For the first time in the more than 2 weeks since we launched our petition asking Kraft to remove artificial dyes from their line of macaroni and cheese, Kraft has finally acknowledged our petition and the more than 270,000 who have signed it. (Transcript of video continues below)
Here is Our Video Response To Kraft’s Latest Letter Addressed to “Mac & Cheese Lovers”:
The Actual Letter Posted on Kraft’s Website (This was not sent to us directly):
Thoughts of outrage, unfairness, disbelief, and ultimately grief consumed me while I was doing this investigation. A list of ingredients that are banned across the globe but still allowed for use here in the American food supply recently made news. While I have written about some of those ingredients before, this list inspired me to look a little deeper and find out how pervasive this issue is for us. Could these banned ingredients be contributing to the higher mortality and disease rates here in the U.S.?
Here is the breakdown for you:
These reports and statistics scream the word HELP!
Recently, I spent some time down in Mississippi volunteering in the most obese county in the nation. I found that while social and economic factors do play a part in this epidemic, the main culprit was the lack of nutrition education. The victims of obesity are likely the same victims of systematic brainwashing from Big Food marketers, relying on diet soda or low fat products or looking only at calories on product labels. Basically, they are doing what the food industry has been teaching them about losing weight versus finding out the truth about real food.
And that’s the problem – the food industry is the one leading our conversation in this country about food and nutrition, educating the mass public about what to eat and what not to eat. Coca-Cola recently even went as far as creating a special campaign to combat obesity – yes you read that right – a sugar filled soda company trying to stop obesity. (You can read my reaction to that here).
Unfortunately, the doctors in this country are not exactly leading the discussion either, since nutrition is not currently a focus in medical school. And the government has their hands tied by big food industry and chemical company lobbyists that basically control what the FDA approves, deems safe for human consumption, and our overall food policy.
So who is going to finally tell us the truth about our food?
The food industry does not want us to pay attention to the ingredients nor do they care about the negative effects from eating them. They certainly don’t care about the astronomical medical bills that are a direct result of us eating the inferior food they are creating.
The HELP we need starts here. We as a collective nation must stop this trajectory of sickness and rising health care costs, by understanding the ingredients we are putting into our bodies. We must challenge the U.S. food industry to discontinue the use of banned ingredients that are not allowed elsewhere in the world. We deserve to have the same quality food without potential toxins.
Food is medicine, and plain and simple, if our food is sick (filled with GMO’s, chemicals, additives, artificial ingredients, and/or carcinogens), collectively we as a country are going to continue to be sick.
Using banned ingredients that other countries have determined unsafe for human consumption has become a pandemic in this country. To prove this point, I found the best and easiest place to look for evidence was just across “the pond” in the United Kingdom, where they enjoy some of the same types of products we do – but with totally different ingredient lists.
It is appalling to witness the examples I am about to share with you. The U.S. food corporations are unnecessarily feeding us chemicals – while leaving out almost all questionable ingredients in our friends’ products overseas. The point is the food industry has already formulated safer, better products, but they are voluntarily only selling inferior versions of these products here in America. The evidence of this runs the gamut from fast food places to boxed cake mix to cereal to candy and even oatmeal – you can’t escape it.
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I’ve got three very important things to share with you this Halloween!
#1 – An Awesome Organic Chocolate Giveaway
If you have never tried Alter Eco Organic Chocolate before – here’s your chance! Alter Eco is hands down my favorite indulgence right now. I like it so much that I cannot keep it in the house because it will be gone in a matter of minutes!
Alter Eco Chocolate is sustainable, fair trade, organic and Non-GMO project certified. Their chocolates do not contain added fillers like “soy lecithin” and other junk you find in typical popular chocolate brands. I like every single flavor I’ve tried so far – but the Dark Coconut Toffee, Dark Mint and Dark Quinoa Crunch are tied for the win.
I reached out to Alter Eco last week because our next vacation is taking us to Peru & Ecuador in South America where they harvest and produce many of their products. I am hoping to spend part of my vacation to learn more about superfoods like Quinoa (which Alter Eco also makes) that I eat every week. And I wanted to thank them personally for supporting and donating to the Yes on Prop 37 - the campaign to label genetically modified foods in California.
During our conversation – I asked if they would be willing to host a giveaway…. they were more than thrilled and generously accepted!
Alter Eco will be sending a gift basket with an assortment of all their chocolates to 10 readers! I absolutely can’t wait to hear what you think of all of the different variations and if they will become your favorite too.
You can enter to win up to three times: (Deadline: Midnight on November 5th, 2012)
1. SUBSCRIBE to Food Babe and leave a comment below
2. Spread the word on Facebook or Twitter and leave another comment. (Optional)
3. Sign up to call California voters to vote Yes on Prop 37 Ballot Initiative to label genetically modified foods. If you sign up – please just leave another comment. (Optional)
Continue reading
Every month I have the pleasure of contributing to one of the most inspiring food blogs ever called 100 Days of Real Food. In my latest investigation, I cover Whole Foods. Many of you have asked about the recent “Organic Spies” tell-all-video, Whole Food’s refusal to donate to Proposition 37 and what I generally think about shopping there…I answer all those questions along with providing some very startling facts you will probably want to read for yourself.
The full investigation is available here: What to Watch out for at Whole Foods
And for those of you catching up – you might want to check out some of my other investigations…(Some of the information that I uncovered, still unnerves me!)
“Food Babe Investigates” on 100 Days of Real Food
Have a great week!
Food Babe
Before I share what I’ve been eating lately, I should mention one lunch that is not pictured. Last weekend I ventured into a Subway for the first time in maybe 7 years. To read all about that story, you’ll have to read and watch “Food Babe Investigates: Is Subway Real Food?” at 100 Days of Real Food. My expression at the end of the video says it all.
This investigation was further shared by one of my true food heroes – Robyn O’Brien (The author of The Unhealthy Truth and founder of the Allergy Kids Foundation). Check out what she wrote about it on Prevention Magazine. To say that I am thrilled about this, is an understatement!
