Kraft American Cheese Singles Have Been Labeled A Health Food By Professional Nutritionists
Kraft Singles, a type of processed cheese that comes individually
wrapped in a thin, plastic film, is the first food to receive the new
"Kids Eat Right" label -- a stamp of approval designed by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to help families make healthier decisions in the grocery store.
The
"Kids Eat Right" campaign is meant to "raise awareness that the diets
of America's kids are lacking in three important components- dairy,
calcium and vitamin D," according to a statement from AND. But the news has been met with skepticism, if not outright derision.
At 2013 report
from food industry lawyer and researcher Michele Simon, "which
documented the strong and ever-growing financial ties between the
Academy and big food companies, including Kraft."
Marion Nestle,
Ph.d, M.P.H., a professor in the department of nutrition, food studies
and public health at NYU, shared the news on her site Food Politics, with a parenthetical -- "you can't make this stuff up."
"Kraft
is well known as a sponsor of AND," Nestle wrote. "Such seals are
usually money-raising gimmicks. I'm wondering if 'proud supporter of'
means that Kraft pays AND for use of this seal. If so, I'd like to know
what the seal costs."
Commenting on the Dietitians for Professional Integrity's Facebook page,
Allison Duffek Bradfield, a registered dietitian at the Duke Raleigh
Hospital writes, "I'm absolutely disgusted with the Academy of Nutrition
and Dietetics. They have put the health of our children in jeopardy for
money. I am embarrassed to be a part of this organization which clearly
has lost its priorities."
By the FDA's standards,
Kraft isn't permitted to refer to Singles as "cheese" because this word
indicates that a product is made with at least 51 percent real cheese.
This is why the label reads "pasteurized prepared cheese product."
Typically, the fewer ingredients a food contains, the healthier that food tends to be. Think of some favorite health foods: avocados,
for example, or kale or almonds. These foods aren't just popular --
they boast the kind of short ingredient lists that can only come from a
whole food: avocado is made of avocado. That's it.
Comparatively, the ingredient list for a slice of Kraft American Cheese reads like a novel:
does not constitute any endorsement or nutritional seal of approval by
the Academy, its Foundation or Kids Eat Right. The Academy Foundation
does not endorse any products, brands or services."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/16/kraft-singles-kids-eat-right_n_6879658.html
Kraft Singles, a type of processed cheese that comes individually
wrapped in a thin, plastic film, is the first food to receive the new
"Kids Eat Right" label -- a stamp of approval designed by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to help families make healthier decisions in the grocery store.
The
"Kids Eat Right" campaign is meant to "raise awareness that the diets
of America's kids are lacking in three important components- dairy,
calcium and vitamin D," according to a statement from AND. But the news has been met with skepticism, if not outright derision.
At 2013 report
from food industry lawyer and researcher Michele Simon, "which
documented the strong and ever-growing financial ties between the
Academy and big food companies, including Kraft."
Marion Nestle,
Ph.d, M.P.H., a professor in the department of nutrition, food studies
and public health at NYU, shared the news on her site Food Politics, with a parenthetical -- "you can't make this stuff up."
"Kraft
is well known as a sponsor of AND," Nestle wrote. "Such seals are
usually money-raising gimmicks. I'm wondering if 'proud supporter of'
means that Kraft pays AND for use of this seal. If so, I'd like to know
what the seal costs."
Commenting on the Dietitians for Professional Integrity's Facebook page,
Allison Duffek Bradfield, a registered dietitian at the Duke Raleigh
Hospital writes, "I'm absolutely disgusted with the Academy of Nutrition
and Dietetics. They have put the health of our children in jeopardy for
money. I am embarrassed to be a part of this organization which clearly
has lost its priorities."
By the FDA's standards,
Kraft isn't permitted to refer to Singles as "cheese" because this word
indicates that a product is made with at least 51 percent real cheese.
This is why the label reads "pasteurized prepared cheese product."
Typically, the fewer ingredients a food contains, the healthier that food tends to be. Think of some favorite health foods: avocados,
for example, or kale or almonds. These foods aren't just popular --
they boast the kind of short ingredient lists that can only come from a
whole food: avocado is made of avocado. That's it.
Comparatively, the ingredient list for a slice of Kraft American Cheese reads like a novel:
For now, the AND continues to defend its election and claim that no cheesy fishy deals were executed. The organization insists that "it
does not constitute any endorsement or nutritional seal of approval by
the Academy, its Foundation or Kids Eat Right. The Academy Foundation
does not endorse any products, brands or services."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/16/kraft-singles-kids-eat-right_n_6879658.html
