Guest guest Posted August 19, 2004 Report Share Posted August 19, 2004 Yesterday, the WSJ carried an article that showed that same exact brand of candy bar, mayonnaise (Heilmans) and other foods were healthier (less fat and sodium) made and sold in other countries than the US. The food industries response was people in those countries are more health conscience and demand healthier food. This included people in Mexico! (no offense intended.) What BS. The reality is more European countries regulate foods much more closely than the US. In the US you can put almost any thing into food and as long as the label (which most people don't read or understand) says it has the amount of saturate fat, it is okay Hersey's chocolate bars can't be called chocolate in France because they don't have enough real coco in them! If the food companies know how to make food healthier, why don't they? Because they can make more profit in the US and get away with it by using cheaper less health ingredients. Based on this article, maybe a suite against a food company for make you fat isn't so unreasonable. BOB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 20, 2004 Report Share Posted August 20, 2004 Bob, The food lobby is powerful in this country. In my neck of the woods, we actually have a lobbying group called: The Snack Food Association (founded in 1937) 1711 King Street, Suite 1 adria VA 22314 http://www.sfa.org Look at the abuse Dr. Atkins still gets even though he has passed. Dr. Barry Sears (another heart doctor who wrote other low carb diet book, " The Zone " )is not high on their list for Christmas card exchanges. Look-up the sugar alternative " Stevia " . It paints a very ugly picture of how industy will stop at nothing to protect their products by keeping better products out of the market. As far a legal definitions for food from country to country goes, America is as peculiar as the rest of Europe. I think Italian ice cream is superior to American ice cream since the flavor is hindered by fat content. In America, you can not sell Italian ice cream and call it " ice cream " because it does not have enough " fat " . The flavor of fruits in the Italian ice cream is very fresh and not overly sweet from added sugar. Yes, I am a food snob. I know good food and we have been denied, ergo, we have become fat and settle for really sad attempts at food. I cringe everytime I go to a new restaurant (traveling) and find the vegetables came from a can. If you want to see something to make you angry, look at the US Model Food Code and the food codes of various states. The last time i checked, the definition of clean is " looks clean and feels clean " . Their is not provisions for QA/QC testing in food service like there is in food production. In many states, the health department has to notify you they are coming to inspect your food service facility or restaurant before they can inspect. This give the restaurant time to clean-up there act so the inspector will see no raw chicken in storage above the salad vegetables or produce sitting on the cooler floor. You would think the threat of bioterrorism would be reason enough to stop playing games. Food is the best place to place pathogenic germs. There is nothing in the Food Codes to disinfect. There is nothing to address viruses like influenza. If you want to avoid the flu, don't eat-out in the winter. Only one person has to have a Food Manager's License even if this person sits in the office and never works with food served to you or your family. How much impact do you think food bourne illness has on public health and American economy? You would be shocked to hear the National Restaurant Association (in Chicago) is the primary stick in the mud for food safety progress. To be fair, most cases of food borne illness investigated by health departments are attributed to residential exposures. It usually takes two days for most bacterial illnesses to happen (except enterotoxin related illnesses from Staphylococcus and Bacillus cereus - usually within minutes to hours after the meal). A person usually blames illness on the dinner from the prior night. We have issues in the IAQ arena but, we could learn some lessons by looking at the food industry as far as regulations, associations with hidden agendas, and the actual people performing services. I laugh at the attempts of a handful of associations trying to monopolize. They have a rude awakening coming. It's called " committee creep " or " the motion died in the parking lot " . Regards, Greg Weatherman aerobioLogical Solutions Inc. Arlington VA 22202 gw@... ************************************************ > Yesterday, the WSJ carried an article that showed that same exact brand > of candy bar, mayonnaise (Heilmans) and other foods were healthier > (less fat and sodium) made and sold in other countries than the US. > > The food industries response was people in those countries are more > health conscience and demand healthier food. This included people in > Mexico! (no offense intended.) What BS. > > The reality is more European countries regulate foods much more closely > than the US. In the US you can put almost any thing into food and as > long as the label (which most people don't read or understand) says it > has the amount of saturate fat, it is okay > > Hersey's chocolate bars can't be called chocolate in France because > they don't have enough real coco in them! > > If the food companies know how to make food healthier, why don't they? > Because they can make more profit in the US and get away with it by > using cheaper less health ingredients. > > Based on this article, maybe a suite against a food company for make > you fat isn't so unreasonable. > > BOB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 20, 2004 Report Share Posted August 20, 2004 Can I ask what this has to do with indoor air quality? I'm all for people making healthier food choices, but the purpose of this list is to provide information on the indoor environment. Dennis C. , M. E. P. C. Environmental Health Administrator Bureau of Community Health Systems Pennsylvania Department of Health (717) 787-4366 Fax: NOTICE OF CONFIDENTIALITY: This e-mail, including any attachments, is intended only for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed and may contain confidential information that is legally privileged and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are notified that any review, use, disclosure, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message. -----Original Message-----From: Bob s Sent: Thursday, August 19, 2004 9:40 AMTo: iequality Subject: Re: WSJ on Food Quality Yesterday, the WSJ carried an article that showed that same exact brand of candy bar, mayonnaise (Heilmans) and other foods were healthier (less fat and sodium) made and sold in other countries than the US. The food industries response was people in those countries are more health conscience and demand healthier food. This included people in Mexico! (no offense intended.) What BS. The reality is more European countries regulate foods much more closely than the US. In the US you can put almost any thing into food and as long as the label (which most people don't read or understand) says it has the amount of saturate fat, it is okay Hersey's chocolate bars can't be called chocolate in France because they don't have enough real coco in them! If the food companies know how to make food healthier, why don't they? Because they can make more profit in the US and get away with it by using cheaper less health ingredients. Based on this article, maybe a suite against a food company for make you fat isn't so unreasonable. BOB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 23, 2004 Report Share Posted August 23, 2004 See attached pdf on Lead in Candy. We had some in the Indiana side of the Chicago area as well. Sorry about sending a PDF but I couldn't get the website to re-open to send the link properly. Tony .................................................. "Tony" Havics, CHMM, CIH, PE Executive Director of Technical Services QEPI 1611 South lin Road Indianapolis, IN 46239 Office: Fax: Cell: This message is from QEPI. This message and any attachments may contain legally privileged or confidential information, and are intended only for the individual or entity identified above as the addressee. If you are not the addressee, or if this message has been addressed to you in error, you are not authorized to read, copy, or distribute this message and any attachments, and we ask that you please delete this message and attachments (including all copies) and notify the sender by return e-mail or by phone at . Delivery of this message and any attachments to any person other than the intended recipient(s) is not intended in any way to waive confidentiality or a privilege. All personal messages express views only of the sender, which are not to be attributed to QEPI and may not be copied or distributed without this statement. -----Original Message-----From: Bob s Sent: Thursday, August 19, 2004 8:40 AMTo: iequality Subject: Re: WSJ on Food QualityYesterday, the WSJ carried an article that showed that same exact brand of candy bar, mayonnaise (Heilmans) and other foods were healthier (less fat and sodium) made and sold in other countries than the US. The food industries response was people in those countries are more health conscience and demand healthier food. This included people in Mexico! (no offense intended.) What BS. The reality is more European countries regulate foods much more closely than the US. In the US you can put almost any thing into food and as long as the label (which most people don't read or understand) says it has the amount of saturate fat, it is okayHersey's chocolate bars can't be called chocolate in France because they don't have enough real coco in them!If the food companies know how to make food healthier, why don't they? Because they can make more profit in the US and get away with it by using cheaper less health ingredients.Based on this article, maybe a suite against a food company for make you fat isn't so unreasonable.BOB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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