New York Times on Trans Fat Labelling
Today’s New York Times features an article about food companies who are reducing trans fat in their products. Not because they want to protect their customers from this most unhealthy of dietary fats, but because new laws require them to include trans fat in the nutritional information, which they fear will reduce sales. It’s not hard to understand their concern: “A survey on American eating patterns conducted by the NPD Group, a market-research firm,” writes Kim Severson in the article, “showed that in 2003, 66 percent of adults said they were aware of and concerned about trans fat. Last year, that figure rose to 74 percent.”
It’s easy to feel helpless in the face of corporate greed, but that greed gives consumers the upper hand. An organized attack on a company’s bottom line often sees rapid results. “The oil change has been sweeping and swift,” writes Severson. Faced with the prospect of lagging sales, these producers have figured out how to release their products with less—or no—trans fat. It’s not the right reason for them to change their habits, but the public still benefits in the end. Check your nutritional labels, and put back any boxes that have trans fat in them.
