Cascadian Farms O’s is a favorite finger food for many parents worried about the use of corn syrup and too much sugar in General Mill's Cheerios brand. You know, that sweet little cereal that many of us grew up on. But just take a look at the ingredients...
Whole Grain Oats, Modified Corn Starch, Corn Starch, Sugar, Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Oat Fiber, Tripotassium Phosphate, Wheat Starch, Vitamin E (Mixed Tocopherols) Added to Preserve Freshness. Vitamins and Minerals: Iron and Zinc (Mineral Nutrients), Vitamin C (Sodium Ascorbate), A B Vitamin (Niacinamide), Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B1 (Thiamin Mononitrate), Vitamin A (Palmitate), A B Vitamin (Folic Acid), Vitamin B12, Vitamin D.
Okay, so it's got whole grain oats, sugar, etc. but many parents thought, I should go for the smaller chain, the natural alternative. Guess what?
Cascadian Farms is owned by General Mills, it was purchased as a smaller company and swallowed up whole, just as Burt Bee's, Ben and Jerry's and other favorites have been over the years.
SO?
Well General Mills quietly changed the formula for their Cascadian Farms O’s.
Here’s the skinny (or not-so-skinny, as it were): Cascadian Farms is owned by General Mills who recently quietly reformulated Purely O’s adding THREE times the sugar, fillers including corn meal and sweeteners including tapioca syrup.
...
I don’t know about you, but this enrages me. Makes me wonder what kind of society will live in that we can’t trust the companies that feed our children to keep things like unnecessary excess fat and sugar and endocrine disruptors (e.g., Bisphenol-A) out of our babies’ food and food containers. Or to at least tell us that they haven’t (remember the Sigg debacle?). I guess, as Marion Nestle points out, it’s just business as usual for these big companies.
Chowmama
I think this should enrage quite a few people because many shop for alternative brands because they expect more and then quietly in the night, these brands are bought up by the bigger guys and then, without any notice they are reformulated to be made cheaper and more profitable at the cost of our health and our environment.
Burt's Bees, Tom's of Maine, Naked Juice: Your Favorite Brands? Take Another Look -- They May Not Be What They Seem
I was surprised more recently when I saw Burt's Bees products everywhere -- in grocery stores, drug stores, corner bodegas and big-box stores like Target and Wal-Mart. I thought to myself, fantastic; the marketplace is working, and good for Burt. He has made his mark, and the demand for his products is on the rise.
Needless to say, I was shocked when I recently found out that Burt's Bees is now owned by Clorox, a massive corporate company that has historically cared very little about the environment, but whose main industry is directly associated with harmful chemicals, some of which require warning labels for legal sale.
Clorox; yes, that's right -- the bleach company with an estimated revenue of $ 4.8 billion that employs nearly 7,600 workers (now bees) and sells products like Liquid-Plumr, Pine-Sol and Armor All, a far cry from the origins of Burt.
And this isn't a new topic of debate, it was brought up in Food Inc. when Stonyfield Farms discussed being bought and sold in Walmart stores. The argument has to do with bringing more organic products to a wider audience. But can we really sell cheap organic? Is it possible? Really?
Probably not, that's really at issue, is our unwillingness to pay more for our food and to expect better quality for what we get. And it is literally killing us.
Oprah had Michael Pollan on her show last week and it was an important because more people need to know about the issues Pollan and others who are concerned about where our food comes from because it is literally making us sick. The more mainstream, the more pressure for better quality food. At least that's the hope.
Food 101 with Michael Pollan.
Though some foods are engineered to be fat-free, Michael says it's important to note many of these products swap fat for sugar. "There are now 99 percent fat-free yogurts that have more calories than full-fat yogurt because of sugar," he says. "That's why [during] this low-fat kick we've been on for 40 years, we've gotten really fat."
Even if you think you're making smart choices, Michael says the processed foods you buy at the store may affect your health. "Before the Western diet comes in, which is around the turn of the last century, populations did not have high levels of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, all these diseases," he says.
Although "real" food is often more expensive, Michael says you either pay for real food now—or pay the doctor later. In 1960, Michael says 18 percent of our national income was spent on food, and only 5 percent on healthcare. Today, he says 9 percent of our income is spent on food and a whopping 17 percent on healthcare. "The less we spend on food, the more we spend on healthcare," he says.
It enrages me. I'm sure it enrages you.
Oprah also did, Eight Questions with Michael Pollan. Both these links are good things to share with friends and family that aren't quite into the food movement and might need the Oprah stamp of approval. For me, the source doesn't matter if it gets the message out.
Q: After working a long day, I don't want to cook, but I want to eat healthy, well-balanced meals. Are frozen dinners labeled "healthy" or "low calorie" a healthy alternative?
A: Just because something is called "healthy" doesn't mean it is. I would go vegetarian on prepared foods like this if there is no alternative. Amy's Organics has some good items. But is it really so hard to grill or sauté a chicken breast and serve it with some frozen peas or spinach? In the amount of time it takes to microwave a TV dinner, you can put something much tastier on the table, I promise.
Q: I don't cook, so what should I feed my child?
A: If you don't cook, you should look for the simplest, most wholesome prepared and packaged foods: a short list of ingredients (five, say, and definitely less than 10), and all ingredients you've heard of or that you can picture in their natural state or that normal people have in their cupboard. ( See the rules in my book Food Rules . ) There is nothing wrong—and much right—about frozen vegetables, and they're a great deal, so consider these as an options.
And ask yourself, why don't you cook? You don't know how? You don't have time? Maybe by adjusting your priorities or taking a class, you could learn some of the basics. It's really not hard to put a wholesome meal on the table in a half hour—and the rewards are incredible.
Lesson learned, read labels and reread and keep an eye who might be buying up your favorite little company and turn it into a big item ticket, like the example of Cascadian Farms. It's not the first time and as wel know it won't be the last.