From “low fat” to  “high fiber” to “low carb”

More and more food companies are looking to appeal to customers by placing such voluntary health and nutrition related claims on product packages.

From “low fat” to  “high fiber” to “low carb” – more and more food companies are looking to appeal to customers by placing such voluntary health and nutrition related claims on product packages. According to a recent ERS report, new food products (and including reformulated ones) with health- and nutrition-related claims on packages accounted for 43.1 percent of all new U.S. food and beverage products in 2010. This is a considerable increase from 2001 where just 25.2 percent of products included health and nutrition claims and from just 34.6 percent in 1989. The downward trend in health- and nutrition labeling during 1989-2001 suggests that the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 may have prevented non-qualifying products from making these claims.  Claims per product, however increased from 2.0 in 1989 to 2.2 in 2001. Such an increase suggests that the NLEA did not undermine the competitive process, but rather by establishing a way to monitor credible claims it actually may have contributed to its’ expansion. The report also shows that from 2001 to 2010, competition continued as claims per packet kept increasing. In 2001 the average claim per packet was 2.2 and in 2010 – 2.6. And what were the most popular claims?  Claims related to gluten, antioxidants, and omegas-3s were among the leading statements by 2010.