More Labeling Woes.

The giants of the food industry, the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and the Food Marketing Institute (FMI), have announced a new labeling program called the Nutrition Keys. They claim the development of the Keys was in response to Michelle Obama's request for a consistent front-of-pack labeling system. Front-of-package labeling refers to any health and nutrition-related message or symbol displayed on a food label. Here are a few examples:

 The Nutrition Keys, which will begin appearing on the front of packaged foods in the next few months, is the food industry's fancy, new labeling system. It's a glorified nutrition facts label, only it contains less information in a bigger font and it appears on the front, as opposed to the back, of the package. The icons display the calorie, saturated fat, sodium and sugar content of the product along with the serving size.

                                    
The decision to put the proposal into action came after the results of an International Food and Information Council study that was meant to evaluate the effectiveness of the Nutrition Keys. The conclusion was that consumers prefer the Nutrition Keys over other labels, but the results offer no evidence that shoppers are more willing to buy those products or if purchasing them will lead to healthier eating habits. The IFIC report states that the new label "strengthen(s) consumers' comprehension and comfort levels with the information provided." The GMA and FMI seem to have taken the only positive message out of the study and run with it.

Are we really confident that the food industry has our health, and not the depth of their pockets, as a prime interest? This isn't the first time food manufacturers have "taken action" to develop a unified front-of-package label. Their last attempt was known as Smart Choices. The green checkmark was used to promote “healthy” foods and listed the calorie amount along with servings per container on the front. It was abandoned in 2009, after scrutiny by the FDA and investigations into its validity when the logo started appearing on sugary cereals and frozen treats. The program's supporters argued the sugary cereal had been fortified with vitamins and the frozen dessert was low in calories and fat.

                                                              
Although the Nutrition Keys slim down the Nutrition Facts Label and make some of the information more visible, they still require the shopper to contemplate the overall quality of the product. The same limits and confusion of the Nutrition Facts Label remain. A new front-of-package location and a larger font won't mean squat to someone who typically spends under 13 seconds choosing one product over another. I understand the convenience factor, but summarizing the Nutrition Facts Label to give a quicker "peek" at the content is a little too reductive for me.