A Useful Guide to Understanding GMOs

As food producers aim to provide a secure and reliable supply of food for the growing public, food biotechnology advances are evolving fast. Genetically modified food resources are helping farmers, food manufacturers, and companies produce safe, healthy, great-tasting and environmentally-friendly foods. However, understanding how these foods are created, how they end up on our plates, and the science behind the ingredients can be confusing. Below we have some insightful resources to help you understand how GMOs are shaping our food supply. Food Biotechnology: A Communicator’s Guide to Improving Understanding Food Biotechnology: A Communicator’s Guide to Improving Understanding is your one-stop resource for preparing for presentations, patient and client questions, health fairs, media interviews, blogging, tweeting, and other community conversations around biotechnology and GMOs. GMO-Free Milk: Is There Really Such a Thing? Modern food production uses various technologies to ensure that our food supply yields safe and environmentally friendly foods. “Genetically engineered” foods, also known as “genetically modified” foods or GMOs, are safe for consumption, and this has been proven repeatedly by scientific research. So what do package labels such as “GMO-free” and “Non-GMO” really mean? Science Sent: GMOs Are Safe to Eat For years, the debate over the safety of genetically engineered crops (or genetically modified organisms or GMOS) has come down to one statement: the science isn’t there. According to a report published yesterday by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), there is no difference in potential or adverse health effects in GMO crops compared to non-GMOs. In other words, GMO crops are as safe to eat as their non-GMO counterparts. No Matter the Food, Ingredients Produced with Biotechnology Are As Safe As “Non-GMO” The International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation would like to correct media reports raising concerns about infant formula containing ingredients produced using biotechnology (also referred […]

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Gut Check: Fermented Foods and the Microbiome

We’re back again with another edition of Gut Check, our series on the relationship between food and the gut microbiome. So far, we’ve taken a closer look at how whole grains and fiber affect our gut microbes. Today we’re exploring a popular topic: fermented foods. Just a few years ago, a search for foods like miso, kimchi and kefir would have led us to a specialty store or a crunchy granola food co-op. These days, they’re on shelves in most grocery stores and are commonplace in farmers markets across the country. From the acidic hit of sauerkraut to the cooling tang of yogurt and the fizzy, sweet-and-sour flavor of kombucha, fermented foods offer a wide range of taste and health attributes that have been sought after for thousands of years. Not yet equipped with microscopes and modern technology, our ancestors may not have known that microbes like bacteria and yeasts were responsible for making these foods and beverages. However, based on what we now know about their microbial content, fermentation has been caught up in a probiotics-fueled health food frenzy. But just because a food is fermented, does that automatically make it a probiotic? Exactly what are the health benefits of fermented foods? Let’s take a closer look. How are fermented foods made? Fermentation is typically an anaerobic process (meaning that it happens without oxygen) in which bacteria or yeasts convert sugars in food to other compounds like alcohol or organic acids, while also producing energy for themselves. Usually, the end product is either alcohol or lactic acid. Microbes that convert sugars to alcohol are responsible for beer and wine; those that make lactic acid give foods like yogurt, sour cream, miso, kimchi, sauerkraut and some pickles the tangy flavors we know and love. Different foods and drinks are made […]

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Are Low- and No-Calorie Sweeteners Safe?

Low- and no-calorie sweeteners (LNCS) provide sweetness to foods and beverages without the added calories contained in sugar. LNCS have a long history of safe use and are some of the most studied ingredients in the history of our food supply. Yet they are also among the most scrutinized. Debate often ensues about the safety and health implications of consuming LNCS—sometimes because of valid scientific inquiry, but mostly due to incorrect or misleading information. This article addresses and helps clarify some of the conflicting information you may come across online. For more in-depth information about the safety of LNCS and how our bodies process them after consumption, check out our free one-hour webinar. Who approves the use of low- and no-calorie sweeteners in the U.S.? U.S. law requires the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve the use of food additives, including LNCS such as aspartame and sucralose, before they are authorized for use in foods and beverages. For the review of other food ingredients such as stevia and monk fruit sweeteners, the FDA uses its Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) notification program. A GRAS determination does not require pre-market approval by the FDA but does require FDA to scientifically evaluate and publicly respond to submissions made to the agency that supports an ingredient’s safety. Despite our government’s long-standing oversight authority, uncertainty remains among some Americans about how LNCS are regulated in the U.S. In the IFIC 2023 Food & Health Survey, 20% of respondents said they were unsure who was responsible for approving the use of LNCS. There are nine types of LNCS permitted by the FDA for use in foods and beverages: LNCS are also independently evaluated and carefully regulated by international authorities such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on […]

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Servings Sizes and Portion Sizes: Making Smaller Sizes the New Normal Again

It may be hard to imagine in today’s information age, but nutrition labels were not always displayed on packaged foods and beverages. The first Nutrition Facts label appeared on packages in May 1994, a few years after the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act was signed into law. The first update to the Nutrition Facts label since its inception was finalized in 2016, and it is this revised version that we see on most food and beverage packages today. Although official serving sizes appeared on the original label, individual portion sizes can differ from serving sizes, and confusion remains about the difference between the two. Let’s clarify those differences and trace how serving and portion sizes have changed through the years, how each is determined, and why each is important for our health. Serving size vs. portion size: What’s the difference? It’s easy to confuse serving sizes with portion sizes. They are sometimes used interchangeably, but they can represent different things. As we wrote in an earlier article, serving sizes listed on food labels are not advice for how much to eat; they are the amount that is used to calculate information on the Nutrition Facts label. Serving sizes displayed on the Nutrition Facts label are required by law to be based on the amount of a food or beverage that people typically consume during one eating or drinking occasion. These amounts are also known as Reference Amounts Customarily Consumed (RACC). Portion sizes are not regulated by the government but often come in the form of advice from nutrition professionals. Ultimately, portion size is the amount of a food or beverage that you choose to consume. These choices can be influenced by multiple factors, including: How serving and portion sizes have changed Both serving sizes and portion sizes have grown in […]

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Unwrapping Our Chocolate: Cocoa Processing Insights

Chocolate can be enjoyed in many ways—as a treat, as part of a snack or as a flavoring for beverages— and has been for many years. In fact, cocoa foods and beverages made from beans from the Theobroma cacao tree have been consumed by humans as early as 460 CE, and for years cocoa consumption has been associated with positive health benefits, such as anti-inflammatory properties. Cocoa is a functional food, is an antioxidant and is naturally rich in flavonoids. However, before you scarf down all the chocolate you can get your hands on, note that the caveat of consuming chocolate for its health benefits is the requirement that the cocoa contains an effective dose of active health-benefitting components and a reduced amount of sugar. Many chocolate lovers may want to know a bit more about how our indulgent friend starts from a tree and ends up in nicely wrapped foil packaging or a chocolate milk carton. Cocoa farmers at work Cocoa largely originates from three global regions—Southeast Asia, Latin America and West Africa. There are over 5 million cocoa farmers who rely on the cocoa bean for their livelihoods, and 70% of the world’s cocoa beans (about 2.6 million tons of cocoa produced annually) come from four West African countries: the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon. The Ivory Coast and Ghana are the two largest producers of cocoa (they source more than half the world´s cocoa). Over 3.5 million tons of cocoa beans are used annually around the globe to manufacture many food and beverage products. Cocoa farmers use sustainable farming practices that not only help conserve natural resources, but also help ensure the livelihoods of the people that work in the farming supply chains and the related surrounding communities where cocoa is grown. Farming cocoa still often […]

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What Are Resilient Crops?

Shifts in weather patterns and harsh weather conditions are phenomena that humankind has been witnessing for many years. These occurrences can impact our day-to-day lives in many ways, particularly in the realms of agriculture, food production and food access. You’ve likely read about how climate change has been observed over decades, and how over these years the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere—mainly carbon dioxide—has risen considerably. Additionally, we’ve written about how many environmental scientific experts agree that climate change is happening and that humans are the cause. While many industrial companies, public health stakeholders and members of the general public are employing climate-change mitigation strategies, utilizing different innovations, and changing their daily operations to lessen their impact on the environment, climate change is still present, and our growing population still needs to thrive and be fed. Thus, farmers have had to undertake new technologies to maintain food productivity. One of these new technologies is the development of resilient crops. Climate challenges There are three primary climate challenges that impact farming: seasonal shifts, ecological disturbances, and extreme weather and/or extreme weather events. All these occurrences impact the foundational needs of crops: water, sun and soil. They also affect the agricultural animals that survive and grow from crop consumption. Seasonal weather predictability is a cornerstone of farming, and non-seasonal weather variability can pose many agricultural challenges. Shifts in seasonal weather can cause several problems, such as increased atmospheric carbon dioxide, increased length of the frost-free season, increased nighttime temperatures, and earlier and faster snowmelt-driven runoff, which can result in reduced summer stream flows (water supplies). Ecological disturbances include incidents such as wildfires, landslides, flooding, windstorms and pest outbreaks. Disturbances often yield short-term landscape changes but can have very significant, longer-term ecosystem impacts. An ecosystem is an environmental area in which […]

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Bread Science and Black History: The Innovations of Joseph Lee

Bread is the proverbial stuff of life—a staple food in many households throughout ancient and modern history. Today, we encounter bread when we make a sandwich, eat a salad with croutons, or enjoy it as an accent on a delicious charcuterie board (we love a good baguette!). With the variety of breads that are now widely available in supermarkets, farmers’ markets, and bakeries, we can enjoy a plethora of tastes and textures to suit our day-to-day preferences. But if you’ve ever considered the bread-baking techniques that yield your desired loaf, you likely haven’t connected them with Black history. Let’s shed some light on a segment of rich history of Black food production innovators in the U.S.—in particular, the story of Joseph Lee, a bread-production pioneer and recently inducted member into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. It all started with a recipe—and kneading There are hundreds of different types of bread today, but most recipes have evolved to require four basic ingredients: flour (of which there are many different types), water, yeast, and salt. Joseph Lee, born in 1849 in Charleston, South Carolina, knew these ingredients well due to the many years he spent cooking and baking in restaurants and the hospitality industry in the late 1800s—which culminated in the opening of his own catering company and restaurant (a major feat for the son of former slaves). Over his many years of bread-baking, Lee observed the importance of kneading the dough to deliver consistent loaves at a large scale. Today’s researchers have observed that kneading dough promotes the “homogeneous mixing of all the ingredients, the hydration of the flour constituents, the phase transitions that involve proteins and amorphous starch, the development of the gluten network, and the inclusion of air bubbles, giving a viscoelastic dough as a result.” That may […]

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The Players & Pathways To Packaging Sustainability Wins

After years of working in the food production space, it’s clear that food producers and consumers alike want to know more about how their actions can contribute to—or compromise—our roles as environmental stewards. For years, U.S. consumers have heard the mantra “Reduce, reuse, recycle,” and many of us, no matter where we live, do our best to decrease litter and reduce waste. While we are considering our individual environmental sustainability actions, many of us also recognize the importance of efforts being enhanced within the domestic food production industry to improve rates of recycling food packaging and reduce the amount of materials needed to produce new packaging. When thinking about enhancing packaging sustainability efforts, both consumers and industry have a role to play. The Path To Packaging Recycling Wins To better understand the packaging recycling pathways and how we can increase our “wins” in packaging sustainability, we must recognize the roles of three key players. First, there are the companies that manufacture materials needed to make packaging. Next there are companies that produce foods and beverages and utilize those materials to hold their products. Then there’s the consumers who buy packaged goods, and who may or may not recycle that packaging. While the companies that manufacture packaging materials and produce our foods and beverages hold a great deal of power in helping us achieve sustainability wins, consumers play a key role in closing the sustainability loop by recycling or choosing their purchases. Consumer Insights Are Key To Making The Right Plays Over the past decade, the annual IFIC Food and Health Survey has shown that taste, price, and healthfulness are the top characteristics consumers care about when making a food or beverage purchase. While environmental sustainability has historically been a lower-ranked purchase driver, the past several years have shown a shift […]

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