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Friday, November 30, 2007

Pam - truth in labeling?

Most major food companies hire entire departments to mislead and/or lie to you.



Here's one of my favorite examples: Pam cooking spray.



I actually use this stuff but I realize that it really isn't a "fat free" product as implied by the nutrition label information

Note the serving size. It is "one third of a second spray" - I don't think many people can actually achieve that small a time frame for a spray - that's actually shorter than I can push the button! And, if they could accomplish that short spray, the amount deposited on the pan wouldn't do much in the way of "no-sticking"!


A one second spray may do a job on a small pan but then the nutrition label info wouldn't hold true for serving size.








Ok, so here's the deal: A 1/3 second spray alows the company to claim that the product has 0 everything; 0 fat, 0 sodium, 0 carbs, etc.








Now we arrive at a near-truth.... the comparison chart.



However, notice that the amounts of the compared products (butter, margarine and oil) are in much greater amounts than the Pam product. A one-second spray is hardly near a tablespoon! The fat amont indicated by the one-second spray is <1g.


Also note that the calorie count for that one second spray is 7. That is extremely close to the number of calories in 1 gram of fat (9)! So, as everyone seems to say these days, do the math. Adding further; figure the amount of fat that must be present if you filled a tablespoon with Pam to make the comparison chart more realistic. Yes, you are correct - it would be lots!

Although not blatant at first glance, this labeling is still essentially a lie.



Next, I will explain my views on how Folger's coffee freshness can easily be questioned.

Later ....







1 comment:

Babycakes said...

Way to go, Pops! Nicely said.

I'm so glad my dad isn't a Moron... uh, I mean Mormon... eh, same thing.

I'm proud to be your daughter.

Babycakes ;-)