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FDA To Scrutinize Smart Choices Other Front-of-Label Nutrition Symbols

October 19, 2009

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>Simplified nutrition information on the fronts of food packages could be very helpful in enabling consumers to choose healthier packaged foods and have healthier diets. Unfortunately, though, a growing number of privately devisedand sometimes inconsistentlabeling systems may be confusing, not enlightening, some consumers. After all, foods like General Mills Cocoa Puffs or Kelloggs Froot Loops belong more in our food porn category than a better-for-you category.

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Nomination of Dr. Sanjay Gupta as Surgeon General Supported by CSPI

January 7, 2009

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>Quickcan you name the Surgeon General?

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Labeling of Bug-Based Food Colorings Will Help Some Consumers

January 5, 2009

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>After a decade-long gestation period, the Food and Drug Administration has finally ordered that food and cosmetics manufacturers that color their products with carmine and cochineal list them by name in ingredient lists. Until now, these colorings, extracted from the dried bodies of the tiny cochineal bug, have been hidden under the terms artificial colors or color added. Naming those ingredients on labels will help people who suffered allergic reactions determine if the colors were the culprits.

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FDA Issues Midnight Go-ahead for Potentially Harmful Stevia Sweetener

December 18, 2008

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>Shame on the Food and Drug Administration for its midnight decision to accept industrys contention that rebaudioside A, a sweetener extracted from the herb Stevia, is generally recognized as safe, or GRAS. That general recognition of safety certainly doesnt extend to the UCLA scientists who concluded that rebaudioside A is inadequately tested in terms of cancer and caused mutations in some laboratory tests. It is far too soon to allow this substance in the diet sodas and juice drinks consumed by millions of people. It looks like this is President Bushs parting gift to the soda industry.

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Stevia: Whats the Rush?

December 15, 2008

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>Cargill and Coca-Cola are sticking their thumbs in the Food and Drug Administrations eyes by rushing to market novel sweeteners based on the stevia plant. Cargill has been marketing its Truvia product as a table-top sweetener for several months, and, according to media reports this week, Coca-Cola will start marketing stevia-sweetened drinks. So far, the other main producer, Merisant, and user, PepsiCo, of a stevia-based product have held back. A small company, Wisdom Natural Brands, put SweetLeaf sweetener on the market several months ago.

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Eating as if Your Life Depends on It

December 1, 2008

b>Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson to speak at the 92nd Street Y in New York City/b>br/>Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest, will speak about eating healthfully as food costs continue to rise at the 92nd Street Y in New York City on Tuesday, December 9th.

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Yum! Brands Praised for Adding Calorie Counts to KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell Menu Boards

September 30, 2008

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>YUM! Brands groundbreaking announcement that it will add calorie counts to menu boards at KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Long John Silvers is fabulous news for health-conscious consumers. Talk about thinking outside the bun!

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California Terminates Artificial Trans Fat!

July 24, 2008

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>That great big sucking sound you hear is the sound of partially hydrogenated oil leaving the American food supply.

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California Senate Votes to Phase-out Artificial Trans Fat from Restaurants

July 1, 2008

b>Statement of CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson/b>br/>The passage today in the California State Senate of a measure to phase out the use of artificial trans fat in restaurants puts the state on track to being the first in the nation to adopt this life-saving measure. The bill, which Assemblyman Tony Mendoza and Senator Elaine Alquist have skillfully steered through the legislative process, represents the longest nail yet in the coffin of artificial trans fat, which has been a major cause of heart disease.

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