Nutrition

National Nutrition Month: Menu and Nutrition Labeling Tips From a RDN

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Food plays a large role in our daily lives, but choosing the right foods to fit our individual lifestyles is not always easy. For example, someone may need to eat more calories if they’re training for a triathlon or incorporate more vegetables and whole grains into their meals if they’re trying to increase their fiber intake. Other times, consumers may simply be trying to choose a nutritionally-sound option for a meal on-the-go.

The theme for this year’s National Nutrition Month is “Go Further with Food,” which places an emphasis on selecting the right foods to meet individual needs. For restaurants and food manufacturers, this month serves as a reminder to track your progress in complying with upcoming labeling regulations and examine opportunities to develop new products to meet consumer needs. The Food Drug Administration (FDA) is making it easier for consumers to find transparent nutrition information on the foods they eat with menu labeling and nutrition labeling regulations coming into compliance soon. Continue Reading

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Nutrition

6 Steps to Updating Your Nutrition Labels for FDA Compliance

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As most of you have heard, the Food Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed an extension to the compliance dates for the Nutrition Facts Label regulations announced in 2016. The proposed new deadlines will be January 1, 2020 for food manufacturers with $10 million or greater in annual food sales and January 1, 2021 for food manufacturers with less than $10 million in annual food sales. Although the deadline has been pushed, many food manufacturers and retailers have already switched to the new nutrition label. If you are having trouble getting started, here is Mérieux NutriSciences‘ easy guide with the 6 steps you should take to implement the new nutrition label. Continue Reading

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Nutrition

Understanding Portion Distortion and its Role in Weight Loss

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In the nutrition world, we often say that “bad foods” don’t exist. As a licensed and registered dietitian, I have observed clients who have tried and failed to use different approaches to losing weight that contradicts this philosophy. These methods include eliminating entire food groups, restrictive diets, supplements, teas and more. When giving diet advice, I often remind people that achieving a diet and lifestyle change for a short period of time is one challenge, but maintaining it is another. Continue Reading

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Nutrition

Breaking Down the Nutrition Label: Added Sugars, Simplified

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With the new Nutrition Labeling Regulation deadline quickly approaching, the addition of one small line is creating a lot of buzz – added sugars. When the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the changes to the Nutrition Facts Label in 2016, they included a requirement for the label to display added sugars, both in grams per serving and the percent Daily Value (%DV). Manufacturers have since been working to update their product specifications with added sugar values, companies are working to calculate the amount of added sugar in their products and consequently, consumers are beginning to see these values appear on the labels of the foods they eat. Although this new information is meant to help inform, both food manufacturers and consumers alike are unclear as to what counts as an added sugar and how much of it should be consumed. Continue Reading

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Nutrition

Breaking Down Vitamin Claims and Labeling Requirements

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Whether you grew up taking a brightly colored Flintstones vitamin every day or depended on reminders from your parents to eat your vegetables, you learned the importance of getting your vitamins on a daily basis. With consumers increasingly demanding transparency in the nutritional content of the foods they choose, do you know which vitamins you need to list on your labels? If you are choosing to make a claim on your label regarding the vitamin content in your product, do you understand how that vitamin appeals to consumers? Continue Reading

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Nutrition

History Lessons: Nutrition Labeling Through the Ages

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Maybe you’ve heard the buzz, or maybe you’ve even seen it on one of your favorite food products – the FDA Nutrition Facts Label got a major makeover. When we consider the brief history in nutrition labeling in the United States, this revision to existing regulations was long overdue. Let’s take a look at the history of the Nutrition Facts Label to get a better understanding of why these changes were much needed. Continue Reading

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Food Labeling Food Manufacturing

How to Reduce Risk With Food Label Compliance Reviews

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All natural. Gluten free. Low in fat. Organic. Peanut free. The number of claims available for use to describe a food seems endless, so how does a manufacturer or producer know which words they can and cannot use? Taking one quick trip down the grocery aisle bombards a consumer with confusing label call-outs, outrageous marketing promises and countless newly innovative products.

The food and beverage market is a multi-million dollar industry that just keeps growing, providing consumers with access to trendy or niche foods they have never heard of before. The fast-paced world of food research and new product introductions may even leave some consumers questioning how true some of these claims are on new products with their fancy marketing call-outs and implied promises of renewed health and energy. Continue Reading

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Nutrition

How Old are Those Nutrient Values Destined for Your Nutrition Label?

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The United States and Canada have both made significant changes to their nutrition labels in the past year. In response, food manufacturers are dusting off each product’s Certificate of Analysis (COA) to create new nutrition labels in order to comply with updated regulations. But food manufacturers should consider how old their nutrient data is before using it to create a new label. Before sending those new labels to print, check to make sure your nutrient values are still usable.  Continue Reading

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