FOOD LABELING-SUGAR CONTENT UNDER ATTACK

The front of the pack labeling regulations are supposed to help the consumers to understand better about many aspects of the contents inside including nutritive value. However due to practical reasons there is a limit as to how much information can be loaded on the labels and there are doubts regarding the effectiveness of the present regulations. In a country like India such declaration printed in English has very little value as majority of the population are English illiterate and the information provided probably does not serve the consumer community much. Still the current labeling practices do serve a purpose in documenting the nature of the product for quality and safety agencies to administer food laws. Having established beyond a shadow of doubt regarding the role played by sugar in progressively deteriorating health status of human beings in many countries, knowing the sugar content in a product helps the consumer to pick and choose those with least sugar levels among processed food products. One of the new proposals now being considered to improve the effectiveness of labeling involves declaration of "added sugar" in the product during processing. Whether this will serve any purpose or how added sugar can be distinguished from naturally present sugar are issues which require to be deliberated before implementing the same. Here is a take on this new rumblings in the food processing sector with a potential to polarize the stakeholders further in the coming months. 

The American Bakers Assn. objects to the plan, saying (among other things) that since added and natural sugars are chemically the same, to enforce the labels the FDA would have to be able to inspect companies' recipes and they don't have the authority to do that. At the FDA website, you can read about the FDA's proposal and view comments that have been submitted. The National Dairy Council says such labels could lead to consumer confusion and unintended consequences, such as people avoiding nutritious foods that have sugars added to make them more tasty. They note that you can already see how much sugar is in food from the info on food packages right now. The National Milk Producers Federation worries about consumer confusion too. The Sugar Assn. recommends the study is not done, for a variety of reasons: They say the effect of added sugar on obesity is overstated, the FDA wouldn't have the regulatory power to act on this info, and that "it is in the public interest that FDA maintain its focus on the prominence of calories, maintain its science-based positions regarding added sugars labeling, and not further confuse consumers by adding unwarranted information to the [Nutrition Facts Panel]." And so it goes on … the National Confectioners Assn.opposes the research, the American Beverage Assn. opposes it.......while......on the flip side, the American Heart Assn."strongly supports the inclusion of added sugars on the Nutrition Facts Label" and writes that "In addition to the AHA, the 2010 Dietary Guidelines, MyPlate.gov, and countless other sources of dietary guidance recommend that consumers limit consumption of added sugars. Yet this can be difficult to do because added sugars are not currently included on the Nutrition Facts label. While 'sugars' is listed, the Nutrition Facts label does not distinguish between naturally occurring sugars such as those found in fruit or milk, which are associated with other important components inherent to foods such as vitamins and minerals, and added sugars, which are not." The Center for Science in the Public Interest is for the study, The Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University is for the study too. It is, of course, true that people can be misled if they overly focus on one particular facet of a food and that current labels on food packages are very good at helping us get confused that way. "Low-fat" items can contain just as many calories as higher-fat foods, and "organic" processed foods can be just as junky as any other kind, and just because Lucky Charms are made with whole grains, that does not make them a health food.

In a society where daily diet is made of processed foods as high as 70-80%, extent of sugar added by the industry during formulation may be critical and is controllable either voluntarily or by mandate. In such an environment declaration of added sugar can at least make the processor sensitive to the level of sugar incorporated and there is a possibility that voluntary reduction can be achieved. This is already happening with respect to salt and there is no reason it cannot happen with sugar too. It is not understandable as to why sugar needs to be added in high concentrations when many products can be still palatable at sugar levels of 10-15%. The current proposal to force the processors to declare the extent of sugar added can even set in motion competition among the processors to reduce added sugar as much as possible to gain consumer patronage. Technically it may be difficult to estimate in a finished product how much sugar has been added but as the processor knows the truth he can be forced to declare the same. While voluntary declaration of added sugar can be immediately enforced, monitory regime can be thought of later when reliable and simpler techniques are available for differentiating between natural and added sugar.  

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

REDUCING FAT AND SALT IN CHEESE-NEW CHALLENGES

Salt and fat in the foods consumed by human beings, are two constituents which are considered to be critical in controlling many life style diseases like CVD, Blood Pressure, Kidney disorders etc and their reduction in the diet is a necessity to control further escalation of the risks to the health of consumers. These two substances present naturally in many foods. per se do not present any dangers as Nature has made sure that they are invariably present in moderate quantities in most foods but they become a risk when added to foods while processing to enhance the sensory quality to make them more appealing  and literally addictive. Realizing the dangers posed by salt to human beings, sustained campaigns are going on world over to persuade the industry to reduce salt incorporated during processing. Same is true for fat also and here the success rate in making and marketing no-fat and low fat products has been phenomenal. While most foods are amenable to efforts to reduce salt and fat without seriously affecting their organoleptic attributes seriously, Cheese is an exception in that salt and fat are the critical ingredients that decide the acceptability to the consumers.   

"Under pressure to reduce sodium and saturated fats in American diets — especially those of children — the cheese industry has tried to make products with less salt or fat that consumers will like. It has not had great success. "We've made some progress in that arena," said Gregory D. Miller, president of the Dairy Research Institute. "But we have not been able to crack the code." Dr. Miller, whose group is financed by the dairy industry, was referring to efforts to reduce salt, but he had a similar appraisal of the challenges of low-fat cheese. "When you take a lot of the fat out, essentially cheese will turn into an eraser," he said. The trouble with cheese is that salt and fat are critical components, responsible for far more of its character than consumers might think. Salt helps control moisture content and bacterial activity — the starter culture that is added to the milk and naturally occurring strains. All of them can flavor the cheese, for better or worse, as it ages. "Salt serves as a preservative, as a director of flavor development," said Mark Johnson, senior scientist with the Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "If I remove it, my flavor goes in a different direction." Fat affects moisture levels, too — less fat generally means more water, which can speed spoilage — and helps govern texture, balancing out proteins so a cheese slices properly and feels right when chewed. Because salt and fat both affect moisture, it is particularly difficult to make a product that is low in both".

Cheese is historically an American food consumed in large quantities because it costs relatively less compared to the cost of fluid milk. To a large extent lower cost of  cheese in the US is as a result of deliberate government policy to help the dairy industry which gets fluid milk for making products at practically throw away prices. Fluid milk prices therefore are raised to compensate the producers for the loss incurred due to sale of milk to the processing industry. No doubt Cheese is a highly nutritious food containing more than 30% high quality proteins but its 35% fat content makes Cheese a dangerous food too if not consumed in moderate quantities. The salt content varies from 300 mg (spreads) to 1650 mg (Roquefort) of Sodium equivalent per 100 gm and if cheese is not consumed beyond 30-50 gm a day, the salt present in cheese is unlikely to be of any consequence. The salt need of human body is placed at 5-6 gm (2-2.4 gm of sodium equivalent) a day per person. But imagine the consequences of liberal consumption of more cheese on the health. Though an average American eats about 16 kg of cheese annually, what is surprising is that cheese consumption is more than double this quantity in a country like Greece! Whether Cheese is really the culprit for host of health disorders prevalent in the US is a matter of opinion as the per capita average consumption figure is less than 50 gm a day. What is however more dangerous definitely is the saturated fat content in cheese which can be a factor in obesity development. Dairy technologists will have to double up their efforts to bring down both salt and fat in cheese products and technical problems cannot be cited as an excuse for not doing this.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

HOME COOKED FOODS-SAFER WAY OF EATING

Thousands of youngsters who are working in many technology parks in India depend on in-house cafeterias and nearby restaurants for their daily foods as most of them are unmarried adults with no wherewithal to cook at their residential facilities. The disadvantage with such mass cooked foods by caterers is that within no time monotony sets in and foods served become unacceptable progressively with no excitement normally associated with variety and novelty. Besides food safety is a terrible concern for them as incidences of food poisoning make them some what nervous. After all peak productivity is a distinct outcome of culinary satisfaction and best way to achieve this can be by getting access to foods prepared by hand by small time traditional female chefs in good families. Such services involving delivery of home cooked foods are very common in a city like Mumbai where thousands of meals are delivered to offices from the homes of office going employees in their own personal containers which has captured world wide attention. Here comes another development in a place like Thiruvananthapuram Technopark in Kerala where delivery of home cooked foods is becoming an accepted practice by small family based catering homes nearby.  

Such home-food delivery services around the IT park have become a last refuge for techies. Post the 'shawarma' incident in the city, where a young man died of food poisoning after eating the Arabian delicacy last month, eating fast food rings an alarm bell these days, especially for techies, many of whom are staying away from homes. Two years into home-food business, Thomas George David, who runs 'Taste Home,' says he has always been careful with the kind of ingredients that go into the food. "I am aware of the problems that happen in hotels. But at Taste Home, all the work is done in a hygienic environment since it is our home. We also get bulk orders for home parties," says Mr. David. Such home-cooked food at affordable rates is also a blessing for the many people working in the security and cleaning departments at Technopark. "We cannot afford the food at the food courts here and so we buy these packets when we are unable to bring lunch from home," says S. Beena, a member of the cleaning staff. The easiest option for techies is, of course, to throng the food courts but those who are aware of the health consequences have taken up what they call 'group cooking.' A few of them have started making use of their otherwise untouched kitchens to cook food whenever time permits. Most of the employees, who have rented houses in groups, find this as the most feasible option for healthy meals everyday. "We are a group of six girls and we have rented a flat. We decided to share money to buy groceries and take turns to cook," says Anu Davis, an employee at Infosys. Their monthly visits home are also the time to get new recipes, those that they hope to perfect in some time.

The IT employers cannot be blamed for the unsatisfactory quality of food served in cafeterias and food courts within their premises because such mass catering can never be a solution for the craving for good foods with variety and quality. It is known that in many small cities there are home based cookeries serving a limited number of meals to senior citizens and other customers with no access to good foods and who are nostalgic about the foods of yester years. Home based catering system is an excellent one that serves well both the supplier as well as the consumer and must be encouraged by the civic authorities in every town and city through minimum bureaucratic hassles like licensing, regulation, high handed inspection and frequent harassment. There is a case for encouraging these family enterprises through better awareness programs and training for ensuring minimum hygiene and sanitation.  

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

MEAT INDUSTRY-EMERGENCE OF NEW ALLERGIC TRIGGERS

Recent outbreak of a peculiar allergy syndrome in some parts of the US raised serious concerns among food safety experts because of its lack of resemblance to any other allergies known earlier. Popularly known allergies from foods are invariably attributed to proteins of different nature contained in them but it is for the first time that a polysaccharide was implicated in human allergy. Detailed investigation revealed that this allergy is caused only in consumers eating meat and attempts to use this as an excuse for advocating vegetarianism does not make any sense. After all meat was being eaten for ages without this allergy raising its head till recently. Fortunately scientific investigations were able to pin point the source of the allergen and it should be possible to avoid by taking adequate precaution in protecting the meat animals from infestation with certain species of ticks. Here is an expose on the above unusual allergy. 

"Fortunately for those inflicted by this mysterious allergy, one of the victims of this strange disease was Dr. Thomas Platts-Mills, a reknowned University of Virginia immunologist. Dr. Platts-Mills and his colleagues at UVA have been on a mission to figure out just what is going on. They reported initially in 2009 on what appeared to be a wholly new type of food allergy: cases of anaphylactic shock that were not occurring immediately after a food was eaten as is typical for food allergies, but which had its onset 3-4 hours after consumption of the trigger. In the spring of 2011, the team of researchers came to an even more surprising conclusion: tick bites are causing meat allergies. The trigger turns out to be an oligosaccharide (a complex sugar, galactose-alpha 1,3-galactose or alpha-gal, if you like scientific names) contained in the cell on non-primate mammals -- that means a molecule that is in beef, pork, lamb, and other meats that is not found naturally in human cells. Alpha-gal in the tick's saliva sensitizes susceptible people when they are bitten; hives or anaphylactic shock result when the person subsequently ingests alpha-gal in meat".

Unique features of this allergy include its polysaccharide nature and delayed manifestation of allergic symptoms taking as much as 3-4 hours after consumption of the infested meat. It is intriguing as to how a polysaccharide like alpha-gal can get entry into the human digestive tract to cause allergy as such complex carbohydrates are not known to be digested in human system. Also why it should take hours for the allergy to be manifested is another unanswered question in this episode. Though the number of people affected by this latest allergy episode is very few, as a scientific curiosity, further investigation may reveal interesting biochemical evolutionary developments involving polysaccharide metabolism in human beings.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

YOGURT IN INDIA-NEW CHOICES FOR CONSUMERS

Yogurt or Curd which is an essential component of staple diet in India has been hibernating in the homes for centuries without getting into the main stream market due to many reasons including lack of preservation technology and poor cold chain infrastructure for distribution and retailing. This situation seems to be changing with many domestic and foreign players getting into this sector to make available standard curd based products like frozen yogurt with a variety of flavor and taste. Traditionally curd is made at home and consumed either with the main meals or as a beverage like Lassi and many urban regions have milk shops preparing these products to be made and consumed fresh on the spot. Attempts by some dairy processors to make and market "set curds" using standardized cultures have been going on for some time but without creating any flutter in the market place. During the last few years the curd market is witnessing some turbulence with many cooperative dairy units able to raise volume for their simple curd packed in poly pouches for sale through the fluid milk distribution net work. It is only now that frozen yogurt products which are internationally known are entering in India for offering these products using state of the art technology. If the reports are to be believed the yogurt market is clocking growth in the range of 15-18% annually and business predictions indicate literally flooding of the market place by different branded products in the coming years. Here is a commentary on this exciting development in India. 

The Indian consumer with disposable income is turning to frozen yogurt as a healthy alternative to high-calorie desserts. And leading international players are fast moving in to tap into the growing market, including Red Mango, Canada-based Kiwi Kiss, South Korea's Yogurberry, France's Danone and Switzerland's Nestlé. The Los Angeles-based chain Pinkberry is reported to be getting ready to enter India by the end of this year. Meanwhile, leading Indian brands such as Mother Dairy and Amul have also been expanding their yogurt portfolio. The New Delhi–based research and consultancy firm Technopak Advisors estimates the global frozen yogurt market at around $75 to $77 billion and growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% to 18%. Of this, the U.S. accounts for $11 billion and is growing at a CAGR of 10% to 12%. In India, yogurt is classified under the health and wellness food segment. Technopak estimates that in 2011, this segment garnered around $2 billion in revenues. Over the next three years, it is expected to grow to $5 billion. Pratichee Kapoor, associate vice president for food services and agriculture at Technopak, says the packaged yogurt market (plain and flavored) currently constitutes around 7% to 8% of the total health and wellness segment in India and was worth around $150 million in 2011. It is growing at a CAGR of 18% to 20% and is poised to double in size by 2015. According to Technopak the ice cream and frozen dessert market in India — which includes frozen yogurt — was estimated to be at $450 million in 2009-2010 and is expected to cross $900 million by 2014-2015. A separate figure for the share of the frozen yogurt market was not available.

What ever the market predictions, it is a fact that yogurt is liked by Indians and fortunately curd based products targeted at kids in stead of high fat and high sugar ice cream products, are healthier choices. Originally started as an alternative to ice creams by the industry which wanted to circumvent the rigid standards for ice cream, the concept seems to have become popular with billions of dollars of frozen yogurts being consumed world over. Though frozen yogurt is being promoted as a healthy choice it is some what unclear whether all the health claims made on the label are sustainable under scientific scrutiny. There are flavored Lassi products already being served from thousands of shops, especially in the North. However these are made from fresh curds with no thermal processing involved but packed frozen yogurt does undergo some processing which may affect the effective concentration of probiotic bacteria in such products. One advantage for Lassi over frozen yogurt is that it is available in salty taste also unlike the the latter which are intensely sweetened. The food authorities will have to come out with specific standards, especially with regard to the bacterial levels in such products and probably frozen yogurt will have to come under the category of proprietary products until such time proper standards are promulgated in the country. Commercially processed yogurt preparations now made in India will definitely provide variety to the consumer beyond what is available earlier. From the health point of view there is no doubt that frozen yogurt is preferable to ice cream any day.
V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

Bt CROPS IN INDIA-FACING HARSH CRITICISM FROM LAW MAKERS

What has been suspected long ago has turned out to be true going by the recent criticism of GM crops by the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture in India. In a stinging commentary on the scientific groups that cleared Bt Cotton and Bt Brinjal, the Committee called for a thorough investigation into its action, implying that the decision to give clearance was based on considerations other than interests of the consumer and the farmer. It is rare that law makers in India take so much interest in matters related to common man and it deserves full kudos for this yeoman service to the nation. It may be recalled that Bt Brinjal almost got through the clearance mechanism of the government and would have become a source of danger to the farming community but for sustained hostility shown by many renowned scientists, consumers and social activists. Wisdom did dawn finally on the Environment Minister of GOI to deny permission for cultivation of GM Brinjal after a series of public debates in some of the cities during 2010. Here is a report on the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee that may have far reaching implications for future efforts by vested interests to introduce GM technology based agricultural crops.  

"In a major setback to the proponents of genetically modified technology in farm crops, the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture on Thursday asked the government to stop all field trials and sought a bar on GM food crops (such as Bt. brinjal). The committee report, tabled in the Lok Sabha, demanded a "thorough probe" into how permission was given to commercialise Bt. brinjal seed when all evaluation tests were not carried out. It said there were indications of a "collusion of the worst kind from the beginning till the imposition of a moratorium on its commercialisation in February, 2010, by the then Minister for Environment and Forests." The report came a day after Maharashtra cancelled Mahyco's licence to sell its Bt. cotton seeds. It flayed the government for not discussing the issue in Parliament and observed that the Ministry failed in its responsibility by introducing such a policy, ignoring the interests of the 70 per cent small and marginal farmers. The report criticised the composition and regulatory role of the Genetic Engineering Approval (Appraisal) Committee and the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM). According to Committee chairman Basudeb Acharia, there is not a single note of dissent in the report of the 31-member panel, including nine from the Congress and six from the BJP. Observing that GM crops (such as Bt. cotton) benefited the (seed) industry without a "trickle-down" gain to farmers, it recommended that till all concerns were addressed, further research and development should be done only in contained conditions. Citing instances of conflict of interest of various stakeholders, the panel said the government must put in place all regulatory, monitoring, oversight and surveillance systems. Raising the "ethical dimensions" of transgenics in agricultural crops, as well as studies of a long-term environmental and chronic toxicology impact, the panel noted that there were no significant socio-economic benefits to farmers. On the contrary, farmers have incurred huge debts because of this capital-intensive practice. "Today, 93 per cent of the area is under Bt. cotton because no alternative seeds are available," Mr. Acharia said".

It is very true that more than 80% of the food crops in the United States are raised through GM crop seeds and one may argue that nothing untoward has happened so far to the population there. A counter question can logically be raised as to why GM crops have not been approved universally except in the US and a handful of other countries in this Universe, if it is absolutely safe?. The terrible tragedy that is facing the cotton farmers in India is a classical example of government policies imposed on farmers without giving adequate thought to the damage that can be caused in the long term. To day the cotton cultivators are facing penury because the GM version they used did not get them any where and traditional cotton seeds of assured viability are in short supply. Without going into the merits and demerits of GM technology, it is suffice to say that unless GM foods are proved safe conclusively or its potential to increase crop yields significantly at comparable costs confirmed, no country should accept the same unreservedly. The fact that GM seeds are produced by a couple of monolithic transnational agricultural giants, with a track record of deception and arm twisting, makes the matter worse. There must be a global public initiative under the banner of FAO of the UN to look into Genetic Engineering science in toto and the GM seeds, if found advantageous in any way with assured safety, should be made a common property universally accessible, in stead being monopolistic ownership as it exists to day.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

"FRANKENSTEIN" BACTERIA-EMERGING HEALTH SCARE?

Emergence of new strains of pathogens resistant to all known antibiotic drugs is a matter of concern for medical communities all over the world. Detection of this trait in Klebsiella recently in the US is a pointer to the spread of more and more virulent strains of simple bacteria with high resistance to most known drugs. It was in India that the existence of a new set of genes that confer resistance to many drugs was reported and now it is more or less admitted that plasmids from such genes are easily transferred to any bacterium which can make it drug resistant. Such bacterial strains are a potent source of creating many types of Frankenstein disease vectors with no vulnerability to all known treatment regimes known to human beings. Here is a commentary on this new development.  

The bacteria are called carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae or CRE. They're black sheep in a big herd of mostly harmless germs that includes common organisms inhabiting every body's gut, such as the familiar E. coli. In the Rhode Island case, the germ was Klebsiella, which can cause pneumonia and a variety of other infections. The particular trait of these bugs causing most concern is a set of genes, originally seen in New Delhi, that confer resistance to practically all antibiotics. Even more alarming, these New Delhi genes reside on a circular piece of DNA called a plasmid that can be transferred easily to many other kinds of bacteria, rendering them "extensively drug resistant," or XDR. The CDC says only one antibiotic, called colistin, can treat the New Delhi strain.While other forms of CRE have been seen in U.S. hospitals and nursing homes with increasing frequency over the past decade, the New Delhi variant is only beginning to show up.

If such trends continue and the list of drug resistant pathogens grows fast in the coming years the medical community will have no armor to fight them unless more investment flows into research to fight this phenomenon. While hygiene and sanitation play a role in resisting infection, the poor economic and educational standards in many third world countries make it difficult to make the people follow measures like frequent hand washing and other pre-emptive practices. A drastic re-calibration of the primary health centers providing more teeth to the programs concerned with early detection of such debilitating diseases like TB and others will go a long way to arrest their spread on the track. No matter how much public money flows into disease fighting programs in every country, ultimate responsibility falls on the individual to protect himself from such incidences through conscious personal efforts.    

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com