Study time! Know your food label lingo

The four things you need to know about organics:

• There are four new organic categories: “100 percent organic”; “organic” — defined by the USDA as containing 95 percent organic ingredients; “made with organic” — which includes products with at least 70 percent organic ingredients; and products with less than 70 percent organic ingredients, which are only allowed to list the organic items in the ingredient panel on the side of the package.
• All organic agriculture prohibits the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, irradiation, sewage sludge, and growth hormones, and no genetically modified organisms can be contained in anything labeled organic.
• Standards for being “certified organic” require that the land used to grow organic crops go through a three-year "transition period" to make sure the crops are free of synthetic pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
• The organic segment now represents only 1.5 percent of all food and non-alcoholic beverage sales.

Biggest fallacy regarding organics
Many believe there is a nutritional difference between organic and conventional foods. Essentially, there is not — when it comes to the basics of fat, calories and fiber, both are identical. However, a few recent studies have found that certain nutrients, including Vitamin C in frozen corn and polyphenols (antioxidants that bolster the immune system) in peaches, pears and marionberries were significantly higher in the organic counterparts. More research is ongoing as these studies have been vigorously challenged by non-organic interests.

Fair Trade
The certified “fair trade” label now appears on coffee, chocolate, tea, sugar and fruit (including bananas) products. In order to carry the label, each producer must be inspected each year and those products are audited to insure that they are indeed made with fair trade ingredients. Worldwide there are now more than 600,000 farmers, farm workers and tea pickers in over 32 countries that benefit from the program.

The four things you need to know about fair trade:

• Fair trade means that a “fair price” is paid to farmers through a long term contract and system that is designed to eliminate the middlemen and enable the farmers to deal directly with buyers. For example, the average cocoa farmer receives about $160 per metric ton of cocoa vs. the fair-trade farmers who sell through cooperatives and receive $225 to $300 per ton. By receiving a fair price, fair trade producers typically avoid cost-cutting practices that sacrifice quality — so we are more likely to get a better quality product!
• Under fair trade certification, no children or forced labor is used.
• Most fair trade-certified coffee, tea and chocolate in the U.S. is certified organic and shade grown. Products that are not grown in this way lead to the loss of larger trees, which leads to soil erosion from the typically steep terrain, which lessens the land's fecundity and pollutes local waterways. It also results in chemicals contaminating the land, water, wildlife and farm workers. Less than 2 percent of all coffee grown worldwide is fair trade. 
• Fair trade also means sustainable agriculture. Many of the birds populating North America each summer spend their winters in “coffee country” in northern Latin America. Hummingbirds, swallows, warblers, orioles, tanagers and other native and migratory birds find a safe haven in the remaining forests of shade-coffee plantations. Studies in Colombia and Mexico found 94 percent to 97 percent fewer bird species in “sun grown” coffee plantations than in “shade grown” plantations.  

Biggest fallacy regarding fair trade
Don't assume that all fair-trade products are automatically organic, shade-grown or “good” for the environment. Since there are differences in the practices of companies and farms, it is always best to read labels carefully and look for what they do and do not claim.

Food Allergies
The four things you need to know about food allergies:

• More than 11 million Americans suffer from food allergies, and predictions say the incidence of food allergies is on the increase.
• Eight food groups account for 90 percent of allergic reactions. They include peanuts, tree nuts (walnuts, pecans, etc.), fish, shellfish, eggs, milk, soy and wheat. There are a myriad of other things that can cause allergies for some people, including food additives such as aspartame or sulfites, or even genetically modified produce.
• There are ways in which a label can state that it has possible allergens. This can be stated as “contains _________,” with the allergen listed in immediate proximity to the ingredient declaration. For example, “contains soy and milk.” Or an ingredient that contains one of the major food allergens can contain an asterisk referring the consumer to a statement of explanation. For example, “whey” would be listed as “whey*” and would be followed by “*milk” after the complete ingredient declaration. Ingredients: sugar, chocolate, whey*, coconut; *milk.
• The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 requires that food ingredient statements identify in common language that an ingredient is itself, or is derived from, one of the eight main food allergens (peanuts, tree nuts, fish, crustacea, eggs, milk, soy, and wheat), or is gluten (from rye, barley, oats, and triticale).

Biggest fallacy regarding food allergy labels
FALCPA is an important step forward, but keep in mind that labeling requirements won't be enforced until January 2006. Be sure to read all labels carefully, and be on the lookout for scientific or unclear terms (i.e., “casein” for milk, or “albumin” for egg) until the food industry becomes compliant with this new law.

To get your free TODAY show Food Allergy Buddy Card, go to www.foodallergybuddy.com.

Phil Lempert is food editor of the “Today” show. He welcomes questions and comments, which can be sent to or by using the mail box below. For more about the latest trends on the supermarket shelves, visit Phil’s Web site at http://www.supermarketguru.com/.

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