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What’s in a Label?

  • Marlon Mata
  • March 16, 2011

Food is a necessity in life. Frankly, life would not be possible without food. That is why we take great pains to buy food. But even there, we still have a problem. Actually, the problem is much more complex than we might think. And it is all about the label.

Recently, food manufacturers and grocery owners have teamed up to improve the labeling of processed foods that they sell in groceries and supermarkets. They have now placed four white boxes in front of the packaging. One box talks about the salt content, another will describe the sugar content, the next box will be about fats, and the last one details the calories per serving of the pack.

If we think about it, isn’t that something we all want? Knowing what the food we buy contains helps us decide on our buying and diet.

Of course, food manufacturers are trying to go one step further. They’re now planning to add two more white boxes in the packaging. The purpose of these boxes is to describe the other contents of the product. It’s more along the lines of promotions since these extra boxes will be talking about the beneficial contents, like potassium, Omega 6 fatty acids, and other minerals that may be in the food. Now that’s where other groups are howling.

Researchers like Dr. Kelly Brownell of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity said that people tend to look at packaging for only three seconds. Given that amount of time, buyers would not be able to read everything in the labels. He suggests that the use of red-yellow-green color coding would be a better way to help shoppers buy wisely.

What’s in a Label?Of course, there’s the food manufacturers who want to keep to the other model. Scott Faber of the Grocery Manufacturers Association insists that people prefer to decide on their own what they want to eat. By using the color coding scheme, it’s like they are being told what they are supposed to buy. With the multiple-labeling scheme, people at least have a better chance of making the right choices on their own.

It’s practically a tug-of-war battle, with each side insisting that their idea is the right one. Still, the bottom line here is helping customers get the best food at the least hassle. In other words, it’s the buyers that will decide on who is finally right.

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