Food. Science. Truth. Politics. 

Misleading Labels 

Maple leaf: “no added preservatives”—Nitrate precancerous in the form of cultured celery extract

Danone’s DanActive: “help strengthen your natural defenses” & “scientifically proven”—claims without proof

Carnation Breakfast Essentials: “healthy morning drink” –it contains too much sugar (38g)

Oasis Health Break CholestPrevent juice: “intended for people concerned with cholesterol” & “drinking 2 glasses of juice was equivalent to consuming 80 oranges or 22 kg of broccoli” (statements was removed after the implication of Canadian Food Inspection Agency) – although companies may add plant sterols for cholesterol claims, 2 glasses everyday = 1.5 kg of sugar a month. People with high cholesterol are advised to lower sugar consumption.

McCain Pizza Pockets: "wholesome ingredients that contain no artificial colours or flavors"—too much fat and salt, more than fast food (not exactly wholesome).

Praeventia cookies from Leclerc: “tasty, nutritious snack”—advertising the benefits of antioxidants that is not entirely proven by medicine.

Kraft Canada Inc.’s KD Smart: containing omega-3 as the company claims to improve brain and heart health. Firstly, these omega-3 benefits only accompany fish-based omega-3 and not the plant-based version. Also, someone would have to consume 177 servings of KD Smart it absorb the same amount of omega-3 contained in a piece of fish.

Wonder Plus White Loaf with Fibre: "provides Canadian families with the taste and softness they love plus added fibre and the nutrition they need."—the bread contains only the ground-up hulls of whole oats which does not have the same nutritional benefit of whole grains.

Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain bars: "golden baked crust of wheat and whole grains mixed with a variety of fillings made with real fruit"—12 g of sugar and the first ingredient is white flour rather than whole grains.

Campell’s Healthy Request soup: “contains whole grains and vegetables and 25% less sodium than other soups”. The container contains 750mg of sodium which is more than half of the daily recommended amount.

Take Home Message
Claims are good because they can cue you into buying healthier products, however they might be false. Therefore, consumers must refer to the regulated parts of the packaging being the Ingredient list and Nutrition Facts table to get the bigger picture. Claims are optional and only meant to highlight a particular nutriment found within the Nutrition Facts Table. Use the %DV as a guide in product comparison.

This information was based on the following link http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/10-misleading-food-product-labels-in-canada-1.1142301