The Environmental Working Group unveiled its Food Scores database that rates 80,000 foods on a scale of 1 to 10 based on nutrition, ingredients and how much processing it received. Renee Sharp, EWG director of research, said the database is more comprehensive than other rating systems by taking into account ingredients of concern and possibility of contaminants. On EWG’s scale, 18 percent of products scored “best,” 57 percent were in the middle and 25 percent scored worst.
Sixty percent of the foods in the EWG database contain added sugar. “We are very concerned about that,” said EWG president Ken Cook. “We have companies that are irresponsibly adding sugar to many, many products.”
A food industry trade group, Grocery Manufacturers Association, said the database was flawed and filled with misinformation. “The best advice for consumers seeking to achieve and maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle is to follow the federal government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” said GMA. It said EWG’s ratings were skewed in favor of organic food, guessed at the amount of added sugars, and relied on published sources rather than conduct tests of its own to determine contaminants in a food.