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Nutrition fact labels are confusing. Despite the efforts of the FDA and Congress in enacting the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act in the early 1990’s, people are still stumped at the supermarket, and obesity rates are soaring.

Starting in 2004, several food manufacturers, and later grocery chains, decided to create simpler markings on the food packages or shelves. These quick glance labels would help consumers make decisions better and faster. And thus began a Front-of-Package-Nutrition-Label arms race.

In the last 12 months the number of rating systems has more than doubled. A partial list includes SmartSpot, Sensible Solutions, Guiding Stars, Smart Choices, NuVal, Healthy Ideas, nutritionIQ, Nutritional Spotlight, and Healthy Elements.

While in a free market competition is good, what has happened is that consumers are even more confused than they were before. What are these new front of pack labels? What do they mean? Can we rely on them instead of reading the nutrition label on the back of the package? Who’s behind the scores? Are they objective?

A good piece in the Chicago Tribune touches upon some of these issues:

But the new systems are anything but simple. Each is based on different criteria. Some exclude snack foods, candy, ice cream and jams from the ratings. Some try to help consumers find the healthiest food within a category, such as cookies. Others allow comparisons of foods in different supermarket aisles. And while a product might be labeled healthy according to one system, it might receive a low score elsewhere.

read the whole thing…

What you need to know:

Most of the rating systems were created by food manufacturers or supermarket chains. Don’t forget that their goal is to sell you more food, not less. So take their recommendations with a grain of salt.

We’ve put together a comparison chart that attempts to sort out all the details, like who’s backing which program, where it can be found, and what are the pros and cons.

Hopefully the FDA will step in and create a unified codex, or at the very least help establish some ground rules for creating these nutrition rating labels. Until then, buyer beware.

What to do at the supermarket:

If you’ve been reading this blog, you know the drill.

Be critical of health claims and nutrition markings, do read nutrition labels and ingredient lists.

Try to stay away from danger aisles at the supermarket.

Buy more fruits and vegetables, including frozen. Eat whole grains, low fat meats and dairy. And limit the amount of snacks you pile into the shopping cart.

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The new year has ushered in a blizzard of new food labeling systems aimed at helping consumers make healthier choices at the supermarket. This week it is Supervalu, which kicked off nutritionIQ at its California Albertsons stores.

The color-coded, easy-to-spot shelf tags, or cards, are supposed to aid shoppers in choosing low fat, high fiber and other good foods. From the SuperValu press release:

The program covers 11 different nutrient claims in seven categories with the shelf tags color-coded as follows:
• excellent or good source of fiber are denoted by orange tags,
• excellent or good source of calcium by blue tags,
• excellent or good source of protein by yellow tags,
• low or healthier level of sodium by dark green tags,
• low calorie by a purple tag,
• low saturated fat by a red tag and
• whole grains by a dark orange tag.

read the full press release…

It seems that in the last few months, simplifying food labels has become a must for all grocery chains and manufacturers. NuVal, GDA, Nutritional Spotlight, and Smart Choices are recent examples. For more details, read our history of product nutrition labeling. While easy to understand nutrition information is to be commended, consumers may become befuddled by the tower of nutritional babel.

The new system has been developed in cooperation with Joslin Clinic, part of an academic medical center affiliated with Harvard Medical School.

What you need to know:

Supervalu should be commended for taking this first step, showcasing the more nutritious foods in the supermarket. But will they also place signs on foods that are really not nutritious? Don’t hold your breath.

As a supermarket that needs to sell more, not less products, don’t expect Albertson’s to post NutritionIQ signage with negative nutritional information. In fact, Supervalu does not even plan to apply the benchmarks to snacks or beverages, where there is no chance to find nutrition.

What to do at the supermarket:

Although nutritionIQ tags simplify things for shoppers, always check the nutrition label as well to learn about the nutrients to limit. Many times low-fat means high in sugar. But the tag won’t necessarily tell you that.

In general, it’s best to select products with short ingredient lists. Unprocessed foods are easy to find at the supermarket. Just stick to the perimeter of the store, where you will find fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy and low fat cuts of meat.

Don’t be let simplifications created by the supermarket or a munufacturer catch you off guard. Remember, they want you to buy more, not less.

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It’s  unclear if  New Year weight loss resolutions are the reason, but for the second time in a week, a new front of package nutrition information label has been introduced.

Sara Lee joins the Food Label frenzy and has introduced Nutritional Spotlight. You can download their press release here [PDF]. The system, which is similar to the European GDA labeling, will initially appear on Sara Lee bread, bun, and bagel products. Similar labeling efforts were introduced by Kellogg’s and Mars late last year. The label simplification movement has shifted to high gear in the past few months with the introduction of  pan industry initiatives such as Smart Choices and NuVal. For more details, read our history of product nutrition labeling.

What you need to know:

While the underlying logic of simplyfing the nutrition labels is to be commended, this is a marketing play by Sara Lee, which will most definitely spotlight the positive nutrients in its products, not the negative ones.

What to do at the supermarket:

Choose products that don’t have a long ingredient list. Unprocessed foods are easy to find at the supermarket. Just stick to the perimeter of the stor, where you will find fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy and low fat cuts of meat.

Don’t be fooled by Nutritional Spotlights or other front of label nutrition simplifications created by specific food manufacturers because they are just an another arrow in their quiver of marketing messages.

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