Search results: Cereal

Last month, the UK government announced guidance for the food industry on compliance with its new policies on dealing with foods High in Fat, Sugar, or Salt (HFSS): Restricting promotions of products high in fat, sugar or salt by location and by volume price: implementation guidance.  

The food industry is not happy about these policies.

Kellogg has launched a legal challenge.

Kellogg has launched a legal challenge against the Government’s upcoming restrictions on retail promotions for food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS), claiming the rules unfairly represented breakfast cereals.

On what basis?

The manufacturer argued that the formula used tomeasure the nutritional value of food was wrong when it came to breakfast cereals, as the Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) only accounted for portions of dry cereals and not for a bowl of cereal and milk…Breakfast cereals are dehydrated foods, that are intended to absorb milk to make the food more palatable and give the food its intended flavour and texture.  Hardly anyone sits down to a bowl of dry breakfast cereals in the morning – cereals are almost always eaten with milk.

What’s really at stake?

From October this year, new legislation will restrict retail promotion of HFSS products. The changes could lead to a reported loss of 1.1bn per year.

The food industry is also arguing that the new regulations will cause a consumer backlash.

These restrictions might escape public scrutiny, but consumers will get a horrible shock when they wake up one day and find their favourite brands have been ruined by regulation and cost more.  Unless manufacturers fight back, be it in the courts or out in the public square, it’ll be too late to do anything about it.

And that the HFSS regulations won’t do any good.

The soft drink industry, however, sees the regulations as no problem: “The soft drinks category will be affected by new HFSS legislation coming into force in England. But having already done plenty of work in reformulating and innovating for the UK sugar tax, the sector is well placed to turn a challenge into an opportunity.”

What’s all this about?  Here’s a quick review of the HFSS history:

2018: In Chapter 2 of the Childhood Obesity Plan,  the UK government set out its intention to end the promotion of high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) products by location and by price.  It committed to consult on how this should be implemented.  This was based on evidence that food retail price promotions are widespread and effective at influencing food preferences and purchases (particularly for children), and on previous reports recommending reducing and rebalancing promotions towards healthier food and drink to help prevent obesity in children.

2019: The consultation on restricting the promotion of HFSS products was held.

2020:  The government theld a consultation on technical enforcement of the restrictions.  It announced in Tackling obesity: empowering adults and children to live healthier lives, that it would legislate to end promotion of HFSS products by volume (for example, “buy one get one free”) and location both online and in store in England.  It published a formal consultation response.

2021: The government introduced legislation to restrict the promotion of HFSS products by volume price both online and in store in England., based on the nutrient profiling technical guidance 2011.) These regulations will come into force on 1 October 2022.

2022: The new restrictions on HFAA promotion. 

Tara Kenny, a postdoctoral researcher in Ireland sent me this one.

The paper: Perspective Nutrition research challenges and processed food and health. Michael J. Gibney and Ciarán Forde. Nature Food, 2022.

Purpose: “If public health nutrition is to consider the degree of food processing as an important element of the link between food and health, certain gaps in research must be acknowledged.”

Method: The paper compares and critiques differing classification systems for processed foods, emphasizes the physical and sensory aspects of food products as reasons for consumption, and suggests areas for further research.

Conclusion: “The NOVA recommendation that HPFs be avoided poses a considerable challenge, given that a wide body of evidence across the globe shows that almost two-thirds of all energy comes from HPFs…Finally, notwithstanding the opposition of NOVA to the reformulation of HPFs, the value of this approach is internationally recognized.”

Competing interests: “M.J.G. has engaged in paid and non-paid consultancy for a wide range of food companies that manufacture processed foods. He has provided online presentations on ultraprocessed foods to the staff of Unilever and Mondelez. C.G.F. is currently a paid member of the Kerry Health and Nutrition Institute.”

Comment: The paper is a critique of the term ultra-processed (the authors prefer Highly Processed Foods or HPF), of the NOVA classification system for levels of food processing, and of the idea that ultra-processed foods continue to remain in the category of ultra-processed even when reformulated.

Dr. Kenny provided a deeper analysis of the conflicts of interest inherent in this paper; she read the references to several statements in the paragraph that follows the subtitle, “First, do no harm”.

• Ample evidence exists to show that there are no differences in postprandial glucose or insulin response following the ingestion of breads, varying from wholegrain to white and to those with and without additives (Breen et al & Gibney, MRC Human Nutrition Research, Government Agency)
• Similarly, studies show that the nutrient intakes of infants fed on home-prepared infant and toddler foods are not materially different to those of infants fed on industrially prepared products with the exception of sodium, which was higher in the infants fed with home-prepared foods (Reidy et al, 2018 – lead author is head of Nutrition Science for Baby Food, Nestlé Infant Nutrition, Global R&D and leads the Feeding Infants and Toddlers Studies globally. Three additional authors are also Nestle employees).
• Breakfast cereals, normally served with milk, make a very important contribution to micronutrient intake (Gibney et al, 2018 – funded by Cereal Partners Worldwide and General Mills Inc.)
• The advent of low-fat spreads optimized for fatty-acid profile have contributed to a substantial reduction in the intake of saturated fatty acids (Li et al & Gibney).
• Beverages sweetened with artificial sweeteners help reduce the intake of added sugars. These filters should also include foods that are generally regarded as ‘treats’ that have a negligible population impact on nutrient intake (for example, ice cream and chocolate). For example, a study of chocolate intake in 11 European countries showed that the contribution of chocolate to added sugar intake averaged 5% (Azaïs-Braesco et al, funded by Danone Nutricia Research)…”.

She also provided a link to a much more detailed conflict-of-interest statement filed as a correction to another paper co-authored by Mike Gibney.

I’ve written frequently about ultra-processed foods and why I think the NOVA classification is so useful.  See, for example, this post (the classification system) and this one (Kevin Hall’s study).

Despite the opinions expressed in the Nature Food paper, reducing intake of ultra-processed foods seems like a really good idea.

New items come out every day about the plant-based market for alternatives to meat and dairy foods.  Think of this as big business and hyper-marketing.

• By the numbers: Plant-based food sales and prices: In 2020, plant-based food retail sales grew 27% to be worth $7 billion, according to SPINS data released by the Good Food Institute and the Plant Based Foods Association. And even as consumers spent more money on groceries due to the pandemic, the plant-based segment grew at a faster clip than traditional products as a whole.
• Impossible Foods confirms plans for UK launch: The US brand, infamous for its meat-free burger that appears to ‘bleed’ like real meat, has confirmed plans to launch in Britain after applying for regulatory approval…. Read more
• Tracking the plant-based protein movement: Maple Leaf Foods’ Field Roast brand launches pea protein-based pepperoni at Whole Foods and Filipino brand UnMeat comes to a West Coast retail chain.5 ways to boost plant-based products in grocery stores: While there are many factors that play into plant-based product sales — including the category’s buzz, sustainability issues, animal welfare concerns, food allergies and the perception of a better health profile — retailers are an important link in the chain.. A study conducted by PBFA and Kroger between December 2019 and last February found that plant-based meat products sell 23% better when they’re in the meat section.
  Food flavour facility to explore sustainable plant-based foods:  The University of Nottingham has joined forces with the University of Adelaide to launch a new international food flavour facility to improve the taste of sustainable, healthy, plant-based food and ingredients. Read more
• Brits seek UK oat-drinks, but unaware of plant-based origins: Glebe Farms: A majority of Brits would prefer to buy plant-based milk from the UK, but many are unaware where their dairy alternatives are coming from, according to Glebe Farm Foods. Read more
• Quorn and Wibble Foods: Latest vegan launches: Meat alternatives firm Quorn and plant-based jelly pot manufacturer Wibble Foods revealed new vegan NPD this week. Read more
• Nestlé plant-based launches and cereal reformulation: Nestlé has boosted its vegan offering with the launch of plant-based egg and shrimp, as its reveals its latest progress toward reducing sugar in its cereal products. Read more
• Dairy… the next generation? General Mills unveils animal-free cream cheese alternative: Bold Cultr: General Mills has made a move into the emerging ‘animal-free’ dairy category with a brand called Bold Cultr – a lactose-free cream cheese alternative utilizing dairy proteins from Perfect Day made via microbial fermentation (without cows)…. Read more 
• Alt protein: Israeli start-ups innovate with grasshoppers, fermentation, and ‘plant made’ meatFrom ingredients to finished products, start-ups are innovating to produce the next hottest products in the alternative ingredient space. FoodNavigator hears from three making a splash in Israel’s food tech scene…. Read more

You might think of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans as federal nutrition advice about how to eat healthfully but to some food companies it’s a marketing opportunity.

FoodNavigator-USA.com writes that the new guidelines for children under age 2 are a “treasure map” for Gerber, a leading baby food manufacturer.

the guidelines underscore the need for products that help babies consume sufficient iron, vitamin D and other nutrients of concern, safely introduce potential allergens, cut back on added-sugar, and cultivate diverse palate preferences to ensure healthy dietary preferences and reduce the risk of picky eaters later.\nInnovative, iron-enriched products need to boost consumption.

How does this work?

One of the main messages in the Dietary Guidelines is to provide infants and young children with sufficient iron.

Gerber to the rescue!

All you have to do is “feed children two servings of infant cereal a day.”

I still vote for feeding kids real food….

The best way to add unnecessary calories to your diet is to snack.

Snacks are often ultra-processed junk foods; they add calories in ways you don’t notice (“you can’t eat just one”).

Their sellers’ intention is to get you to eat them and not notice.  These are hugely profitable products.

Here are a few recent items about selling snack products.

Will eating “healthier” snacks help you avoid “Covibesity” [referring to pandemic weight gain, I guess]?  Not if they encourage you to take in more calories than you need.

Will eating sustainable snacks make you healthier?  I got an e-mail from a marketer at Mondelez telling me that the company is focusing on sustainable snacks and that a “Mondelez exec also just made presentation at Alliance Bernstein conf. where he discussed there will be more invest in digital marketing personalization to drive sales” [Sustainable snacks have calories, and increased sales mean increased calories].

How about starting your snacks in the morning?  Hershey, America’s largest confection company, is trying to gain market share by rolling out products designed for morning consumption. “We see this as a potential growth lever and way for us to potentially capture more total snacking occasions across all dayparts,” In a press release, the company declared, “Let’s face it, we’re already having morning dessert anyway, so the Reese’s brand decided to make it official. With new Reese’s Snack Cakes, Reese’s fans can enjoy a delicious combination of chocolate and peanut butter creme without having to wait until lunch.”

Or, you can just eat candied cereal:

I first learned of this study from a headline in the newsletter, BakeryAndSnacks.com: “Swedish RyeWeight study confirms bread can actually aid weight loss.”

Swedish researchers have found that breakfasting on rye bread significantly reduces appetite, resulting in 16% fewer calories consumed at lunch. What’s more, the suppression of appetite continued well into the afternoon

This seemed worth a look.  Here’s it is.

The study: A hypocaloric diet rich in high fiber rye foods causes greater reduction in body weight and body fat than a diet rich in refined wheat: A parallel randomized controlled trial in adults with overweight and obesity (the RyeWeight study).  Clinical Nutrition ESPEN.  Volume 45, October 2021, Pages 155-169.

Methods: Subjects with overweight or obesity consumed a weight-loss diet that contained either high fiber rye products or refined wheat products for 12 weeks.

Results:  Participants in the rye group lost 1.08 kg body weight and 0.54% body fat more than the wheat group, and their C-reactive protein was 28% lower.  There were no consistent group differences on subjective appetite or on other cardiometabolic risk markers.

Conclusion:  Consumption of high fiber rye products as part of a hypocaloric diet for 12 weeks caused a greater weight loss and body fat loss, as well as reduction in C-reactive protein, compared to refined wheat. The difference in weight loss could not be linked to differences in appetite response.

Sources of support: Formas, grant no.: 2014-00542. Barilla and Lantmännen pro-vided additional funding for the study (8% of total study budget each) and provided the intervention products.

Conflict of interest: RL is the founder of the Nordic Rye Forum, which is a research and dissemination platform for research related to rye and health that includes academic institutions as well as institutes and food industry with interest in rye across the Nordic region. The forum and its activities are funded by the industrial partners. RL is the PI of several projects funded by several cereal industrial companies. Such funding is used to carry out scientific studies. RL receives no salary, honorary, or by any other means has any personal economic benefits from industrial collaborations. Remaining authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Comment: The industry-funded Nordic Rye Forum has an interest in promoting rye consumption.  Its industry partners are listed here.  Two of them helped fund the study.  They must have appreciated the results.

Once again, the issue here is the potential for unconscious bias under the influence of industry funding.

Reference: For a summary of research on the “funding effect”—the observation that research sponsored by food companies almost invariably produces results favorable to the sponsor’s interests but that recipients of industry funding typically do not recognize its influence—see my book, Unsavory Truth: How Food Companies Skew the Science of What We Eat.

The House Oversight Subcommittee has just issued another report on neurotoxic heavy metals—arsenic, lead, cadmium—in baby foods: New Disclosures Show Dangerous Levels of Toxic Heavy Metals in Even More Baby Foods.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-funded testing conducted by the State of Alaska found that multiple samples of Beech-Nut’s and Gerber’s infant rice cereals contained more inorganic arsenic than FDA’s 100 parts per billion (ppb) limit (an  already dangerously-high standard that FDA is now lowering). Beech-Nut issued a recall but limited it to product codes associated with only two of the six samples that Alaska’s testing found contained over 100 ppb. Its recall was therefore too narrow. Gerber failed
to recall product associated with either of its two infant rice cereal samples that tested over 100 ppb.

The FDA, it says is not doing enough—it is absent without leave-–on this issue.

This subcommittee issued its first report on this issue in February this year.  Then, the press release included a statement from Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi:

Baby food manufacturers hold a special position of public trust.  But consumers mistakenly believe that these companies would not sell unsafe products.  The Subcommittee’s staff report found that these manufacturers knowingly sell baby food containing high levels of toxic heavy metals.  I hope companies will commit to making safer baby foods.  Regardless, it’s time that we develop much better standards for the sake of future generations.

This new report says baby food manufacturers aren’t doing enough, and neither is the FDA.  The subcommittee recommends:

To the FDA:

• Issue Maximum Toxic Heavy Metal Levels Sooner
• Mandate Finished-Product Testing

To Industry:

• Adopt Finished-Product Testing
• Voluntarily Phase Out Toxic Ingredients

Really?  That’s the best they can do?

This is either a serious problem or it is not.

If they think it’s serious (it sure sounds serious to me), more immediate and tougher actions are needed.  Now!

This has gone on long enough.

I’ve been posting about this issue since 2018.  This year, it looked like the FDA was going to take firm action, but no such luck.  Maybe this congressional subcommittee will get some action at long last.

• October 3, 2018  Rice cereals for infants: the arsenic problem
• February 9, 2021  Uh oh. Baby foods contain toxic metals—arsenic, lead, cadmium, mercury
• March 9, 2021  More on toxic metals in baby foods: FDA on the job!
• May 4, 2021 What is the FDA doing about heavy metals in baby food?

The Center for Digital Democracy has issued a report, Big Tech and Big Food.

The coronavirus pandemic triggered a dramatic increase in online use. Children and teens whose schools have closed relied on YouTube for educational videos, attending virtual classes on Zoom and Google Classroom, and flocking to TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram for entertainment and social interaction. This constant immersion in digital culture has exposed them to a steady flow of marketing for fast foods, soft drinks, and other unhealthy products, much of it under the radar of parents and teachers. Food and beverage companies have made digital media ground zero for their youth promotion efforts, employing a growing spectrum of new strategies and high-tech tools to penetrate every aspect of young peoples’ lives.

The full report is divided into five parts (annoyingly, there is no table of contents and page numbers are almost invisible):

1.  The data-driven media and marketing complex (starts on page 8).

Today’s youth are at the epicenter of an exploding digital media and marketing landscape. Their deep connection to technology and their influence on purchasing are fueling the growth of new platforms, programs, and services, and generating a multiplicity of marketing opportunities. Google has created a global business offering videos and channels that target children and other young people who are attracted by its entertainment and educational content.

2.  This describes how Big Food targets kids using digital media (page 17)

3.   This part talks about threats to kids’ health, privacy, and autonomy (page 38)

4.  The growing momentum for regulation (is it ever needed) (page 42)

5.  This section lays out a framework for creating a healthier digital environment for kids (page 47)

The report is chilling.  It makes cartoons on breakfast cereals look so last century.  I could not believe the sophistication of these digital marketing efforts, all aimed at getting kids to demand junk foods.

Some congressional leaders are on this.  They deserve support.

You don’t think this is an urgent issue?  Read the report.

Here are a few news stories about this report.

• https://www.campaignlive.com/article/fast-food-soft-drink-advertising-contributes-childhood-obesity/1715799
• https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-12/food-companies-tech-ties-pose-harm-to-kids-consumer-group-says
• https://thecounter.org/junk-food-ads-harm-childrens-health-online-privacy-social-media-coca-cola/ 
• https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/363184/advocates-call-for-new-curbs-on-junk-food-marketin.html