The Truth about Food Labels
What You Need to Know about Food Labels
Many people make wrong assumptions when reading food labels. For instance, if you see the word “organic” on a food label, you’re likely to think that all of the ingredients in the product were organically grown or raised. Unfortunately, that may not be the case and everything you read on food labels can’t be taken at face value. We’re giving you the low-down on some popularly found food label wording.
Organic
What exactly is organic? Well, that depends on what type of “organic” rating a food label has. When food labels say a food is organic, it means that 95 percent of the ingredients in that product were organically grown. The other five percent of ingredients are fair game for pesticides and other chemicals. When food labels say “made with organic ingredients” it’s only saying that at least 70 percent of the ingredients are organic. The only way to ensure you’re getting purely organic food is to buy a product with a label that reads 100 percent organic.
Natural
If you see the word “natural” on a product, you’re likely to assume that the item is good for you. That’s not always the case. After all, poisonous berries can be labeled as “natural” and they’re not something you’d want to eat. In fact, there really is no regulation as to who can and can not put the words “natural” on their packaging except for the meat and poultry industries. So those cookies that say “natural” on the packaging may not really be “natural” at all.
Fresh-Baked
You go into the grocery store and there are two loaves of bread on sale. The packaging on one of the loaves says “fresh baked” so you decide to opt for that one because you’re assuming it was made that day. Guess again. All “fresh baked” means is that the product will remain fresh until its sell-by date.
So the next time you’re at the store and you’re thinking of buying a product because of some wording on the label, do yourself a favor and look a bit deeper and make sure you take a look at the nutritional information. In the world of food labels, not everything is as it appears.