Broad Street Licensing Group Food News

Archive for the ‘Health’ Category

« Older Entries

Tasty Tidbits

Thursday, May 10th, 2012

  • With the organics movement in serious trouble, two organic groups have aligned to help restart the engine: the Organic Trade Association (OTA) and California Certified Organic Farmers Inc. (CCOF) are looking to increase their influence on regulators and public policy, including the threat to regulatory funding in the current Congress. California is the leading organic producer in the country with over 2,500 businesses and 470,000 acres.
  • Troubled Hostess Brands, Inc. has launched Wonder Smartwheat which contains 22 grams of whole grain, the calcium equivalent 4 oz. of milk per slice, no high-fructose corn syrup and is lower in sodium to be in line with the National Sodium Reduction Initiative. So much for your grandmother’s Wonder Bread.
  • With sales in the US flat for many CPG houses, it’s no wonder offshore opportunities are increasingly becoming the focus for growth. HJ Heinz credited its emerging markets divisions for its third-quarter 2011 earnings spike. Volume growth was 7.2% in markets like India (Complan and Glucon-D nutritional beverages), Indonesia (ABC-branded products), Russia Heinz-branded products, especially ketchup), and China (Heinz infant nutrition products). North American sales were driven up 3% to $839MM by sales of T.G.I. Friday’s single-serve entrees, Smart Ones value packs, and the introduction of Dip & Squeeze foodservice ketchups, as well as new packaging for Ore-Ida frozen potato products.
  • The “hot trends” in breakfast will be hot pizza and breakfast all day says The Food Channel.
  • Not everything Coke touches turns to gold: Honest Tea continues to struggle despite the “bump” from Coca-Cola’s distribution (up from 15K outlets to 75K), and the cachet of them owning 40% of the company. Now Coke has bought up the remainder of the company through its venturing & emerging brands (VEB) unit.
  • As if cakes needed more publicity— the new trend is “cake balls.” They are small portions of cake and icing mashed up together and covered with chocolate, frosting or sprinkles. Likely born of the South and Texas in particular, they’ve spread as high-end luxuries.
  • The success of “locavore” movements received a boost with the announcement by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources that it would build a public market for locally-grown products in downtown Boston.
  • Japan’s Kirin Holdings Co. will try to bring its Free alcohol-free malt beverage to the US. The beverage is big with older consumers on meds and pregnant women.
  • And finally, sadly, Blair River, the 575-pound spokesman for the Heart Attack Grill (see above) has died at the age of 29. The cause of death isn’t currently known, but apparently was from pneumonia after a bout with the flu. River promoted the massive burgers and fries cooked in lard for the chain.

Posted in Consumer Package Goods (CPG), Environment, Health, Tasty Tidbits | No Comments »

Health & The Environment

Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

  • After long delays, the FDA’s Food Advisory Committee will look at potential risks from food coloring. Science has so far been unable to find a link between colorings and health risks with the exception of a 2007 UK study showing they could aggravate hyperactivity problems in kids. The EU effectively banned food color additives last year by requiring warning labels. The Center for Science in the Public Interest has urged the FDA to ban synthetic food dyes, as well as requiring warning labels on products still containing them. The committee’s role is to advise, so it could shape further regulation later on.
  • The British government will act on recommendations of its Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition and urge Britons to eat no more 1 pound of red meat per week (2.5 ounces/day). That’s almost half the previous recommendations promulgated in 1998. Numerous studies have linked eating red meat to bowel cancer.[1] Warnings about eating processed meats like ham, bacon and sausage will included avoiding feeding them to children.
  • Claims for the benefit of eating dairy products received a blow after a Dutch research team found “neither very harmful or very beneficial” results for longevity.[2] The 10-year study saw no link between the risk of death and dairy consumption in adults that reached 55-69 years, though women added a 4% increased risk of dying for every 10 grams of butterper day in their diets.
  • Despite a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) crackdown that forced it to retreat from health claims about drinkable Activia probiotic yogurt, Dannon USA saw sales rise to $444MM in 2010, up 16% from $383MM the year before and $161MM in its launch year, 2006.[1] Dannon insists a settlement with the FTC did not “gut” its health claims, though the company has softened them to “Love the way you feel” instead of claiming Activia promoted digestive health. Recent marketing is back to touting the product as promoting regularity, which stems from the inclusion of inilin, a by-product of chicory root, that is not digestible and therefore qualifies as “fiber” (though technically it has no actual fiber content).


    [1] Source: IRISymphony. Date includes supermarkets, drugstores & mass merchandise outlets, but does not include Walmart.


    [1] Research suggests red meat and processed meats can lead to breast, bladder, stomach and other digestive cancers, though the link is weaker.

    [2] Source: the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Posted in Environment, Government Regulation, Health | No Comments »

“Slimeaggeddon”

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012

At least one industry pundit is saying the fallout over Lean Finely-Textured Beef (LFTB) – popularly known now as “Pink Slime” – is a product more of hysteria than science.

And she’s right.

While much greater food safety issues proliferate, retailers like Wal-Mart, Kroger and Supevalu, as well as burger chains McDonald’s and Burger King have panicked and dropped so-called pink slime because it seems, well, nasty. Change.org has reportedly signed up 250,000 signatures trying to ban pink slime from school lunches, despite the fact it helps make burgers leaner.

As the old saying goes, you’ll never eat sausage again if you watch it being made.

The US Dept of Agriculture says 300 billion servings can’t be wrong, that there is nothing wrong with pink slime other than it sounds disgusting. Folks, much of our food chain includes nasty things like butchering animals that have been grown or penned in semi-barbaric conditions, or funneling plant-based foods through processing pipelines that can contaminate them with deadly pathogens or spread ones picked up naturally. Pink slime is processed beef that is passed through ammonia gas to reduce germs and make the results safer, though one would think it had been soaked in floor wax remover. Are there any health risks for using it? None have been identified so far. In fact, mixing pink slime into ground beef has helped reduce the fat content, thereby making the results leaner and supposedly better for you. Media reports have latched onto the ammonia, ignoring that supermarket ground beef is frequently treated with carbon monoxide gas to make it redder and therefore more appealing to shoppers.

Next time you break open a pack of ground beef, note how the inside meat is brownish, while only the outside is red or pinkish.

The amount of CO is small (0.4-0.5%), but is it safe? Do you want your meat gassed this way? It doesn’t matter, since the beef industry persuaded the Food & Drug Administration in 2002 to give the process GRAS status (generally regarded as safe), despite concerns it masks spoilage. The FDA insists carbon monoxide processing doesn’t effect spoilage odors, but GRAS status means retailers & processors do not have to disclose it on labels.

The fall-out from “slimeaggeddon” includes the bankruptcy of meat processor AFA, who along with Beef Products, Inc., has been in the news over pink slime. The company hopes Chapter 11 will protect it while attempting to stay in business.

Posted in Consumer Trends and Habits, Health, Opinion | No Comments »

Cranberry Juice & UTIs: It’s Complicated

Wednesday, March 28th, 2012

For years cranberry juice has been thought to help fight bladder infections and UTIs (urinary tract infections) because of the chemical proanthocyanidin.

But a new study[1] indicates the chemical has no effect, though cranberry juice does keep bacteria from adhering to bladder cell walls.[2] With over 200 active compounds, as well as ascorbic acid (vitamin C) plus several other acids, cranberries are keeping researchers in the dark about what actually helps prevent the infections. Best guesses are the ascorbic acid or even the dye used in coloring the juice. After all, antibiotics were first developed by German dye researchers such as Paul Ehrlich.

In other health news, while only studied for one month, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists have concluded heirloom tomatoes like the Tangerine variety may have more of the powerful antioxidant lycopene than red tomatoes. Conventional tomatoes have trans-lycopene, or isomer, while tangerine tomatoes have tetra-cis-lycopene. You will be tested on this next week.


[1] Source: Clinical Infectious Diseases.

[2] The mechanism by which cranberry juice provides its anti-bacterial action.

Posted in Health | No Comments »

Health & The Environment

Friday, March 23rd, 2012

  • Walmart’s new healthy foods initiative is causing heartburn among grain producers and the baking industry. The Bentonville Behemoth’s clout in the food business is sure to force many companies into following its lead, and Walmart wasn’t shy about putting breads as the biggest offenders for trans fats and sodium. While margarine IS the very definition of trans fat, it accounts for only 17% in the average diet, as opposed to 40% in “grain-based foods.” Breads and other similar products account for 39% of sodium.
  • The claims by its apologists that organic food is nutritionally better have for the most part not been supported by science. However, a U.K. study[1] comparing 12 conventional milk brands and 10 organic brands discovered a higher concentration of beneficial fatty acids in the organic ones. The explanation is that “organic cows” eat more grass, boosting levels of omega-3 and conjugated linoleic acids higher (60% and 30% respectively).
  • With concerns about food safety at all-time highs, it’s no surprise manufacturers are looking for ways to calm consumer fears. The new standard is SQF (Safe Quality Foods). Broad Street Licensing Group former client Gourmet Boutique was the first chilled foods maker, for example, to achieve SQF Level Three, the highest rating. Now pork rinds giant Rudolph Foodsis trumpeting its achieving Level Two, with other manufacturers following suit.
  • And in a bit of Wal-Mart news, the company didn’t like it one bit when CVS hired former exec Hank Mullany to be its president, saying a non-compete provision of Mullany’s contract meant he couldn’t work for a competitor. Walmart’s pharma business is a crucial segment of its growth strategy, especially with Washington’s funding of electronic prescriptions adding up to hundreds of millions of dollars in potential revenue for vertically integrated companies like CVS and its Caremark division. A Delaware judge upheld Wally-World’s request for an injunction, and CVS had to look for someone else.

[1] Source: Journal of Dairy Science.

Posted in Environment, Health | No Comments »

Health & The Environment

Tuesday, March 13th, 2012

  • A nanoparticle developed at Purdue University may help prevent listeria contamination in food. The research was funded by the Agriculture Department and the National Science Foundation.
  • A Dutch research team has suggested that milk fats enriched with compounds called diacylglycerols may turn confectionary and baked goods into weight control aids. Through a complex physiological reaction, the compounds help oxidize fat in the body and reduce it piling up during eating.
  • Another study, this one in Germany,[1] disputes your mother’s contention that eating a good breakfast helps with weight controlby preventing overeating later in the day. The study found a net 400 calorie gain for those who like to “eat heavy” in the morning.

[1] The Else-Kroner-Fresenius Center of Nutritional Medicine in Munich.

Posted in Environment, Health | No Comments »

Health & The Environment

Tuesday, February 28th, 2012

  • A study[1] says HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) does not cause more weight gain than conventional sugars. The study is supposedly the first time researchers have measured the impact of sugar consumption on body weight, total cholesterol, and triglycerides levels. The study says research has been confused by pure glucose vs. pure fructose comparisons, which do not correlate with human consumption that combines table sugar (sucrose) and corn sugar (fructose). Unfortunately, the study was undermined because it was supported by a grant from the Corn Refiners Association (CRA).
  • Starbucks had thought its goal of having 100% of its cups be reusable or recyclable by 2015 might have been overly-ambitious, but no longer: a successful test with paper cup manufacturer International Paper and pulp mill Mississippi River Pulphas led to new cups from recycled cup material, something no other recycler currently can do.
  • Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack is calling on both sides of the genetically modified (GM) crops debate for compromise and even cooperation. It has been a year of confrontation as the Center for Food Safety persuaded a federal court to ban planting Monsanto GM alfalfa and GM sugar beets. The Supreme Court subsequently reversed the ban on GM alfalfa, while delaying a ruling on sugar beets until the USDA’s long-awaited Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).[2]A federal court in San Francisco recently ordered the uprooting of GM sugar beets, but the decision was delayed until March by an appellate court.
  • According to a study from Sweden,[3] women who ate more than three servings of fish per week were 16% less likely to have a stroke compared with those who ate less than one serving. While conventional wisdom says eating fatty fish like salmon is good, the study found eating learner fish produced fewer strokes, though Swedes eat their salmon salted, with salt increasing blood pressure, leading to more strokes.
  • Research in Australia says those who had high cholesterol during childhood often saw those numbers decline when they reached adulthood. Those whose levels remained high likely smoked or gained weight. The results point to changes in lifestyle as positive risk factor reductions, and that educational programs to promote healthy eating habits and exercise could produce results.

     

    [1] Source: the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

    [2] Completed in December after several years of litigation.

[3] Source: the American Heart Association’s(AHA) Scientific Sessions 2010.

Posted in Environment, Health | No Comments »

Supersize Me

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

Are we surprised?

A study[1] says combo meals encourage unhealthy eating. Duh!

Consumers perceive value in the bundled meals, which typically have much more calories than if ordered separately simply because restaurants offer larger sizes. Those participants who didn’t order fries in an a-la-carte–only scenario ordered a bundled meal with medium fries, a 380-calorie increase. Those who ordered small fries from the a la carte–only menu chose a bundled meal with medium fries, 150 calories more. Restaurants like combo meals, both for profitability (because of deals from beverage suppliers) and convenience (by speeding up service). They also find consumers want them. El Pollo Loco, for example, says its research tells it that customers prefer combos.

But one of the study’s authors points out that restaurants have removed small drink options, substituting massive 44 oz. “super sizes” instead.

[1] Source: “Consumption Effects of Bundling: Consumer Perceptions, Firm Actions, and Public Policy Implications” in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing by Kathryn Sharpe (University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business) and Richard Staelin (Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business)  called

Posted in Consumer Trends and Habits, Health, Opinion, The Restaurant Business | No Comments »

“White” Food Not Bigger Risk for Colon Cancer

Wednesday, February 8th, 2012

A 10-year study[1] of 73,000 middle-aged Chinese women shows no link between a diet high in carbohydrates that spur higher levels of blood sugar and a rise on colon cancer.

The glycemic index, or GI, rates the speed with which a carbohydrate raises blood sugar. High-GI foods like white bread, white rice and potatoes contribute to quickly-rising blood sugar levels. Low-GI foods, such as lentils, soybeans, yogurt, along with high-fiber grains, also make blood sugar levels rise, but not as fast nor as high.  Since high blood sugar levels cause the body to release more insulin, researchers have been concerned this could stimulate cancer cell growth. Several studies have shown people with type 2 diabetes(high blood sugar and insulin levels) are more prone to colon cancer than those without diabetes. One notable aspect of this study is its use of healthy subjects, rather than asking those with colon cancer about their habits and diet.


[1] Source: The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Posted in Health | No Comments »

Don’t Believe What Consumers Say

Tuesday, February 7th, 2012

We’ve been saying it for over a year now: consumers lie when they answer surveys.

They will insist they want restaurants & CPG houses to offer healthier fare, then order another Big Mac or calorie- and salt-laden heat & serve meal.

But now another survey[1]confirms it.

Over half of consumers (55%) claim they eat more healthfully at home than out, with 37% saying they don’t take health factors into choosing where to eat out! Confused? Just try figuring out what constitutes “healthy.” Some value the origin of the restaurant fare (local, regional, foreign) or method of cultivation (organic, fair-trade) of the components of the meal more than calories or fat content, and no pattern has emerged. These differences are tossed like a green salad across different regions, cities and demographics. Terminology also played a factor, with 67% of consumers willing to spend as much as 20% more for a food or beverage with a “certified organic label,” while only 18% would for an item labeled just “organic.” Another 67% would spend an equal amount (20% more) for an item labeled “all natural,” while just 59% would do so for an item labeled “natural.”


[1] Source: Technomic’s 2010 Healthy Eating Consumer Trend Report.

Posted in Consumer Trends and Habits, Health | No Comments »

« Older Entries