruggle between the state and the farmer'sinsurance company.
University of Michiganbans Coca ColaThe University of Michigan has suspended salesof Coca-Cola products on its three campusesover allegations that the company permits humanrights and environmental abuses abroad.
The suspension, which began on New Year'sday, affects vending machines, residence halls,cafeterias and campus restaurants. Coke'scontracts with the university were worth about$1.4 million. The decision was prompted by acomplaint from Students Organizing for Laborand Economic Equality, a student body whichaccused Coke of draining local groundwater inIndia and conspiring with paramilitary groups inColombia to harass and harm union members.
The company has repeatedly denied theallegations, but the university, which has morethan 50,000 students, decided not to renew itscontracts when Coke said it was unable tocooperate in an investigation of circumstances inColombia. The university and several othercolleges had offered to fund the investigation.Several other colleges in the USA have reportedlystopped selling Coke products, citing events inColombia among the reasons.
Meanwhile Coke has promised to sponsor theOlympic games for a further 12 years, continuingan unbroken run (sorry) since 1928.
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Research to be formally published this springshows that combinations of common foodadditives act synergistically and could have agreater toxic effect in laboratory tests than theindividual additives alone.*
Tests on the food colouring Quinoline Yellow(E104) in combination with the widely usedsweetener aspartame (E951), and the colouringBrilliant Blue (E133) in combination with theflavour-boosting additive monosodium glutamate(MSG) (E621), have shown that the combinedeffects can inhibit nerve cell growth, preventingproper neural signalling.
Much lower concentrations of these additivesin combination were able to produce the sametoxicity as high levels of the additivesseparately. The combination of aspartameand E104 was four times more potent thana simple addition would have expected, andthe combination of MSG with E133 wasseven times more potent.
The concentrations being tested weresimilar to those that would be found in thebloodstream of children consumingproducts with these additives, accordingto the research team.
In response to the news, thegovernment Food Standards Agency and theindustry Food and Drink Federation issuedremarkably similar statements, saying that
the additives used in the study were all approvedas safe by the European authorities. The Agencyadded that it was preparing to fund studies intothe cocktail effect of combining additives.
In fact the colouring Brilliant Blue is banned inseveral EU countries, yet it is used in productsavailable for sale in the UK. It can be found inconfectionery, puddings, soft drinks andprocessed peas. Quinoline Yellow is banned inthe US, Australia and Norway, but not in the UK.It is widely used in some types of confectionery,desserts and occasionally in smoked fish. Both
colourings are part of a group of food additivesknown as 'coal tar' dyes.
MSG (E621) is widely used in savoury foodssuch as soups, meat products and ready mealsto boost flavour (including boosting addedflavouring agents).
Aspartame is one of the commonest artificialsweeteners and is used in an estimated 6,000food products, including soft drinks, dessertsand yogurts, confectionery and chewing gum,and as a low calorie table-top sweetener. It isalso widely used in pharmaceuticals.
* Lau K, et al, ToxSci advance publications (OxfordUniversity Press) 13 Dec 2005.
news
Food Magazine 72 7 Jan/Mar 2006
Are common additive cocktails toxic?
Research from the Italian Cancer ResearchCentre has cast new doubts on the safety of theartificial sweetener aspartame.* Female ratsconsuming 20mg per kg bodyweight showed asignificant increase in the chance of sufferinglymphomas and leukaemia. Female ratsconsuming just 4mg per kg showed a slightlyraised level of these diseases.
People who eat low-calorie or sugar-freeproducts typically consume 2mg or 3mg per kgbodyweight, and the European Acceptable DailyIntake level is 50mg per kg bodyweight (in theUS it is 40mg per kg).
Previous studies had suggested thataspartame may lead to brain tumours. The newstudy found evidence of sparse malignanttumours in the brains of several of the male andfemale rats being fed aspartame, but not in anyof the control animals. However, in previousresearch some control animals had shown braintumours spontaneously and the researcherscould not attribute the disease directly toaspartame. There was no evidence of increasedtumours among the animals given the highestdoses of aspartame.
In both rodents and humans, aspartame ismetabolised in the gut into three constituents:aspartic acid, phenylalanine and methanol.Methanol in turn is metabolised intoformaldehyde and then to formic acid. Theresearch team showed that methanol added torats' drinking water increased the incidence oflymphomas and leukaemia in female rats, andformaldehyde also had this effect. TheInternational Agency for Research on Cancer hasalso declared that the evidence linkingformaldehyde to leukaemia in humans is strong,although not conclusive.
Despite these findings, the Food StandardsAgency appears unwilling to act. It has the legalauthority to do so, and should immediately referthe evidence for urgent assessment by theCommittee on Toxicity and the Committee onCarcinogenicity. As a precaution it shouldconsider issuing a warning to consumers of thepossible dangers and require warning labels onproducts containing aspartame – just as the USrequired on products containing saccharine.
* Soffritt M et al, Eur J Oncol 2005; 10(2).
Aspartame – new evidence of harm
Hartley's jelly contains aspartame(E951) and quinoline yellow (E104)
– just the combination foundto inhibit nerve cell growth.Smarties have both thecolourings E104 and E133,
as do Starburst Joosters. E104is found in Jelly Babies,
Pastilles and Gummi Pizza. E133can be found in mint Aero as well
as processed peas. New researchraises questions about the health
effects of eating such everydayproducts in combination.
Maternity AllianceclosesWe are sad to report that the campaigning andeducational organisation Maternity Alliance hasclosed, after more than a quarter-century ofactivity, in December 2005. The Alliance hadbeen at the forefront of the struggle for betternutrition for pregnant women, infants andchildren as part of their broader brief tochampion maternity rights.
The Food Commission is proud to haveworked with the Alliance, from the influentialPoverty in Pregnancy report in 1984, PoorExpectations in 1995, to the widely-acclaimedGood Enough to Eat? The diet of pregnantteenagers in 2003.
The work of the Maternity Alliance helped tokeep maternal nutrition on the national agenda,highlighting the inequalities in diet and health stillexperienced in the 21st century. We are alsograteful for Maternity Alliance's contribution toour 2001 Children's Nutrition Action Plan, whichset us on track to run several groundbreakinghealth campaigns, such as the Parents Jury,Chuck Snacks off the Checkout, and the newChewOnThis website (see pages 12-13).
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nutrition
2004) yet even then they were considered aserious problem (see ‘Obesity- a decade ofmissed targets’, right). The figures alsosuggest that the UK is catching up with theUS, where 40% of adults aged 55-64 areobese.
The latest survey also shows that whileobesity rates have been climbing steadily, theproportion of the population who aremoderately overweight (with a BMI between25 and 30 kg/m2) has remained remarkablystable. The only population group showing anincrease in the proportion being overweightare younger adults, aged 16-44. Older adultsare, if anything, now less likely to bemoderately overweight.
Data for the incidence of children beingoverweight or obese in the latest survey hasnot been released yet, but the data for averageBMI shows a continuing rise for both boys andgirls, giving a gain over the decade of nearlyone BMI unit (1 kg/m2) averaged across allages.
Obesity – a decade ofmissed targetsIn 1992 the UK Department of Health launched amajor campaign to tackle chronic illness underthe title 'The Health of the Nation' with targets forreduction in cardiovascular disease, cancers,mental illness, HIV-AIDS and accidents. Obesitywas listed as one of the indicators forcardiovascular disease and the documentproposed a target to reduce the proportion ofobese men in the population from 7% in 1986-87 to 6% in 2005, and obese women from 12%in 1986-87 to 8% in 2005.2
The paper was poorly timed in respect of theobesity targets, for within a few months a newsurvey (The Health Survey for England 1993)showed that obesity prevalence rates weremoving dramatically in the other direction, withmale obesity rates above 13% and women'sobesity rates above 16%.
Food Magazine 72 8 Jan/Mar 2006
Obesity hits over 30% of adults aged 60Obesity rates areclimbing for all adults,with those aged between55 and 64 most at risk.
T he latest survey of adults, in the HealthSurvey for England 2004,1 shows yetanother increase in the obesity rates for
both men and women, with 23% of the adultpopulation now sporting a BMI above 30kg/m2.
BMI is a standard measure of overweightand obesity, calculated by dividing a person'sweight (in kg) by his or her height (in meters)squared.
The survey reveals the most vulnerable agefor excess weight is between 55 and 64, whenobesity affects 30% of men and 32% ofwomen. Only a decade earlier the figures werefar lower (see graphs comparing 1993 and
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‘Chew On This’ is the Food Commission’s newwebsite, intended to educate secondary schoolpupils about modern food, nutrition, marketingand health. For more information see pages 12-13 or visit www.chewonthis.org.uk
We always welcome feedback on what we do,so if you have any comments or suggestions, dolet us know. Email: [email protected] write to us at: The Food Commission, 94White Lion Street, London N1 9PF.
nutrition
Although the Health of the Nation campaignmade some progress towards several othertargets, it made no progress on obesity. Anexpert panel reviewed the strategy in 1998 3 andcriticised it on several grounds:� It was not seen as a priority, with issues such
as reducing hospital waiting lists andbudgeting taking precedence.
� The policy was regarded as a Department ofHealth initiative that lacked cross-departmental commitment and ownership.
� At local level it was perceived primarily aspart of the health service agenda – so wasnot taken up by local authorities or socialservices.
� Future public health strategies should bebased on integrated central leadership andcommitted local ownership. Support needs tocome from the highest level.
These comments were issued shortly after the1997 change of government and were welcomedas heralding a new approach to public health.Sadly, as the latest results show, 'support fromthe highest level' has yet to materialise.
1 Health Survey for England 2004. The Stationery Office2005. See http://www.dh.gov.uk/PublicationsAndStatistics/ PublishedSurvey/HealthSurveyForEngland/HealthSurveyResults/fs/en
2 Public Health White Paper: The Health of the Nation.HMSO: London, 1992. For a summary of targetachievement, see National Audit Office, The Health ofthe Nation: A progress report 1996, NAO, London1996 (a press statement on this is available athttp://www.nao.org.uk/pn/9596656.htm).
3 The Health of the Nation: A policy assessed TheStationery Office: London, 1998. A summary of thisreview is reported in Mayor S, Health of the Nationdeemed a failure. BMJ 1998;317:1034 (available athttp://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/317/7165/1034).
The manufacturer of ‘fruit10ergy’ prebiotic fruitbars, Fruit Bowl, claims that the product 'countsas one of the recommended 5 a day', and that itis an 'aid to healthy digestion'. On the front of thepack Fruit Bowl claims that the product is'nutritionally equivalent to a portion of fruit'.
That's quite a claim, and it raised more thanone sceptical eyebrow around the FoodCommission office.
We've received many enquiries from parentsand others, asking about the '5 a day' claimsassociated with such products. So here are thefigures (see table below).
Of course, fruit bars contain concentratedjuice and much less water than fresh fruit, hencethey concentrate calories and sugars into amuch smaller space. But can a product thatcontains around seven times as many caloriesand seven times as much sugar as fruit fairly bedescribed as 'nutritionally equivalent'?
Indeed, sugars in fruit are known as 'intrinsic'because they are still trapped in the cells of thefruit, whereas sugars in fruit juice ingredients insuch products are likely to be extrinsic –released from the cells by processing, andtherefore more damaging to teeth.
The glycaemic index (GI) of foods containingprocessed sugars is also different from fruitcontaining intrinsic sugars. As an illustration,apples and cherries have a GI in the low 20s,
whilst processing them to create apple juice orcherry juice raises their GI into the 40s (pureglucose has a GI of 100).
‘Fruit10ergy’ bars contain 18 ingredients,including dehydrated fruit, juices andoligofructose prebiotic, along with addedmaltodextrin, rice starch, vegetable oil,flavouring, milk protein and preservative. (Thelist is not dissimilar to popular products such asKellogg’s ‘Real Fruit Winders’.) On grounds ofboth nutrition and ingredients, we believe, thedirect 'equivalence' claim looks rather thin.
Nutritionally equivalent to fruit?You decide
Nutrition information (per 100g)Apple & cherry prebiotic Apple Cherry‘fruit10ergy’ bar
Energy 329 kcalories 47 kcalories 48 kcalories
Protein 1.4g 0.4g 0.9g
Carbohydrate 74g 11.8g 11.5g
of which sugars 37.4g 11.8g 11.5g
Fat 3.0g 0.1g 0.1g
of which saturates 1.4g Trace Trace
Fibre 13g Approx 2g* Approx 1.5*
Sodium 0.28g 0.003g 0.001g
Vitamin C 55mg 3mg to 20mg 11mg
* depending on method of analysis
Food Magazine 72 9 Jan/Mar 2006
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farming
The calcium loss from milk was only slight,but from cheeses it averaged over 15% – and inhigh-value Parmesan cheese the loss was anextraordinary 70%, implying a considerabledilution of the original highly concentrated recipefor this cheese, or some other significant shift iningredients to account for this change.
Copper and magnesium, essential for enzymefunctioning, also showed losses in meat products(typically 10% fall for magnesium and 60% fall forcopper) and dairy foods (typically 25% fall formagnesium and an extraordinary 90% fall incopper).
Should we worry?We live longer than ever, and we have access toabundant food supplies, so are these changes innutrients any reason to be concerned?
We believe so. Minerals and trace elementsplay a major role in our physical andpsychological well being. The recent changes indietary habits towards highly processed foods weare likely to be over-fed yet malnourished interms of these micronutrients. Medical sciencemay help keep us alive longer, but we are notnecessarily healthier, nor happier. As Thomasconcludes, 'minerals are what we are made of(to quote the Bible: "ashes to ashes, dust todust") and it would be very difficult tounderestimate their importance as a catalystfor developing and maintaining good health'.*
The recent National Diet and NutritionSurvey of adults showed that young women,particularly, were likely to have diets seriouslydeficient in essential minerals. Up to 8% were
below the Lower Reference Nutrient Intake (LRNI)for calcium, 20-22 percent were below the LRNIfor magnesium, and 40% were blow the LRNI foriron. LRNI is the amount of a nutrient that isenough for only the small number of people whohave low requirements (about 2.5% of thepopulation).The majority need more.
These women were the key age group forchildbearing, and so, to continue the biblicalanalogy, the sins of our agricultural practices mayyet be visited many-fold upon the next generation.
* D Thomas Commentary on tables showing changes inmineral composition. Unpublished. David Thomasworks as a researcher and nutrition adviser and mineralsupplement supplier. Contact him by email:[email protected]
Table 2. Selected foods showing 1940s mineral levels (per 100g) and amount lost by2002
Values in milligrams
Magnesium change Calcium change Iron change
Cheddar 46.9 down 38% 810 down 9% 0.57 down 47%
Stilton 27.2 down 45% 362 down 10% 0.46 down 57%
Parmesan 49.6 down 70% 1220 down 70% 0.3 all gone
Beef rump steak 24.8 down 7% 5.2 down 4% 6 down 55%
Corned beef 29 down 48% 12.8 down 45% 9.8 down 76%
Streaky bacon 25.1 down 16% 52.3 down 87% 3.2 down 78%
Chicken meat roast 23 no change 24.5 down 31% 2.6 down 69%
Turkey 28.2 down 4% 38.3 down 71% 3.8 down 79%
Meat and dairy: wherehave the minerals gone?
Table 1. Changes in mineral compositionof milk 1940-2002 Values in milligrams
1940 2002 change
Sodium 50 43 down 14%
Potassium 160 155 down 3%
Phosphorus 95 93 down 2%
Magnesium 14 11 down 21%
Calcium 120 118 down 2%
Iron 0.08 0.03 down 62%
Copper 0.02 >0.01 all gone
Sources: McCance and Widdowson 1940;McCance and Widdowson 6th edition 2002.
We continue our serieslooking at the effect ofmodern farming on thequality of our food.
In this magazine a year ago we highlighted theloss of essential minerals – calcium,magnesium iron etc – from our fruit and
vegetable supply. The figures made alarming reading. Comparing
the mineral levels in the 1930s with those in the1980s showed that modern fruits and vegetableswere typically depleted in minerals by 20%. Thefact that modern fruit and vegetables containedmore water could only explain some of the losses.Intensive farming on exhausted land was likely tobe the major cause of the decline in the nutritionalquality of the food, along with the selection ofvarieties for qualities other than nutrition.
Now researcher David Thomas has analyseddata on meat and dairy foods, comparing theirlevels in the 1930s (published by McCance &Widdowson in 1940) with the most recentgovernment tables, published in 2002. Onceagain, the figures make alarming reading.
As we show on this page, the mineral contentof popular meats and milk products has fallensignificantly. Looking at 15 different meat items,Thomas found the iron content to have fallen onaverage 47%, with some products showing a fallas high as 80%. The iron content of milk haddropped by over 60% while for cream and eightdifferent cheeses the iron loss was over 50%. "Frankly, Mr Thomas, I'm not happy
with my iron levels either."
Food Magazine 72 10 Jan/Mar 2006
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recipes
It claims to be ‘classic’ but has no currants, noegg, no apple, no carrot, no orange juice, andhydrogenated vegetable oil instead (I suppose)of suet.
The boasted-of sherry is a miniscule 0.5%,less than the amount of added water. Water?!There's actually more water than either candiedpeel, raisins or almonds! It should taste sweetthough – the second largest ingredient is sugar.
Christmas cakeAnd what about Christmas cake? Traditionally, arich, heavy cake made with butter, sugar, flour,spices, raised with beaten egg and bakingpowder, with up to half the weight of the finishedcake being dried fruit, usuallyraisins, currants, sultanas, and,usually, candied peel and glacécherries. Almonds and alcoholcan be added. The cake isbrushed with melted apricotjam, and then covered withmarzipan and icing.
Marzipan, nowadays,consists of ground almonds,sugar and egg, althougholder recipes includedalcohol, lemon juice andorange flower water. Icing ismade with icing sugar and eggwhite.
But here's Beverley Manor's Christmas cakemade for Iceland: a 'Rich fruit cake topped withalmond flavour paste and soft icing'. Somehow itdoesn't tempt me. How about you? Take a deepbreath now:
Mary Whiting,author andcookery tutor,looks atcommercialproducts andasks; are wegetting whatwe expect?
Once upon a time, Britain had a superb cuisine –but it was long ago. According to ColinSpencer’s British Food Henry VIII was partly toblame, but it was the industrial revolution thatfinally ended its glory. A few great dishesremain, but you'd never know it from most of thecommercial versions on offer. Here are twoexamples from last Christmas and one for nextPancake Day.
I have used Alan Davidson's The OxfordCompanion to Food, OUP 1999, for the mostreliable descriptions of traditional recipes.
Christmas puddingChristmas pudding as we know it dates from the19th century and is a mixture of dried fruit,candied peel, breadcrumbs, suet, brown sugar,eggs, citrus fruit, carrot and/or apple, almonds,
Pancake Day (Shrove Tuesday) is on February28th this year. If you fancy a traditional feastbefore Lent you have a choice – you can treatyourself using the classical three componentsof flour, milk and eggs, or you can try MaRaeburn’s version, which contains: Water,wheat flour, skimmed milk, sugar, vegetableoil, egg, milk solids, rye flour, modified starch,leavening agents: E500ii, E341i, E575, salt,thickener: E407, E410, emulsifiers: E371,flavours. Pancake-flippin’ heck! That’s anawful lot of extra ingredients!
Pancakes – in a packet
Food Magazine 72 11 Jan/Mar 2006
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Food Magazine 72 12 Jan/Mar 2006
Chew on th‘Chew On This’ is a newwebsite produced by theFood Commission toencourage school childrento ask questions about thefood they eat.
D esigned for 11-14 year olds (KeyStage 3), our Chewonthis.org.ukwebsite uses animation and cartoons
to show the realities of modern food productionand the effect that food can have on our health.The website focuses on four main areas,examples of which are shown on these pages.
The first section looks at fat, salt and sugarand explains why we find these nutrients sotasty and easy to eat. Fat and sugar provideenergy to keep our bodies going, whilst saltprovides us with the mineral sodium, which isessential to many of the processes that keepour bodies functioning. In the modernenvironment these nutrients are easily andcheaply available. But over-consumption canseriously damage our health, so the websiteexplains why we need to keep an eye on justhow much fat, salt and sugar we eat.
The second section examines food labelsand asks 'Can you believe what you read?'Food labels have to provide certain informationby law, and the site explains how to use thisinformation to work out just how healthy, orunhealthy, your favourite foods may be. Thenthere is the question of what isn't mentioned onthe label – such as the use of pesticides, thedistance the food may have travelled and theaddition of water to meat.
Within this section we also look at how fruitimagery can be used to imply both taste andhealth benefits, although actual fruit content
may be extremely low. The use of awide range of logos is alsoexamined, with plenty of realexamples. Pupils are encouragedto question the validity of logos
that indicate potential benefitssuch as 'extra energy', 'hearthealth' and 'reduced fat'.
The third section asks'Who's messing with mymind?' and looks at the tricksthat food companies use topersuade people to choosetheir products. Variousmarketing methods aredescribed, including the
targeting of very young children; sponsorshipand advertising within schools; the encourage-ment of pester power and impulse purchasing;the use of professional footballers to promotefood and drink brands; the use of characterlicensing and the increased prevalence ofmarketing via email and the internet.
In the fourth section we ask 'What's all thisweird stuff in my food?' and explain just whatgoes into modern food and drink products.Many added ingredients have no nutritionalbenefit and may in fact encourage us to eatless healthily. The use of flavourings and
colourings is examined, as is the commonplaceuse of water as a bulking agent in meat and fishproducts and juice drinks. Pupils can contrasthistorical examples of food adulteration withmodern, legalised adulteration processes.
The website includes a wide range ofdownloadable activity sheets for use withinclassrooms and an extensive list of educationalresources available elsewhere on the internet.Access to the website is completely free.
� To visit the Chew On This website go to:www.chewonthis.org.uk
Sugar gives you energySugary foods provide lots of energy in a formthat our bodies can quickly use. We needenergy to live and breathe and even to sleep.
Sugar has four Calories of energy in everygram – about 20 Calories in a teaspoon ofsugar. Protein and complexcarbohydrates alsocontain four Calories ofenergy in every gram,and fat contains nineCalories. But our bodiestake longer to digestthese, so the energy takeslonger to get to us.
It's easy toconsume moreenergy than weneed because sugaris added to so manyfoods and drinks.
When your body hasmore sugar than it needsfor energy it begins toconvert the sugar intobody fat and stores it. So if you don't doenough exercise, and keep on eating lots ofsugar, your body could become bigger andbigger.
Mmmm, sugar tastes good!Have you ever wondered why you like the tasteof sweet things? What's so special aboutsugary foods and drinks?
Seeking energy, our bodies were designedto recognise and love sweet tastes. This madesense when the only sweet things around were
seasonal fruit and vegetables and perhapssome wild honey.
But today, sugary foods are availableeverywhere. You're probably only a fewhundred metres from a shop selling sweetfoods right now, in the form of sweets,chocolate and drinks. They're not veryexpensive and they're everywhere. This is whyit's so easy to eat too much sugar.
Stop! Don't feed thebacteriaSorry. Bad news. If you eat a lot of sugar,especially in the form of frequent sugarysnacks and drinks, you're likely to end up with
holes in your teeth.All of us have bacteria in our mouths which
love to feast on the sugary snacks and drinkswhich pass by our teeth. As they feed, thebacteria give out chemicals that dissolve thewhite coating on teeth.
Brushing your teeth twice a day can help tosweep the bacteria away. And cutting back onsugary snacks and drinks can starve them intosubmission.
Sugar on the website
education
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Badvert
'You think this pot is full of cheesy dipand breadsticks?' says the laughing cow.'Ho ho ho, wait till you take the coveroff!' A label down the side of the packadvises customers to 'Dip to here', withan arrow halfway down the pack.Removing the outer packaging revealsthat you can ONLY dip to halfway downthe pack. Theplastic innercontainerholding thecheesy dip stopsright there. Thepack may looktall and full, butin fact youwould bepartially paying
for thin air. Sadly, the nutritioninformation is also full of holes, with nodeclaration on either the saturated fat orsalt content of the product.
The manufacturer also asserts that100g of the product can provide youwith 28.5% of your recommended dailyallowance (RDA) of calcium. However,
since the potcontains only70g of food, thiswouldpresumablybring the calciumlevel down toless than 20% ofthe RDA for theamountconsumed.
What a cheesy deal!
Is it really suitable forlunchboxes?
There are over seven million school pupils inEngland – in nurseries, primary schools andsecondary schools. According to a recentsurvey, most of them (6.6 million) don't eatschool meals. Instead, they bring in packedlunches or buy lunch outside school.
Now get this. The average school year is190 days. Multiply 6.6 million pupils by 190school days, and you can work out that about1,254,000,000 (1,254 million, or 1.2 billion)packed lunches are eaten at school everyyear. And that's just in England!
A company that can get its food or drinkproduct into those lunchboxes is going tomake a great deal of money. That's why somany snacks and drinks are labelled as 'idealfor lunchboxes' or 'suitable for lunchboxes'.
Unfortunately, many of the products aredesigned to be occasional 'treats' rather thanfoods to be eaten every day. They are oftenhigh in salt, fat or sugar.
If you want the occasional treat, that'sokay, but if you want to eat good food, thendon't fall for 'quick-fix' products that claim tobe ideal for lunchboxes. Get creative and makeyour own fresh sandwiches! All you need isbread and the fillings or spreads of yourchoice. If you want, you can cram in someextra fingers of cheese. Yogurt makes a tastyand nutritious dessert. And if you wantsomething sweet to finish off, try fresh or
dried fruit.
his! Food cheats watered down milkIf you're a cheat, an easy way to make money isto add water to food – because water is verycheap. The trick is: the cheats still charge thesame price as for proper food!
This Victorian cartoon shows that peoplewere worried about cheats adding water to milk.If you drink milk that is watered down, you missout on lots of good things, like calcium andvitamins.
That's why there are laws tostop peopleadding water tonutritiousmilk.
These days, food law officers (trading standardsofficers) test milk to find out if water has beenadded, or other ingredients that can make waterymilk look more thick and creamy.
Are those real pips in yourraspberry jam?
Jam recipes are controlled by some of thestrictest food laws in the world. But why does
the government bother? It's only jam!But in the past, some very dodgy
things were put into jam. Instead ofexpensive raspberries and strawberries,some jam-makers simply put sugarywater into the jars, and added starch to
make it gooey. Thejam-makersadded colouring
and flavouring,and some even
added bits of woodas fake pips, tomake it seem as ifreal raspberries hadbeen used to makethe jam!
Some examples of food adulteration
The not very Big Cheez Dipper – a snack full of holes!
Lunch boxes
See: www.chewonthis.org.uk
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Food Magazine 72 14 Jan/Mar 2006
society
A healthy diet can do morethan lead to a healthy body.Courtney Van De Weynerreports on the latestresearch linking nutrition tobehaviour and mentalhealth.
Recent years have seen the popularmedia awash with stories of the effectof food on mental health and
behaviour. Mostly focusing on essential fattyacids, articles have promised that certain foods(and more often, food supplements) canimprove your child's behaviour, lift yourdepression or halt your cognitive decline. Thereason for these articles has been a growingnumber of research studies looking at the linkbetween diet and brain. With the growinginterest in food and the nation's diet, a press-release detailing the results of a new trial linkingfood and the brain can now lead to a wave ofpress attention – and then often a run on thefish counter or the supplement shelves.
There have always been anecdotes abouthow particular foods affect the brain. Whether itis grandmotherly advice about fish being 'brainfood' or parents swearing that their child'stantrums only appear after they eat a tube ofSmarties, there is a general level of intuitiveacceptance that what we eat affects how wefeel.
As can be seen by the media reports,however, these anecdotes are increasinglybeing backed up by more scientific evidence.This is not a particularly new area; manyresearch scientists have been working overmany years exploring how certain nutrientsaffect the brain. Indeed, some of the first werethe very scientists involved in discovering anddefining vitamins – often, the very firstsymptom of a vitamin deficiency is apsychological one.
Hundreds of studies linking diet to mentalhealth and behaviour have been published inpeer-reviewed medical journals. The studieshave ranged widely in subject matter andmethod – from comparing the intake of acertain food in a country with the prevalence ofa mental illness, to measuring the level ofcertain nutrients in the bodies of patients. Manyof the studies have tested patients’ responsesto dietary changes in randomised controlledtrials, considered to be the 'gold standard' forauthoritative clinical evidence.
For the past eighteenmonths, Sustain – inpartnership with the MentalHealth Foundation – has beencollating this publishedevidence that shows how whatwe eat affects how we feel andbehave. The outcome of thiswork has been two reports –one produced by Sustain forthe food and farming policysector and one produced by theMental Health Foundation forthe mental health sector.
The reports detail how foodappears to affect the brainthroughout the lifecycle,beginning with pre-conception,continuing through foetaldevelopment, childhood andadolescence, adulthood andinto old age. They also explorethe evidence linking diet to fourspecific mental illnesses –attention deficit hyperactivitydisorder, depression,schizophrenia and Alzheimer'sdisease.
The research is thenconsidered in the context of arapidly changing (in terms ofhuman evolution) food system,highlighting such issues as thenutritional quality of processedfood, the change in animal fat composition andthe decline in fruit and vegetable consumption.The reports ask the obvious question – if thereis a link between diet and mental health and therecent and continuing rise in mental healthproblems, could changes in the food system bepartly to blame?
It is vital to emphasise that the reports donot seek to suggest that poor diets are a causalfactor in all mental health problems, behaviouraldisorders or mood fluctuations. However, ourreview of the evidence does suggest thatnutrition is a highly plausible and importantcontributory factor in both the cause andtreatment of such conditions. And, although itwould be a mistake to overplay the role of food,it would clearly be a mistake to dismiss itscontribution.
Unfortunately, it is often dismissed. Anyinstinct that food might play a role in mentalwellbeing does not normally translate into anyacknowledgement of the role of diet in mentalhealth or behaviour by ‘official’ sources – be
that government departments or most heathprofessionals. For mental health patients, diet israrely, if ever, an issue in their treatment –whether that is a depressed individual seekinginitial help from their GP or a hospital inpatientreceiving treatment for schizophrenia. Parentsof children with behavioural problemsexperience this most acutely – any suggestionby them that diet may be one culprit in theirchild's poor behaviour is more often than notdismissed out of hand.
What has been perhaps the most interesting,but hardly the most surprising, outcome of thiswork has been the realisation that the varietiesof nutrients that appear to have a positive effecton brain health are the same nutrients that areknown to have benefits for physical health.These include: minerals such as zinc,magnesium and iron; vitamins such as folate, arange of B-vitamins, and anti-oxidant vitaminssuch as C and E; and the polyunsaturatedacids, particularly a good balance of theessential fatty acids.
Nutrition, mental hea
Studies have found significant correlations between whata population eats and the level of depression it suffers.However, despite reports in the popular press, there is noclinical evidence that popping fish oils or multivitaminpills will cure depression.
The controlled trials so far have mostly tested nutrientsas add-on treatments to traditional antidepressant drugs.Here the evidence is firmer – improved levels of nutrientsmay help the antidepressants work better. Furtherresearch into why this is so is necessary.
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At the same time, the nutrients or foods thatare seemingly implicated as having a negativeeffect on brain, and thus mental, health are alsothe same as those known to be poor for physicalhealth – e.g., too much saturated fat and sugar.
The obvious conclusion is that a generallyhealthy diet, the same diet necessary for ahealthy body – one high in fruits andvegetables, with a wide variety of whole grains,nuts, seeds and legumes and occasional oilyfish, lean meat and dairy products – is thesame diet necessary for a healthy mind.
Unfortunately, this is not the message thattends to come out of the press reports of newstudies or trials. Some of the more promisingstudies have been touted in the national mediaas 'proving' that, for example, fish oils (whichcontain the omega-3 fatty acid) will improve achild's reading ability or will alleviate anindividual's depression. Of course, no onestudy proves anything. Also, because trialsmust be controlled for a single, or a group, ofparticular nutrients, they are often tested inisolation. But, of course, no one eats nutrientsin isolation – they eat food.
Moreover, because it is difficult andsometimes impossible to use food in trials (dueto the requirement that the person beingstudied, and sometimes even the person doingthe study, must not know what is being tested),it is often necessary to rely on foodsupplements. This can give the misleadingimpression that simply eating food isn'tsufficient; in order to receive the benefit detailedin the trial one must purchase and consume(usually expensive) food supplements – animpression all too happily exploited by thesupplement companies. (One argument putforward is that the amount of nutrients requiredcan not be reasonably met by foodconsumption, thus requiring the nutrient in pillor capsule form.)
Of course, there is still a great deal ofresearch that needs to be done. Many issuesneed investigation, including:
� The specific nutrients necessary for goodfoetal brain growth. Apart from prescribing agenerally healthy diet, there is no realresearch into the nutrients needed during awoman's pregnancy to ensure proper braindevelopment.
� The relationship between children's dietsand academic attainment and behaviour inthe classroom. Although there is a great dealof anecdotal information, there are still largegaps in the research.
� The role of sugar in Attention DeficitHyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Studies havebeen completed which appear to exoneratesugar, but these have often been criticisedfor design flaws. For example, some trialsonly lasted one to two days and includedvery small numbers of children. Larger andlonger trials are needed.
� The impact of a better diet – as opposed toincreased supplementation – on anti-socialbehaviour.
� Why, if long-chain omega-3 fatty acids(which can only be ingested by eatinganimals) appear so important for brain andother physical health, vegetarians don'tappear to suffer higher rates of mentalillness and are generally consideredhealthier than meat eaters.
� Whether a person experiencing dementia orAlzheimer's disease could slow or halt thedecline through better diet – again, there isanecdotal evidence of this, but it hasn't beenbacked up by any formal research.
These issues represent just a selection of along list of unanswered questions about therole of diet in mental health. It is clear that agreat deal more research must be done.However, it would a mistake to discount theevidence that already exists – after all,acceptance of causal factors in diet-relatedhealth is a gradual process. It is onlysurprisingly recently that diet was recognisedas a factor in coronary heart disease, and onlythen after many years of research andcampaigning.
� Courtney Van De Weyner is the Food andMental Health Project Officer at Sustain. Sheis the author of Changing Diets, ChangingMinds: How food affects mental well beingand behaviour. Copies are available fromSustain for £10.00 (Sustain, 94 White LionStreet, London N1 9PF. Tel: 020 7837 2250)or can be downloaded free of charge fromwww.sustainweb.org/pub_down.asp
ealth and behaviour
Humans are now eating a diet which wouldbe unrecognisable to our prehistoricancestors, even though our nutritionalrequirements are much the same. We havemoved progressively away from healthywhole foods such as leafy vegetables,wholegrains, fruit and lean meat, towardsa diet rich in fats, salt and sugar and lowin essential micronutrients.
Epidemiologists have clearly linked thischange of diet with rising rates of coronaryheart disease, some cancers, and a widerange of conditions linked to obesity, suchas diabetes. However, much less research,so far, has examined what this same dietmight be doing to our minds, as well as ourbodies.
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Food Magazine 72 16 Jan/Mar 2006
that placements should not directly encourage thepurchase of the products being placed in theprogramme. Tobacco products are banned as aremedical treatments available only on prescription.
In a concession to consumers, the proposalsstate that product placement should not occur inchildren's programmes or during news ordocumentaries.
However, the RTL Group, Europe's largest TVconglomerate, wants to push the boundaries evenfurther. RTL chief executive Gerhard Zeiler stated:"We are truly disappointed. We think they havemissed an opportunity really to modernise
advertising rules in a fast-moving environmentwith new technologies and competition." RTL haslobbied loudly for greater ‘flexibility’ withcommercials, arguing that the restriction of
advertising during news broadcasts andchildren's shows might threaten funds forprogramme-making in those sectors.3
Meanwhile, in another branch of theEuropean Commission responsible forhealth, a Platform on Obesity4 (an ongoing
series of meetings between Commissionofficials, consumer groups and the foodindustry) discussed the need to limit the
marketing of unhealthy foods. While foodcompanies and the Commission were keen todevelop a programme of advertising ofhealthier food products, consumer groups
expressed strong reservations on theeffectiveness of such schemes, and were alsodeeply critical of self-regulatory methods forensuring industry compliance with advertisingcontrols.
1 International Advertising Association, Briefing fromBrussels 31, November 2005.2 International Advertising Association, Briefing fromBrussels 30, September 2005.3 Financial Times Online 2 Jan 2006; WARC 2 Jan 2006.4 For details of the European Platform on Obesity, see:http://europa.eu.int/comm/health/ph_determinants/life_style/nutrition/platform/platform_en.htm
TV ads to be hidden inprogrammes
A new report, Food Marketing to Children andYouth, was published in draft format at the endof 2005 by the Institute of Medicine, sponsoredby the prestigious US National Academy ofSciences and the US Centers for Disease Controland Prevention.
The draft document agrees that there is astrong evidence base showing the influence ofadvertising, especially TV advertising, on foodchoices of children up to age 12, with a lack ofevidence on older children; it also states thatthere is strong evidence that exposure to TVadvertising is associated with child obesity inchildren of all ages from two years upwards,although the report accepts that this does notprove causality.
Sadly, but perhaps not surprisingly under thepresent US administration, the report falls shortof calling for legislation or even a Marketing
Code, but recommendscompanies to promotemore healthfulproducts, and forgovernment to workwith companies tocreate a socialmarketing programdirected at parentsand other carers, andto generate moreschool materials forpromoting children’shealth.
� Institute of Medicine, Committee onFood Marketing and the Diets of Children andYouth, National Academies Press, Washington,2006. ISBN 0-309-10089-5. www.nap.edu
TV advertising and child obesity
A nyone noticing the odd reference to foodproducts during TV shows have not seenanything yet. Under new proposals from
the EU such covert advertising, known as 'productplacement', is set to boom.
The European Commission has completed itsdrafting of the new regulations to replace theTelevision Without Frontiers directive. Accordingto the industry itself, 'the proposed text is, to agreat extent, in line with the views defended bythe advertising industry'.1 In particular itauthorises the use of product placement acrossthe EU. It also assumes the continued role ofself-regulation whereby the industry sets itsown rules and promises itself that it willabide by them.
The draft Directive maintains the country-of-origin rules, whereby only one Member State– the one where the head office of thebroadcaster is established – has jurisdictionover a media service provider. Thus Swedencannot prevent advertising to children beingbeamed in from British satellites run by UK (or US)companies, even though such advertising isbanned in the local media.
The draft claims that self-regulation can 'playan important role in delivering a high level ofconsumer protection in all audiovisual mediaservice' and extends the meaning of such servicesto include any audiovisual material deliveredthrough any media, including internet broadbandand third-generation mobile phones. MediaCommissioner Viviane Reding said that 'effectiveself-regulation is a necessary complement tolegislative rules', and the pursuance of publicpolicy objectives 'must be achieved byencouraging the industry to act responsibly'. Sheeven pointed out that the increasing sense ofresponsibility of the industry could eventually leadto deregulation in the field of advertising.2
Further proposals include the abolition on thecurrent daily limits for advertising and tele-shopping, but limits hourly advertising levels to anaverage of 12 minutes. Films can be interruptedwith ad breaks every 40 minutes and children'sprogrammes and news every 20 minutes. Thedraft also proposes to limit the introduction oflucrative ‘isolated spot commercials’ to sportsfixtures only – for example, screening these onlyduring natural breaks such the taking of a cornerkick.
Product placement is likely to be a majorsticking point with consumer groups. Theproposals state that programme sponsors mustbe identified at the start of the programme, and
"Self-regulation is what's made this company great!"
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only that, thesepills can apparently'make hangovers athing of the past','protect and regenerateyour liver', 'detox yourbody' and 'boost your immune system', 'benefitthe cardio-vascular system' and 'help withdigestive problems'.
Astonishingly, Alcohol Killer is also (westress: according to the manufacturer) 'ideal totake with medication' and 'can be enjoyed byanyone over three years of age, includingpregnant women and diabetics'. Pregnantwomen?! Three-year-olds?!! Why would theyneed to be encouraged to consume a productexplicitly promoted as supplement to mitigate theeffects of alcohol, and called Alcohol Killer?
Once again, the manufacturer looks toEastern Europe for verification of its dubiousclaims: not the KGB this time, but asmall study taking place over two
days inSlovakia, measuring the decrease in alcohol inthe blood over a period of one hour. The AlcoholKiller website shows that one of the subjectswas given 12 cans of beer. We were relieved tofind a small 'Warning and Moral Stance' page onthe same website that urges readers toremember that 'Alcohol Killer is not a licence todrink and drive'.
However, we are also very concerned thatsuch a caveat takes up such a minor part of thesite when other prominent claims include: 'If youdrink Alcohol Killer when you're drunk you'll soonstart to sober up. You'll feel more aware and
more in control of your thoughts and actions.'
Companies promise miraculoushangover cures
Professional chefs know only toowell that customers often put tastebefore health when orderingdishes in restaurants. Salt, sugarand fats are used in copiousquantities to ensure that dinersget their taste buds well and trulytickled. But what should wemake of this Snickers-basedrecipe from the ubiquitousrestaurateur and chef AntonyWorrall Thompson, publishedonline at the BBC's website?
We've calculated that asingle slice of this calorificpudding will provide over1,250 calories from sugarand fat alone – a servingequivalent to around 22teaspoons of fat and 11teaspoons of sugar. Welove a decent dessert asmuch as anyone, butsurely this has to be one ofthe most unhealthy recipes ever published?!
Snickers pie
Can you find a less healthy dessert recipepublished in recent years? If you can, send it into The Editor, The Food Magazine, 94 White LionStreet, London N1 9PF.
The senders of the ‘worst’ five recipes receivedwill receive a free copy of Eric Schlosser'sexcellent Fast Food Nation – the bestsellingexpose of the fast food industry.
Method1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400/Gas 6.2. Roll pastry to 3-4mm thick and use to line a20cm/8in fluted tart tin.3. Beat the mascarpone, soft cheese and sugar togetherin a large bowl, until smooth.4. Beat in eggs, one at a time.5. Add the Snickers bars and fold in.6. Pour into a lined tart tin, and spread to the edges.7. Place in the oven for 10 minutes, then lower to180C/3500F/Gas 4 for a further 25 minutes untilgolden and set. Allow to cool before serving.
W hat wonderfully alarmingreassurance will greet you if you buya pack of non-prescription RU-21
pills. It is billed as 'a safe and effective dietarysupplement for consumers of alcohol'. Itcontains 'no wheat, yeast, binders, preservatives,granulators or disintegrators'. Disintegrators?They certainly sound like something to beavoided! We were sent this product by a readerfrom Worcester, who bought the product in abranch of the high-street pharmacy Boots (seeLetters, FM71), and decided to dig a little deeper.
The label may claim that this product (acocktail of additives and sugar: Monosodiumglutamate, Succinic acid, Fumaric acid, VitaminC and Glucose (Dextrose)) is 'effective', butnowhere on the pack does the company explainthe supposed benefits of consuming the pills.
It emerges that products such as RU-21 andthe most popular brand, Russia Party, wereallegedly launched after research conducted bythe Russian Academy of Sciences, ordered bythe KGB (so the Russia Party website claims).The website of the UK distributor of Russia Party,called Amber Health, says that: 'The FSB (thenew Russian security agency) say that hadnothing to do with it. But then, they are spies,and spies do tend to say they had nothing to dowith anything. More authoritatively, ProfessorMaevsky who was central to the research saystalk of the KGB involvement is a fairy story.'
We sniffed more than a hint of Cinderella'sfairy godmother about this one, and took a lookat the website published by the Americanmanufacturer of RU-21, Spirit Sciences. Amidsta host of health-related claims for the product,stating that consumption of the pills can reducethe effects of hangovers, comes the followingstatement: 'To enhance any health benefits ofmoderate alcohol consumption, many peoplechoose to take RU-21 so they can enjoy thepositive benefits of alcohol consumption whileprotecting their bodies from any toxic effects.'
The makers of a product called Alcohol Killerare even more forthright with their claims,describing their pills as 'a refreshing new energydrink with the amazing property of reducing theharmful effects of alcohol on your body'. Not
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�Milupa ruled ‘not healthier’than meatIn November, a complaint was upheld
against Milupa, which manufactures formulamilk under the brand name Aptamil. Theobjection was against a poster for formula milkthat featured two children's highchairs with fittedtrays displaying food. One had two rump steakswith the caption 'Two steaks will help give yourtoddler their daily iron.' The other highchair had abottle of Aptamil formula milk with the caption'Our milk is another way to support their physicaldevelopment'. More text stated: 'Milupa AptamilGrowing Up Milk. Giving your toddler a headstart,' and 'There are many sources of iron.Milupa Aptamil Growing Up Milk is designed tobe part of a toddler's diet.'
The complainant, a doctor, said they believedthe main reason for iron deficiency in childrenunder five years old was over-reliance on milkand insufficient solid food. They said thatencouraging parents to give children formulamilk instead of food was therefore bothmisleading and irresponsible. The Advertising
StandardsAuthority (ASA)agreed with thedoctor and saidthat by featuring
rump steaks in the advert,Milupa had implied that Aptamilwas a replacement for food(rather than just a replacementfor cow's milk) and could
'irresponsibly discourage appropriate weaningonto iron-rich food'. The Authority ruled thatMilupa had breached advertising codes ofpractice on social responsibility and truthfulness.They asked Milupa to ensure that in future, thecompany will make clear that Aptamil wassimply a suggested replacement for cow's milk,not for solid food.
�ASA offers prize for sellingsoft drinks We were also intrigued to read this month
that the ASA has launched an award scheme 'forstudents able to demonstrate a keenunderstanding of its work'.
GCSE-level students and higher-educationstudents can compete for awards of £150 forsupplying a critique of ASA adjudications wherecomplaints had been raised 'that ads presentedharmful or socially irresponsible messages tochildren'.
However, if they don't feel like working on aworthy project to serve the public good, then afar less public-spirited option is also available.Students can also enter for the prizes by'creating a multimedia advertising campaign fora soft drink targeted at young people'.
Recommended reading for this projectincludes links from the ASA's award webpagethat encourage young applicants to consider:branding; budgets; targeting customers insupermarkets; local, national and internationaladvertising; use of websites; PR; exhibitions;investigating media circulation figures, paying for
advertising
Food Magazine 72 18 Jan/Mar 2006
Legal, decent,honest and true?The activities of the advertising industry raise many important questionsfor nutrition and health. Here we report on activities and rulings of theAdvertising Standards Authority (ASA) in recent months.
�Pride Oils plc were censured by theASA for a series of televisionadvertisements for vegetable and
sunflower oils. In one, a graphic of an oilyheart made of oil appeared with the text 'Nocholesterol', and a voiceover said 'PrideVegetable Oils celebrating healthy days.'Another ad showed members of a familyrunning, skipping and working out on a stepmachine. The voiceover said 'Pride SunflowerOil gives you cholesterol free health, addsexotic taste to every delicacy and makes youfeel light.'
Oily treatment for health claims
The ASA considered that the claimsimplied that Pride Oils' vegetable andsunflower oils had health benefits. Because nosubstantiation was submitted in support of theclaims, it concluded that the ads were inbreach of advertising codes on evidence andaccuracy, and were therefore misleading. TheASA also reminded the two TV channels thathad broadcast the advertisements that 'It is theresponsibility of the broadcasters themselvesto ensure the advertising they transmitcomplies with both the spirit and the letter ofthe Code.’
editorial space so that magazine articles willfocus just on your brand in a positive light;targeting different age groups; and getting valuefor money.
Is there any mention of special considerationswhen promoting soft drinks to children? Ofcourse not. And is there any mention ofnutrition? Don't be silly. After all, the ASA has noremit to ensure that positive nutritional messagesare supported in advertising; their main focus isto ensure that rogue advertisers don't muck upindustry's chance of maintaining a free and self-regulated market for advertising, includingadvertising unhealthy foods to children.
Why not take part in the award yourself? Ifyou're in higher education, entries should bebetween 500 and 1,000 words, with adeadline of 1st February 2006. Write to:Debra Quantrill, ASA, Mid City Place, 71High Holborn, London WC1V 6QT; email:[email protected]. For details, see thewebsite: www.asa.org.uk
�Are Coco Pops healthy?Whilst the complaint was not upheld,we also report on an amusing spat
between Kellogg's, the ASA and the NationalConsumer Council. Many food manufacturers(notably McDonald's and Kellogg's) haverecently sought to mitigate criticisms of theirsugary and fatty products by producingadvertisements that also promote the 'physicalexercise' message to children.
A recent TV ad for Kellogg's Coco PopsCoco Rocks, for example, featured cartoonjungle animals whose game of football wasinterrupted by falling chocolate meteors: 'Achocolatey surprise for me and you!' On-screen text said 'Run around, have fun and eata balanced diet'. The National ConsumerCouncil objected to the advertisement, sayingthat they believed the text 'Run around, havefun and eat a balanced diet' gave a misleadingimpression of the nutritional benefits of thecereal.
Kellogg's pointed out that the on-screentext appeared at the same time as the cartooncharacters were pictured sitting down to abreakfast of fresh fruit, fruit juice and whole-meal breads. Kellogg’s clearly recognises thatgood nutrition comes from good food thatdoesn’t need to be laced with sugar.
It's amazing what twists and turns somefood companies feel theyhave to make tocontinue to sell their'treat' sugary foodsrather than bite thebullet and makegenuinely healthierproducts instead!
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A colourful mysteryWhat a shame we can't show you thisproduct in gloriousTechnicolor. This chickpeacandy, a Turkish specialitysold in north London, isthe most amazing shade ofbright green. The product isalso available in what canonly be described as day-glo pink.
The source of such amazingvibrant colours? We can'ttell you. The ingredients list
shows only chickpeas, flour, sugar andsalt. This labelling is not veryhelpful for people who want toavoid colouring additives, and isprobably illegal, unless themanufacturer Memo has foundsome magical way of turningflour bright green (or pink).
If you would like to see a coloursnapshot of the green varietysignup for our email newsletterat www.foodcomm.org.uk
Flavourings conjure up‘Mediterranean Magic’M arketing from the ingredients
company Belmay opens with a poeticand inspiring flourish, reminding us of
the rich and diverse benefits of good food andthe Mediterranean diet: ‘It is now widelyaccepted that the Mediterranean cuisine isarguably the most health enriching in the world.Greek cuisine, for example, has four secrets:fresh, local ingredients, judicious use of herbsand spices, olive oil and basic goodness andsimplicity. In addition, the rich diversity of locallyavailable ingredients has made Italian recipesfamous like no other in the world and the
However,whilst the glossybrochure inwhich this textappears is repletewith pictures of‘naturalness andwellbeing’, in theform ofMediterraneanfruits. Belmay
does not in fact promote any of the foods oringredients that it so praises. Indeed no, forBelmay is a flavourings manufacturer. It proudlyboasts that it has 'embraced these diversities ofculture, colour and cuisine to create a trulymemorable portfolio of Mediterranean styleflavours. Tastes that cater for today's consumerswho want to capture the essence of this regionand feel healthier and happier.' In this bit ofpuffery, 'feel' is probably the operative word.
The Food Commission has long argued thatadditives can undermine good nutrition. They areused to replace real nutritious ingredients, or toenhance foods with low levels of suchingredients, and can fool the senses into believingthat we are eating better food than we really are.They can also be used to give cosmetic appeal tounhealthy ingredients. Our calculations in 2001(FM55) showed that 'in more than 70% of cases
Badvert
Flavourings aren’t just used in food anddrink. This US advert (above) shows KoolSmooth Fusion cigarettes – flavoured to be‘inviting and surprising’ and promising to‘entice you with its sweet indulgence’.
the foods that use additives are the foods thatencourage poor diets'.
The market for flavourings is highly profitable.Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation,reports that in America alone, the flavouringsindustry is worth $1.4 billion. The concentrationof flavourings in a food can be as low as 0.2parts per billion and still have a significant effecton the taste of the product. As Schlossercomments, 'The flavour of a processed foodoften costs less than its packaging.'
Anecdotally, we hear stories of foodproducers approached by additive manufacturerssaying that ingredients costs can be cut if onlythe food producer would consider skimping onreal ingredients and adding a few chemical onesinstead. We generally hear about this practicefrom organic food producers who are outragedby the implication that they might deliberatelydenude the nutritional quality of the food.
However, Belmay's brochure encourages lessscrupulous manufacturers to use flavourings toconjure up the impression of healthy fruitingredients. Belmay describes pomegranate, forexample as an 'increasingly popular fruit with itsorigins in Persia which has been cultivatedaround the Mediterranean for centuries. Theedible pulp and seeds are an excellent source ofvitamin C and have a wonderful tangy taste'.Belmay's suggestion? Use the company'sPerfect Pomegranate flavouring to create an'authentic' Mediterranean taste.
With flavourings used explicitly as one of thetools in a broad marketing portfolio, it is especially
concerning to learn of the growing market in theUS for flavoured cigarettes. A 2005 report fromthe American Lung Association states that 'Nowthat the use of cartoon characters to sellcigarettes has been prohibited, major tobaccocompanies have devised a new way to target ourchildren: selling cigarettes and tobacco productsin assorted candy flavours.' The medicalorganisation reports that the cigarettemanufacturer R. J. Reynolds launched a pineappleand coconut-flavoured cigarette called 'KauaiKolada' in 2004 and has an line of flavouredcigarettes called Camel Exotic Blends.
Manufacturer Brown & Williamson alsointroduced flavoured versions of its Kool mentholcigarette in 2004 with names like 'CaribbeanChill' and 'Mintrigue', with imagery of rap singersand dancers that make them particularlyappealing to the youth market.
The statistics speak for themselves. When across-section of people were asked if they hadtried flavoured cigarettes in the past month,nearly 40% of those who said yes were in the 17to 19 age group. For an industry that loses438,000 customers in the US each year to deathfrom tobacco-related illness, tobacco companiesmust constantly seek new markets. It appearsthat flavourings are the latest in its arsenal ofmarketing techniques.
At first glance aglossy sales brochure for Belmany’s‘Mediterranean Magic’ range of flavouringslooks more like an exotic holiday brochure.
Food Magazine 72 19 Jan/Mar 2006
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Vegetable cleaningreduces nutrientsEvidence has emerged that the processes usedin disinfecting vegetables from bacterialcontamination may also reduce the nutritionalvalue of the products. Four disinfectiontechnologies were studied, using eitherhydrogen peroxide, free chlorine, gaseousozone or liquid ozone.
Results indicated that these commonly-usedtechnologies may result in significant loss ofbeneficial biothiols (a range of activecompounds including amino acids andenzymes, some of which have anti-oxidant andanti-free radical functions) in vegetables.
For example, 48-54% of biothiols weredestroyed by free chlorine and gaseous andliquid ozone under typical conditions. As muchas 70% of biothiols were lost when spinachwas treated with hydrogen peroxide. In redpepper, up to 71% of the biothiol glutathionewas oxidised by the disinfectants.
The authors call for better methods forreducing bacterial contamination whileminimising loss of the beneficial biothiols.
Oiang Z et al. J Agric Food Chem. 2005 Dec14;53(25):9830-40.
Low birth weightincreases taste for saltBirth weight and salt intake are both risk factorsfor raised blood pressure. A new study in theUS suggests that a low birth weight is
associated with a preference for salty foods,and this continues through infancy.
Using different strengths of salty water atage two months, measuring acceptability andquantity consumed showed a greater saltpreference among the lower birth weightbabies. The differences were less marked atage six months, but at age three and four years,using food preference choices, the taste forsalty food returned among the same children.
It is possible that the link between low birthweight and subsequent health outcomes maybe through the family’s dietary choices andpreferences, the authors suggest.
Stein LJ et al. Eur J Clin Nutr.(e) 2005 Nov 23.
Kids’ cookbooks needrevisingA study of cookbooks aimed at children overthe last 150 years has suggested that they havenot kept pace with modern understanding ofnutrition and health.
Over that period, the science of nutrition hasgrown from a focus on nitrogen as a precursorto protein, to one on multiple nutrients and theirinterrelationships. Foods in the market havediversified in number and form, and so haveadult books on food and cookery, but childrenhave not been so well served.
The author argues that, with children's earlyfood choices influencing both their growth andhealth, factors impacting their food choicesneed to receive more attention.
Hertzler AA. Nutr Rev. 2005 Oct;63(10):347-51.
Food poverty linked topsychological factorsHousehold food insecurity is likely to behighest among families with a low income, buta new survey in the US, focusing onhouseholds with pregnant women, hasrevealed additional risk factors associated withnot having enough to eat.
The number of days without enough food,or days when it was necessary to borrowmoney to get food, were linked to a mother-to-be's lower income status, lower educationstatus and non-white ethnic status, as hasbeen shown in other studies.
After controlling for these factors, themeasures of food insecurity were linked toindicators of perceived stress, trait anxiety,depressive symptoms, and to a ‘locus ofcontrol attributed to chance’ (i.e. feelings thatcircumstances were determined by externalfactors rather than by choices).
Whilst the authors note that the direction ofcausality was not determined in this study, itclearly raises questions about emotional statusand food security.
Laraia BA et al J Nutr. 2006 Jan;136(1):177-82.
science
Food Magazine 72 20 Jan/Mar 2006
What the doctor readsThe latest research from the medical journals
TV ads push sugaryfoodsA study by a team of dentists of the contentof advertising during children's TV in the UKhas found that the large majority of foodadvertisements are for products thatencourage unhealthy diets.
On average, 24 adverts were shown perbroadcast hour, which accounted for 16% ofthe total schedule time. Of these, 35% relatedto food or drink products, of which the largemajority (over 95%) promoted products thatwere deemed potentially damaging to teeth.
The most frequently promoted food ordrink products included breakfast cerealswith added sugar (26%), confectionery(24%) and non-carbonated soft drinks (18%).
The authors state their concern that,despite the industry codes of practice, somany products that can damage dental healthare being promoted directly to children.
Rodd HD, Patel V. Br Dent J. 2005 Dec10;199:710-2.
Antibiotic resistance has become asignificant threat to animal and humanhealth, especially as resistance can betransferred between bacteria, and antibiotic-resistant pathogens may not respond toantibiotic treatments.
In an effort to find out more about thespread of such bacteria, shellfish (shrimp)imported from four different countries oforigin and on sale in US grocery stores wereanalysed for resistance to ten differentcommon antibiotics.
Of 1,500 bacterial colonies found,consisting of 162 different species, 42% hadacquired resistance to one or more
antibiotics. Most of the bacterial species hadone or more colony that was resistant toantibiotics, and these included many that aredangerous to human health: E coli,Enterococcus., Salmonella, Shigella flexneri,Staphylococcus and Vibrio.
The food products were described asready-to-eat and sold with instructions onlyto thaw the product before serving, which,the researchers note, may result in consumerexposure to antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Duran GM, Marshall DL. J Food Prot. 2005Nov;68(11):2395-401.
When Sanjida O'Connell describes herself as‘wedded to a sugar family’ she means it. Severalof her relatives worked for the UK's largest sugarmanufacturer, Tate & Lyle, and this enabled heraccess to both the company's library and key
members of staff. Whilstsuch resources havedoubtlessly enriched thispublication, O'Connell hasthankfully maintained ahealthy independence anddoes not hesitate toexplore the links betweensugar and disease.
There have alreadybeen numerous booksand reports written aboutsugar (many of which
are listed in the bibliography) butthis is a useful anthology and a good introductionto sugar from a UK perspective, being both easyto read and rich in information. One interesting
fact is that early 19th Century sugar beet farmers,when faced with an onslaught of cheap sugarfrom the Colonies, promoted their sugar as 'slave-free' – an early, if self-serving, example of ethicaltrade.
O'Connell covers almost every aspect of sugarproduction, explaining the cultivation of beet andcane; international trade; the crop’s role in thedevelopment of the slave trade; political lobbyingand subsidies; sugar surpluses and sugardumping; the marketing of sugar and the whitestuff's effect on both the environment and our ownhealth. All in all this is a well-rounded andrecommended read.
The Whole HogExploring the extraordinary potential of pigsLyall Watson. Profile Bookswww.profilebooks.com £8.99
Recently published in paperback this is anengaging and comprehensive survey of pigswhich fully refutes their ill-deserved reputation as'dirty swine'. The author Lyall Watson brings anaffectionate eye to his subject, examining theimportance of the pig thoughout human historyand proposing that the pig may even have beenthe earliest domesticated animal.
This fascinating book focuses not just on thefamiliar, domesticated pig but on its feral cousins– such as the Forest Hogs, the White-lippedPecaries and the Sulawesi Warty Pigs – animals
that continue tothrive wherever thejungle is too thick,or the land too arid,for humaninterference to haveseriously affectedtheir numbers.
Pigs are innatelyintelligent andcurious creatures,which (if given the opportunity) take an activeinterest in their environment. Watson explains theircomplex yet amiable social orders, and paints avivid picture of each species in its nativeenvironment. When it comes to the the domesticpig, Watson catalogues its numerous varieties andheritage. He examines the pig's importance as afood source throughout human history, its culturalsignificance, and more recently the role of the pigin modern biomedical research. Attempts haveeven been made to train pigs for use in militaryroles such as tracking and mine detection, but itseems they make poor soldiers, being too easilydistracted and insubordinate to be of any real use.
This is a thoroughly refreshing, enjoyable andoriginal work that deserves a wide readership.Over 10,000 years have elapsed since ourancestors first decided that these widespread,intelligent and (let’s admit it) tasty creatures wereworth domesticating. It's about time weunderstood a little bit more about them.
books
Food Magazine 72 21 Jan/Mar 2006
How IBFAN Monitors the Baby Food Market
A Allain, Development Dialogue, DagHammarskjold Foundation, 2005. For copies,email [email protected] or fax +60-4-8907291.
Not since the ground-breaking book Rules forRadicals documented strategies for guerrillawarfare against arrogant corporations have wecome across a book so clear and valuable in itsguidance to modern campaigners for health andjustice.
Based on the 25-year history of the struggleto prevent abuse of children's nutrition throughthe promotion of breastmilk substitutes, thebook documents the tactics and targets used byboth the defenders of children's rights and thecorporations intent on promoting theirmanufactured products.
The problems of modern food supplies arenicely encapsulated in that struggle. The need toprotect traditional, healthy practices fromexternal commercial contamination, the need topromote local, sustainable food supplies fromhungry corporations intent on opening markets,the need to put nutrition ahead of profit, are all
reflected perfectly in the battle for the control ofinfant feeding.
Allain documents the steps taken to have acode of marketing accepted, first by the WorldHealth Organization and then by nationalgovernments, against the fierce and well-fundedlobbying by the baby milk companies. Sheshows the need to keep commercialorganisations at arm’s length at all stages – nomatter how much they may bleat about'partnerships' and 'mutual interests' – and shehas a particularly ferocious view on the use ofthe term 'civil society' for removing thedistinction between business and publicinterests.
These themes are developed in the analysisof BINGOs – Business Interest Non-Governmental Organisation – which havesprung up to join PINGOs (Public InterestNGOs) in lobbying for the attention of policy-makers, and which do their best to underminepublic health advocacy.
Above all, the book provides the clearestlesson that needs to be carried forward in thepresent climate: voluntary codes and self-regulation by industry do not work. The Code ofMarketing of Breastmilk Substitutes is 25 yearsold in May 2006, and the latest list of Code
violators includes mostof the majorcompanies marketingbaby milks worldwide.
Even nationalregulation does notwork if it is notvigorously enforced.And enforcementrequires monitoring:something thatPINGOs, andespecially IBFAN –the InternationalBaby Food Action Network – have been doingcourageously and enthusiastically for the lastquarter-century.
Regulations and their enforcement are not'nannyist' and should not be watered down orremoved: laws and regulations are an essentialpublic asset, they are protective of the weak andprovide justice and defend rights. The Code ofMarketing protecting newborn infants' nutritionis a classic case in point. As a Deputy Directorof UNICEF states: companies that break theCode of Marketing should not be regarded as'clever entrepreneurs doing their job' but as'human rights violators of the worst kind'.
Fighting an Old Battle in a New World
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Not good for infants!I'm appalled by the marketing for thesebiscuits for infants, and enclose thepackaging. I can assure you that I did not feedthe biscuits to my baby. They're labelled as 'atasty introduction to healthy eating', but Icannot agree. They're also described as an'energy rich' infant food. No wonder! Thesecond, third and fourth ingredients are alldifferent types of sugar, making the biscuits25% sugar in total. Yet they have the cheek tosay that the biscuits are 'nutritionallyformulated', and suggest that parents sendpacks of these biscuits with their child tocrèche or play-school.
The label even suggests that parents 'offerLiga Original straight from the packet as anutritious between-meal snack'. I bought thesein Belfast. I don't know if these products areavailable on the mainland, as they are made inDublin. But no wonder Northern Ireland's pre-school children have some of the worst teethproblems in Britain, if this is the sort of adviceparents are receiving!
Lynn Reece, nutritionist, Belfast
Eds: The state of young children's teeth inNorthern Ireland has been of concern formany years. In 2001, the Boost Better Breaksinitiative worked with 80% of primary schoolsand pre-school groups in Northern Ireland, inpartnership with dietitians, health promotionofficers, teachers and school meal advisors,to ensure that only milk and fruit were offeredat breaktimes. But this kind of initiative needsto be maintained and supported withconsistent messages.
This manufacturer, Liga foods, contradictsthe useful work of schools and playgroupswith its own version of health advice toparents. We have written to Liga Foods tocomplain.
Well done, National TrustSome time ago, I contacted you regarding thelack of suitable juice drinks for small childrenat National Trust properties – I mentionedAnglesey Abbey and the Giant's Causeway.Apart from expensive bottled juices (quitelarge), the only cartons were of Ribena.Lobbying locally at the Abbey didn't help so Isent copies of your Food Magazineinformation to Head Office.
Imagine my delight when this week noRibena was being stocked, but small cartonsof Fairtrade juice! Keep up the good work!
Mrs Paddy James, Bottisham,Cambridgeshire
US aims for nine a dayOver Christmas, I visited family in America,where I saw promotions for the 'Eat 5 to 9 aDay' programme. They say men should aim toeat nine portions of fruit and vegetables a day,and women seven portions. The promotionsare brightly coloured and positive, and full ofpictures of fruit and veg – all very attractive.
When I came back to Britain, what did I seebut a dreary black and white Department ofHealth logo on a juice carton?
Why can't we get it right? Young peoplewill never pick up this message unless it'sreally attractive!
Laura Stein, West London
Eds: We agree that the UK’s '5 a day' logo israther dull. The US version, shown below, ismuch better – it is bright, cheerful andattractive. Word has it that our national '5 aday' logo suffered death by consultation.Makers of canned and frozen products arguedthat pictures of fresh fruit and veg unfairly leftthem out. So we ended upwith five dull squares.
Nestlé respondsThe launch of Nescafe Partners' Blend is Nestlé'slatest initiative is a long-term commitment(spanning 30 years) to develop sustainableagricultural practices in order to help alleviatehardship and poverty among small coffeefarmers. It's a shame that a small minority ofcampaigners, who claim to want positivechange, are not able to recognise the progressthis represents and the fact that the product willmake a genuine improvement to the livelihoodsof 3,500 of some of the smallest farmers in ElSalvador and Ethiopia. The fact that the producthas received independent Fairtrade certificationis testament to this. Turning to the allegationswithin your article, Nestlé was equally shockedwhen it heard of the murders of a former Nestlé-Cirolac employee in Columbia and a formerNestlé employee in the Philippines. These acts ofviolence are unfortunately not isolated incidents.We are concerned to preserve the safety of ouremployees and are co-operating fully with theauthorities to preserve this. We categoricallyreject accusations that the company is involvedin violence against its own workers. As regardsthe US lawsuit, we believe this to be withoutmerit and will vigorously defend ourselvesagainst the accusations.
Hilary Parsons, Head of CorporateAffairs, Nestlé UK Ltd.
Eds: Let’s hope that Nestlé, as one of theleading coffee buyers, will now make further‘postitive change’ to the 25 million other coffeeproducers around the world, most of whom aresmall farmers desperately in need of a fair pricefor their produce. And let’s hope it doesn’t takeanother 30 years.
Dairy disgruntlementAs a dairy farmer, you make me out to be somekind of factory farmer continually pushing theircows to the absolute limit. Modern dairy farmerswould actually hope that the averageHolstein/Friesian cow would give about 8,000litres of milk per lactation throughout her lifetime.This may be twice (or more) as much as in the1950s, but this is because we don't milkShorthorn cattle commercially any more as theygive a significantly lower yield than today's blackand white cows. As for a farmer having a sharpeye for a cow that's past her best, you can't haveit both ways. Either pay more for your produceas a consumer or accept that farmers have tomake hard decisions. When only being paid17p/litre, we can't afford to run a retirementhome for our cows, much as we would like to.
Do you not think that this is always the waymilk has been produced? We aren't doing things
feedback
We welcomeletters from all ofour readers but
we do sometimeshave to shorten them so that we can include as manyas possible (our apologies to the authors). You canwrite to The Editor, The Food Magazine, 94 White LionStreet, London N1 9PF or email [email protected]
letters from our readers
Food Magazine 72 22 Jan/Mar 2006
The UK logo (right) andthe US equivalent(below)
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marketplace
any differently to pre-war practices regardinggetting cows pregnant again after calving. Theonly real difference is that a bull would have runwith the cows and caught them in their first 21day cycle in the 1940s, whereas today weartificially inseminate.
Talking about infants being especiallyvulnerable is just scaremongering. No doubt youare well aware that the benefits of dairyconsumption in the under 5s far outweigh theminuscule worries you describe in the article.Young children need milk to grow bodies that arestrong and healthy and any gullible parentreading this article could well conclude that non-dairy products would be more suitable andtherefore leave their child open to a whole hostof skeletal problems later in life.
Mrs Sarah Weatherald, 'Disgruntled DairyFarmer', Leyburn, North Yorkshire
Note: We also received a letter and commentaryon scientific evidence from the Dairy Council.
I do object to having to pay more for healthierfood – sometimes significantly more. Why dofood companies do it? I live on my own and buysmall portions of vegetables in cans. This helpsme make sure I have vegetables in, as I can'talways get out to shop for fresh. I prefer to buythose without added salt, as it is not a necessaryaddition and I have problems with blood pressure.Green Giant sweetcorn is one of the brands I get –I was pleased to see that it comes in a specialvalue pack; three small cans for £1.23. So why isit that I can't buy three small cans of the salt-freevariety? If I choose the healthier kind, there is novalue pack on offer, I have to buy three separatecans, and it costs £1.41. This may not seem likemuch, but on a pension it all adds up.
Mrs J Callenbrook, Teignmouth, Devon
Eds: The extra cost isn't the only thing that addsup. Each discounted can of sweetcorn containsaround 0.6g of sodium, equivalent to 1.5g of salt,whereas the more expensive 'no added salt'variety contains only a trace.
We checked in several supermarkets andfound the less healthy variety routinelydiscounted. We did not find any special offers forthe 'no added salt' variety. The Food Commissionhas written to Green Giant, asking them why theypromote salty food in this way, especially whenthey also promote the salty variety as part of the'five a day' message. We have also asked them toconsider offering discounted packs of thehealthier product.
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The Food Commission’s work is dependenton subscriptions, donations and the occasionalcharitable grant. We do not accept grants oradvertising from the food industry and we areindependent of the government. Your supportreally can make a difference.
Back issues We can supply back issues(if available) for £3.50 each (£4.50 overseas)and a complete set of back issues from issue50-71 for £30.00 (contains 3-4 photocopiedissues, £40.00 to overseas).
Posters Packed with essential informationto help you and your family eat healthy, safe foodthese colour posters give useful tips on gettingchildren to eat a healthy diet; explain how tounderstand nutrition labelling; help you see
through deceptive packaging andmarketing claims, and examinethe contentious issue of foodadditives. Each poster is A2 insize and costs £2.50.
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Food Magazine 72 23 Jan/Mar 2006
Why the extra pennies?
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backbites
Food Magazine 72 24 Jan/Mar 2006
Irradiated toastMagnetic Design, a Cambridge-based company,has come up with a novel way to stop toastburning. They've taken the radioactive sensor outof a smoke detector and placed it in a toaster.
Inside the sensor a small electrical current flowsthrough an airborne path of ions, emitted by a pelletof radioactive americium-241. The ions attachthemselves to the carbon particles produced as thetoast browns and reduce the strength of theelectrical current, allowing the sensor to detectwhen your toast is browned to perfection.
The Department of Trade and Industry hasgiven the go ahead for the toaster as it complieswith Defra guidance on the use of ionisingradiation in 'smoke and fire detectors and othersafety instruments'. However, as the toaster is anovel product it must still pass risk assessmentand prototype testing before beingallowed onto the market.
Living withHydrogenatedFat
How lovely that Boots should produce a box ofpills entitled 'Living with Pollution'. From a quickpoll around the office, it seems people mightprefer 'Living without Pollution' and 'Livingwithout paying for pills to alleviate the symptomsof Environmental Destruction'. However, we thinkthat Boots may mean their product title quiteliterally. The tenth ingredient in a list of thirtyingredients for this product is hydrogenated fat –a dietary pollutant in its own right. There is morehydrogenated fat in this product than many ofthe beneficial nutrients that Boots claims will'help protect you from free radicals'.
As health workers in Africa know well, HIV-positive women can transmit the disease totheir infants during pregnancy, during birth andduring breastfeeding – with breastmilkresponsible for about a quarter of mother-to-infant transmissions.
Wary that the benefits of breastfeedingcould be undermined, UNICEF advises healthprofessionals to recommend replacementfeeding only when mothers are confirmed HIVpositive and when artificial feeding isaffordable, feasible, acceptable, sustainable,and safe – and that otherwise breastmilk is thepreferred option. It adds that the Code ofMarketing of Breastmilk Substitutes should bestrictly adhered to.
Why, then, does MP Tom Levitt,Parliamentary Private Secretary to Hilary Benn,the Secretary of State for InternationalDevelopment, write in his local GlossopAdvertiser that 'with the present situation withAIDS there are now more mothers who cannot
breastfeed… there is more of a need forpowdered milk' and add, for good measure,'Nestlé's bad reputation was gained 30 yearsago and is no longer justified'.
This casual attitude to the facts surely hasno relation to Nestlé being a major employer inLevitt's constituency – through its Buxton Waterbrand?
And has nothing to do with Levitt's freeticket to Wimbledon last summer, courtesy ofNestlé?
Meanwhile, Nestlé paid for a week's jollyjaunt to South Africa for Tory MPs AnneMcIntosh and Julie Kirkbride, and Labour MPsNick Brown, Doug Henderson and governmentwhip Frank Roy, at a time when parliament wassitting. Well, it was winter here and a pleasant70oF in Cape Town…
* Programme Recommendations for the PreventionOf Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV, Rutenberg etal, UNICEF, 2003.
Regular readers may remember our feature ontoys and books aimed at children, incorporatingimagery from branded food products into thegames and stories. In one offer, families couldsave up tokens from Nestlé Milkybars. With fourtokens, you could receive a picture book called'Milkybar Kid to the Rescue', with your child'sname inserted as a hero in the story. We couldn'tresist.
We had four tokens at the ready – but who tochoose as our storybook hero? Well, none otherthan our admired friend Patti Rundall, who runsthe Nestlé boycott in the UK. Patti is now theproud recipient of a children’s story featuringboth herself and a hell of a lot of milkybars.
Meanwhile we will take a leaf out ofNestlé's book (if you'll pardon the pun) anduse the Food Magazine for another littlemessage. Are you sitting comfortably, children?
Patti Rundall's website says: 'Nestlé is thetarget of a boycott in 20 countries because itaggressively markets baby foods, breaking
World Health Assembly marketing requirementsand contributing to the death and suffering ofinfants around the world.'Now, isn't that aneducational read!
Nestlé fills MPs’ troughs
The Milkybars are on us!
As if cartoon characters on food packagingweren't enough to tempt toddlers intonagging for unhealthy food, animatedpackaging is the latest idea from productdesigners at the electronics companySiemens. The company predicts that by2008, wafer-thin digital flat screens will flashand blink graphics at customers direct fromproduct packaging.
The company says they could be used formoving advertisements, special offers or
nutrition information (presumably of the '85%fat free' variety). The marketing pressreported the idea as 'something big thatcould change forever the way in whichdisposable packaging carries advertising andinformational messages'.
However, a more disturbing commentcame from Siemens engineer Axel Gerlt, whosaid, 'When kids see flashing pictures oncereal boxes, we don't expect them to justask for the product, but to say, "I want it."'
Siemens predicts flashing packs
Trust the Chief Exec?We are sorry to report to readers that is nowtoo late to apply for the handsomely salariedrole of Chief Executive of the School FoodTrust – the application deadline was 19thJanuary. The salary on offer is £85,000 perannum, including two months' paid leave.
The trust was set up by government 'to driveforward and support the transformation inschool food to meet new nutritional standards'and to 'increase demand (from children andparents) for healthy meals'. An ambitious andadmirable task – we wish the candidates well.There should certainly be some interestingcompetition for the post; the recruitmentagency hired to find the magnificentlyremunerated new Chief Exec (SaxtonBampfylde Hever plc) lists among its corporateclients: ASDA, Sainsbury's and Pepsi.
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