Over half
of the most aggressively advertised children’s foods that
prominently feature fruit on their packaging contain no
fruit at all, according to a study released by the Strategic
Alliance for Healthy Food and Activity Environments. The
study - Where’s the
Fruit? reveals that 51 percent of these products
do not contain fruit, and another 16 percent contain only
minimal amounts of fruit despite prominent fruit promotions
on the packaging.
“Parents
drawn to products that seem healthier for their children
based on references to fruit on the packaging are being
deceived,” explains Leslie Mikkelsen, a registered dietician
with the Strategic Alliance and lead author of the study.
“Food and beverage companies are some of the most
sophisticated communicators in the world and are clearly
capable of accurately reflecting what is in their products
if they wanted to.”
The
Where’s the Fruit?
study identifies the most heavily advertised children’s food
products that include words and images of fruit and/or fruit
ingredients on the packaging. A total of 37 products were
included in the final study, and their ingredient lists were
analyzed to determine the presence of fruit ingredients. A
full 51% of the products contained no fruit ingredients at
all despite the images of fruits and use of words such as
“fruity,” “fruit flavors” and “berry” on the packaging.
“The
nation is facing a staggering epidemic of chronic diseases
that result from poor eating and physical inactivity,”
cautions Dr. Andria Ruth, a pediatrician for the Diabetes
Resource Center of Santa Barbara. “Children are particularly
affected and these food companies are making parents’ jobs
even harder by using misleading packaging to lead them to
think that they are making a healthy choice when they are
not."
If you’re
tired of being misled when it comes to the food that your
children eat, then let the Wholefood Farmacy be your oasis
of truth amidst this desert of deception. At The Wholefood
Farmacy we believe in truthfully describing our products and
we don’t rely on fancy artwork or neon
colored pictures to get the job done. All of our full sized
food packages feature a clear see-though front panel so that
you can actually see what’s inside.
Fruitalicious
is 100% Fruit
- and we’re proud to show you what’s inside. Nutritional
facts
The Wholefood Farmacy Team
