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  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Livingontheland] Navigating Food Labels
  • Date: Thu, 29 May 2008 10:36:30 -0600


not completely accurate!

Navigating Food Labels
by Lisa Raffensperger
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90914182
* Consumer Reports' Eco-Labels Center
* USDA Food Labeling Fact Sheets

NPR.org, May 28, 2008 · Did you know the label "100 Percent Natural" has
different meanings for chicken fingers, cookies and various other foods? Or
that those "cage-free" chickens might not ever have seen the outdoors? Here's
a guide to help sort out what's meaningful, what's dubious — and what's total
fluff.

Organic

This is the gold standard among food-labeling terms. The National Organic
Program is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and it permits
the official organic seal only on products that meet strict requirements. In
the United States, any manufacturer or marketer's claims of "organic" must be
certified by an accredited third party.

* Crops — Certified organic crops generally cannot be produced using
synthetic fertilizers, pesticides or genetically modified organisms, though
some synthetic chemicals are allowed if they cannot be produced naturally and
are not harmful.

* Livestock — Certified organic meat, milk and egg products must come from
livestock raised without antibiotics or hormones. The livestock also must be
fed organic food, not be genetically modified and be allowed access to
outdoors. Products from animals that become sick and are given antibiotics
cannot be considered organic.

* Other Food Products — There are different levels of organic labels:

* 100% Organic: Contains only organically produced ingredients (excluding
water and salt). Can display the USDA organic seal.
* Organic: Contains 95 percent or more organically produced ingredients
by weight or volume (excluding water and salt); all other ingredients must be
on USDA's approved list. Can display the USDA seal.
* Made with Organic Ingredients: Contains 70% or more organically
produced ingredients. Cannot display the USDA seal.

Natural

For meat and poultry, the "natural" label applies to how meat is processed —
not how animals are raised. The USDA defines it to mean that meat and poultry
must be only "minimally processed" and cannot contain any artificial
flavoring, color ingredients, chemical preservatives or artificial
ingredients.

Producers sometimes use the label to reflect that animals did not receive
antibiotics or hormones. But this falls outside the USDA's definition and can
vary by producer. If you want to know specifics about how animals were
raised, cattle specialist Mike Baker at Cornell University says many
producers spell out their guidelines on their Web sites. Such claims
generally have not been verified by a third party, however.

In all other instances, "natural" is a largely meaningless labeling term. The
USDA defines it only in regard to meat and poultry, so what it means on
granola bars is anyone's guess.

Farmers who choose to use the label "Certified Naturally Grown" are required
to conform to national organic standards, but use of the label is governed by
a nonprofit rather than a governmental program. These claims are certified by
other farmers rather than the USDA. This alternative may be one instance in
which buying "natural" foods is a good bet.

Sustainable

"Sustainable" implies that farms are managed to benefit natural resources and
the local economy, says Dr. Anu Rangarajan, director of Cornell University's
Small Farms Program. But no government agency or official third party
verifies the claim. Some independent groups — including the World Wildlife
Fund and Core Values — have created sustainability standards and their seals
may be displayed on products that meet these guidelines. Companies such as
Unilever also have created an internally imposed standard for "sustainable"
products. Consumers should look for a label that tells who is verifying the
claim.

No Hormones Administered

"Hormone-free" is misleading, as all animal products naturally contain
hormones. The USDA allows the label "no hormones administered" on meat or
poultry products to designate that the animals did not receive added hormones
during their lifetimes. The USDA already prohibits the use of hormones in
pigs and chickens, so a "no hormones administered" label on pork or poultry
doesn't mean the producer took special measures. On other meat, the
manufacturer or marketer applies this term; it is not independently verified.

No Antibiotics Administered

The USDA doesn't approve the term "antibiotic-free" but does allow "no
antibiotics administered" or "raised without antibiotics," which mean that an
animal did not receive any antibiotics during the course of its lifetime. The
claim is not independently verified.

Free Range

The USDA defines this to mean birds are allowed access to the outdoors for
more than half their lives. However, just because the cage door was open
doesn't mean the birds actually spent time outside. This claim is not
independently verified.

Cage-Free

Both "cage-free" and "free roaming" are defined by the USDA to mean that
birds can roam indoors, and don't guarantee that birds are allowed access to
the outdoors. This claim is not independently verified.

Grass-Fed

Grass-fed animals produce meat that is higher in vitamins and omega-3 fatty
acids and lower in fat than grain-fed animals. According to the USDA, the
label means the animal consumed only grass or forage throughout its adult
life, was fed no grain and had continuous access to pasture during the
growing season. This claim is not independently verified.

Omega-3 Enhanced

In eggs, this USDA term means that the laying hens were fed a diet enriched
with natural sources of omega-3 fatty acids, such as flaxseed. The FDA
requires that the quantity of omega-3s per egg also be displayed on the
label. But the amount of omega-3s can vary greatly among eggs and, in some
cases, might not be much more than the amount in a conventional egg (about 37
mg, according to the USDA's Nutrient Database).





  • [Livingontheland] Navigating Food Labels, Tradingpost, 05/29/2008

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