Former FDA chief calls for front-of-box nutrition summary
Besides overhauling the Nutrition Fact label on food packages, the FDA should mandate a summary of nutritional information on the front of the box, said former FDA commissioner David Kessler. Writing in the New England Journal of Medicine, Kessler says such a label would list “the top three ingredients, the calorie count, and the number of additional ingredients…in bold, easy-to-read type. To the harried shopper hoping to make some healthy choices, it would offer a quick way of identifying high-calorie, obesity-inducing food and of finding healthier alternatives.”
Kessler says his proposal is a starting point for action and says the goal for nutrition labeling “should be to encourage the sale and consumption of products full of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, rather than those loaded with little more than fat, sugar, and salt.” He supports the proposal to list “added sugars” on the Nutrition Facts label and says foodmakers should be required to aggregate related ingredients, such as sweeteners, into a single entry.
The FDA proposed the make-over of the Nutrition Facts label on March 3. For details, click here.