The Nutrition Facts Label: Its History, Purpose and Updates

Key Highlights A history of the Nutrition Facts label Although we take its existence for granted today, the Nutrition Facts label was not always required to be on food packages. In November 1990, the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) was signed into law, marking the culmination of a groundbreaking effort to provide information on food labels to help consumers make better choices and encourage food companies to produce healthier food. Prior to the NLEA, mandatory information on packaged foods was limited, with nutrition information required only on foods making a nutrition claim or those fortified with vitamins, minerals or protein. The NLEA required food packages to contain a detailed, standardized Nutrition Facts label with information such as: serving size; the number of calories; grams of fat, saturated fat, total carbohydrate, fiber, sugars and protein; milligrams of cholesterol and sodium; and certain vitamins and minerals. In May 1994, the Nutrition Facts label made its much-awaited debut—and the iconic black and white label was born. What’s different about the Nutrition Facts label now? Updates to the Nutrition Facts label have been long overdue. Not only have we changed the way we eat, but the scientific evidence about the health effects of what we eat has evolved as well. The recent label updates were largely driven by these two factors. On January 1, 2020, Americans woke up to a new year, a new decade and a new Nutrition Facts label. This was the day that the largest food manufacturers (those with over $10 million in annual food sales) were required to use the revised label after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced an extension to its May 27, 2016, final rule. With the new Nutrition Facts label becoming more commonly used on your favorite products, here’s a rundown of the […]

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New Dietary Guidelines Aim To Make Every Bite Count

The 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) were unveiled in late December of 2020, the culmination of years of research, scientific review, public involvement and U.S. government approval. This release marks the 9th edition of the DGA, which have been updated and approved by the Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Health and Human Services (HHS) every five years since 1980. What, exactly, are the DGA? These guidelines provide science-based advice on what to eat and drink to promote health, reduce the risk for chronic disease and meet nutrient needs. The DGA provide nutrition guidance for individuals, health professionals, public health and social service agencies, health care and educational institutions, researchers, agricultural producers and food and beverage manufacturers, among others. In addition, the U.S. government uses the DGA as the basis of its food assistance and meal programs, nutrition education efforts and decisions about national health objectives. These include initiatives like the National School Lunch Program, the Older Americans Act Nutrition Program and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. Using the slogan, “Make Every Bite Count,” the 2020–2025 DGA emphasize nutrient-dense foods and beverages, limiting those that are high in added sugar, saturated fat and sodium and staying within calorie limits. This iteration also puts a stronger focus on meeting dietary recommendations while keeping budget-consciousness, cultural preferences and personal customization in mind. Many resources have been made available by the USDA and HHS to help people eat healthy on a budget, customize the DGA and more. The DGA are an unquestionably important part of public health promotion. And yet, for many, these recommendations may prove to be challenging to meet: Most Americans exceed the recommended limits on added sugars, saturated fat and sodium, and three in four have dietary patterns that are low in vegetables, fruit and […]

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A New Focus on Sustainability

Earlier during the COVID pandemic, many of us faced significant changes in our routines to access mainstay products we keep in our kitchens and prepare meals. As we saw food supply levels and variety be impacted by the pandemic, we also witnessed food system workers be influenced as well. Many companies went out of business or could not safely host workers on farms or in processing facilities. Several of these elements are linked to both environmental and social sustainability aspects of our food supply—where and how our food is grown, who readies our food for purchasing and when will it be able to reach consumers were all greatly impacted. Steadfast desired product characteristics This spring, the IFIC 2021 Food and Health Survey aimed to take a look at how environmental and social sustainability perceptions impact purchase decisions. As seen in past Food and Health Surveys, taste, price, healthfulness, and convenience remain top drivers for purchase decisions this year. In comparison to these drivers, only 31% of consumers say environmental sustainability is a top driver. This mirrors the results of IFIC’s 2020 Consumer Survey: Eating and Shopping During a Global Pandemic, a COVID-specific study performed in September 2020, when COVID infection rates were rapidly growing across the country. That study showed that 45% of survey takers reported price had the biggest impact on their decisions to buy food and beverages, with 27% reporting that taste was a top priority. In contrast, just 16% selected environmental sustainability (as one of their top three choices) and the lowest priority was a company’s mission and values, with just 14% ranking this aspect in their top three selections. Still, as seen in other Food and Health Surveys, our 2021 findings found that when asked if it’s important that the foods they purchase or consume are […]

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Is Label Literacy a Key to Healthier Food Choices?

FOR RELEASE: 10 a.m. EST, January 24, 2018 Download the Survey (PDF) (Washington, D.C.) —Health-related factors have a significant impact on the foods people buy. With the seemingly overwhelming number of products on shelves, a new survey offers insights into which information on food labels is most influential — and on how additional information might lead to healthier dietary choices. According to the survey, conducted by the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation and the American Heart Association, almost all Americans (95 percent) report that they always or sometimes look for healthy options when food shopping. Consumers say they are more likely to consult food labels for healthfulness when buying a product for the first time. However, there is a gap between consumers’ desire to find information about healthy foods and their ability to do so. Only a little more than one-quarter (28 percent) say it’s easy to find healthy foods, while 11 percent say it’s difficult, and the remainder report it is only moderately easy. “We know consumers are making efforts to eat healthier,” said Joseph Clayton, CEO of the IFIC Foundation. “But our research indicates that their ability to locate the information they find most helpful can be a barrier to making healthier choices. Even subtle changes to food labels could have a positive impact on public health.” When it comes to the wide array of sources where consumers get information about the healthfulness of foods—whether in-store, online or in other marketing statements—the Nutrition Facts panel was the top source (69 percent), followed by the ingredients list (67 percent), according to the survey. More consumers primarily consulted labels for ingredients they were seeking (45 percent) than for ingredients they were avoiding (31 percent). Consumers indicate they pay a lot of attention to health-related iconography currently on food labels, […]

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For Medicaid Recipients, Food Insecurity Goes Hand-in-Hand with Stress, Depression, Overweight/Obesity

Download Full Survey  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 9, 2018 While Medicaid recipients express similar desires for their health as non-recipients, they are having a more difficult time achieving those outcomes, reporting far higher food insecurity, more health problems and greater stress about their food decisions than the general population. For the first time in the 13-year history of the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation’s Food and Health Survey, an oversample of Medicaid beneficiaries was conducted in partnership with The Root Cause Coalition to explore the unique health and nutrition issues facing over 66 million Americans covered by the program. According to the survey, Medicaid recipients experience far greater rates of food insecurity across many indicators compared to the general population. About one-third (32 percent) often purchase less-healthy food options than they otherwise would because of lack of money, more than twice the rate (13 percent) of non-recipients. Similarly, nearly one-third often purchase less food overall (28 percent) because of money, nearly three times the rate (10 percent) of non-recipients. A similar number (27 percent) worry that their food will run out before they get money to buy more, compared to just 7 percent of non-recipients. And 43 percent of Medicaid recipients say they often skip at least one meal a day, compared with 28 percent of non-recipients. But even though their means may be lacking, Medicaid recipients have similar aspirations for good health as the general population. Among the top health-related benefits Medicaid beneficiaries seek from food and nutrients, 17 percent cite cardiovascular health (compared to 21 percent of non-recipients), 15 percent cite weight loss or management (compared to 21 percent of non-recipients), and 12 percent desire greater energy (compared to 13 percent of non-recipients). Also on the positive side of the ledger, 59 percent of Medicaid recipients report getting information on foods to eat or avoid from their personal healthcare professional—79 percent of whom said they made changes in their eating habits as a […]

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Nitrites: One Reason Our Food is Safe and Bacon is Tasty

Nitrites don’t make it on your grocery list but likely end up in your fridge. They have several roles in foods and have become a necessary component in many of our favorite products. Their most common use in foods is inclusion in cured meats, but they are present in many dietary sources including vegetables and drinking water. Their use in food preservation is nothing new. The Romans were the first to note the benefits of nitrites as early as 850 B.C. While it remains a key component of many products to this day, its use is misunderstood. Let’s learn more about this food ingredient and what it adds. What are Nitrites? When you see “nitrites” listed on a food ingredient statement, it is likely added as sodium or potassium salt of nitrate or nitrite, not too far off from the familiar sodium chloride (table salt). When nitrates are added to a food, it often loses an oxygen molecule and becomes nitrite. In fact, your mouth bacteria achieve this same conversion with high efficiency. For this article, we will be referring to the both as nitrites. When the salt is added to a food, it will appear as “nitrites” on the label, but there are other ways this compound can find its way in a product. Now that we know what it is, the next question is: why add nitrites to food in the first place? Are They Safe? Nitrites help make foods safer for us to eat. Nitrites reduce the possible presence of botulism in many products. Botulism is the most potent food toxin and has a lethal dose at the nanogram level. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) take the threat of botulism so seriously that nitrites are required to call a […]

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Where Do Sustainable and Healthy Food Choices Intersect?

Healthy food choices are often on many of our minds as we plan what our next meal will include. Many of us are also focused on sustainability and the environmental aspects of our food chain that impact the planet. We may practice environmentally friendly habits, like recycling, shopping at farmers’ markets and buying foods with less packaging. But the intersection of these two diet-choice aspects­—health and environmental sustainability—and the lenses through which we evaluate both, are worth investigating. Is one more important that the other? Do other factors such as taste, price and convenience still significantly impact our food choices too? Findings from the International Food Information Council Foundation’s 2019 Food and Health Survey as well as another IFIC Foundation survey, Consumer Attitudes and Perceptions on Healthy and Environmentally Sustainable Diets (to be released this fall), help shed light on these issues. Sticking with sustainability The 2019 Food and Health Survey found that environmental sustainability was a significant purchase driver, with over half (54 percent) of people saying it was important that the foods they purchase and consume be produced in an environmentally sustainable way. Of those who believe environmental sustainability is important, the top three food characteristics that people use to identify these foods are “being labeled as being locally grown” (51 percent), “being labeled as sustainably sourced” (47 percent), and “being labeled as non-GMO/not bioengineered” (47 percent). Interestingly, 41 percent of respondents look for recyclable packaging and 35 percent look to make purchases with minimal packaging. This year, the survey also asked consumers whether they find it difficult to know whether their food choices are environmentally sustainable. Over six in ten (63 percent) of consumers agreed that it is hard for consumers to know whether the food choices they make are environmentally sustainable. As a follow-up, we asked […]

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Aflatoxins in the U.S. Food Supply

Not many of us know that aflatoxins contamination has been recorded as contributing to 25% of estimated loss of the world’s food supply. However, some of us may see aflatoxin in the news every so often being associated with food recalls. These food reliability and safety issues are why aflatoxin is on the radar of government organizations such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the European Food Safety Authority. What are aflatoxins? Aflatoxins are part of a larger group of toxins called mycotoxins, which are toxic metabolites that are produced by certain types of fungi and can infect agricultural commodities and make food inedible. Aflatoxins are mainly produced from the Aspergillus species, usually in poor storage or adverse weather conditions. Aspergillus is a species of filamentous fungi found in soil, seeds and grains and decaying vegetation. The contamination occurs when Aspergillus species reproduce in favorable conditions (high temperature and humidity), invading the crop. There are four major types of aflatoxins: B1, B2, G1 and G2, which are named according to the mechanisms of detection (e.g., blue or green fluorescence under UV light). Aflatoxin B1 is the most common in food and is highly toxic having carcinogenic properties. In addition to these four, there is aflatoxin M1, which is produced as a byproduct of the B1 toxin undergoing an enzymatic process in milk and milk products. Now that you know what aflatoxins are and how they’re produced, let’s explore if they could be impacting how we build our grocery lists. Aflatoxins in food Many farmers and food producers in the United States are faced with aflatoxin contamination. In the southern and midsouth regions of the US, aflatoxins have been a recurring issue in corn leading to $20+ million lost. Aflatoxin contaminations have been reported in food and animal feed being […]

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