The Food Movement Minute is a news roundup for busy foodies. I chew up over 25 industry and consumer publications each day and spit out only the news that matters most in a quick and entertaining read. I have a very discerning palate.
Today’s topics: GMO Potatoes, Serving Size, Sugary Drinks
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GMO Potatoes
The Story
The USDA has approved a potato genetically engineered to resist the pathogen that caused the Irish potato famine and still costs the potato industry $5 billion globally.
The Details
Quick, call the Irish relatives. The Russet Burbank potato is the second generation GMO potato approved by the USDA this year. The first generation, approved in March, is designed to reduce bruising and creation of a chemical produced at high temperatures that some studies have shown can cause cancer. The Russet Burbank will possess all the traits of the first generation plus resistance to the late blight pathogen and an ability to be stored at colder temperatures longer to reduce food waste. Perhaps the most interesting part: all the modifications to the Russet Burbank were made by silencing existing genes or adding genes from other types of potatoes.
Why it Matters
The GMO debate is largely focused on the increased use of chemicals (i.e. herbicides and pesticides) in GMO fields and concerns that the insertion of genetic material from one species into another may negatively impact human and planet health. In this case, neither of these issues are likely present. As the vice president of plant sciences at the company who created the potato states, “There are clear benefits for everybody, and it’s just a potato.” If it looks like a potato and consists of only potato parts, can a GMO potato be “just a potato”?
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Serving Size
The Story
The FDA wants to change serving sizes listed on food labels to better reflect the amount of food people actually eat.
The Details
Serving sizes are meant to reflect the amount people typically consume in one sitting and many experts (and calorie counting consumers) know these amounts are way off. For example, a 20-ounce soda lists a serving as 8 ounces, or 2.5 servings in a bottle, while the majority of consumers drink the entire bottle in one sitting. And the FDA currently caps a serving of ice cream at a ½ cup, an estimate that is likely off by at least half and short of hundreds of calories. Today’s serving sizes were established two decades ago but were based on studies done in the 1970s and 1980s. The FDA believes the way people eat has changed since then. I think you’re onto something, FDA.
Why it Matters
Providing accurate calorie and nutrient information to consumers is a critical element to education and managing health in our country. Serving sizes that no longer accurately reflect current consumption behaviors mislead consumers and may misrepresent the healthfulness of a food. Just as listing calories next to fast food menu items has been a wakeup call for so many, adjusting serving size information to more accurately reflect how much an average person actually eats should be expected to have the same effect.
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Sugary Drinks
The Story
It’s not just soda pop that’s full of sugar. Some surprising beverages deliver well over the limits recommended by the American Heart Association.
The Details
Although the American Heart Association recommends limiting added sugars to 24 grams per day for women and 36 grams per day for men, many beverages significantly exceed this limit. A Business Insider video exposes some of the offenders. Highlights include: Starbucks’ Green Tea Soy Latte (venti) contains 82 grams, Minute Maid Apple Juice (15oz) contains 49 grams and Blue Print’s Lime Ginger contains 37 grams. Americans consume an average of 84 grams of added sugar per day.
Why it Matters
‘A minute on the lips, a lifetime on the hips.’ Excess calories, like those found in a surprising range of beverages, is an established link to obesity, heart disease and Type II Diabetes.
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Factoid of the Day
Next time you bite into a slice of watermelon or a cob of corn, consider this: These familiar fruits and veggies didn’t always look and taste this way. This slideshow takes a look the evolution of some of our favorite produce.
Image by kris krug