Frito-Lay chips causing diarrhea

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Frito-Lay increasing labeling for olestra Thu Jun 1, 2:17 PM ET

Frito-Lay said Thursday its chips that contain olestra will bear more

prominent labeling alerting consumers to the presence of the fat

substitute.

The change wards off a lawsuit that a consumer group had threatened

on behalf of a woman who said the snacks gave her stomach cramps and

forced her to rush to the bathroom.

The Plano, Texas-based company, a division of PepsiCo Inc., will

disclose on the fronts and backs of packages of its Light line of

potato and corn chips that they are made with olestra, company

spokeswoman Aurora said. Previously, the presence of olestra

was noted only in the list of ingredients, as well as with a logo

bearing its brand name, Olean.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest had threatened to sue

Frito-Lay unless it better disclosed that its Light chips — including

versions of Tostitos, Lay's and Ruffles — contained the fake fat. The

Washington, D.C.-based consumer group said since 1996 it has received

reports from more than 3,700 consumers who have experienced adverse

reactions after eating products made with olestra.

" We're pleased that Frito-Lay agreed to these modest changes, which

are sufficient to avoid a lawsuit and will help consumers who know

enough to avoid olestra to do so, " said CSPI executive director

son.

The Food and Drug Administration approved olestra in 1996, despite

concerns that it can cause diarrhea. The agency initially required

products containing olestra to carry a warning label. In 2003, the

FDA lifted the labeling requirement.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest contends that Frito-Lay

downplayed the presence of olestra when in 2004 it rebranded its Wow!

line of chips, renaming them Light. son said the switch fooled

some consumers into buying olestra-containing products they had

previously sought to avoid.

" A lot of those people are livid. They really felt tricked, " son

said.

said consumer comments suggested the Light name " better

explained what the product was about. "

In January, the Center for Science in the Public Interest alerted

Frito-Lay that it intended to sue on behalf of a Massachusetts woman

who became ill after eating Ruffle Light chips with olestra.

Besides the label changes, Frito-Lay agreed to give a $150,000

unrestricted grant to the Harvard Medical School's division of

nutrition.

Olestra is made by Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble Co. The company

uses the fat substitute in its fat-free Pringles chips.

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