Menu

Statement

“Consumers want to know what’s in their food”: Statement on Nutrition Facts Panel

"The Public Health Institute and PHI’s California Project LEAN applaud today’s announcement by the FDA and First Lady Michelle Obama of changes in the Nutrition Facts Panels. Consumers want to know what’s in their food and how it contributes or detracts from their health. Today’s announcement from the FDA is a major step in giving consumers the power and knowledge to make the best decisions for themselves and their families."

STATEMENT FROM LYNN SILVER, MD, MPH, SENIOR ADVISOR AT THE PUBLIC HEALTH INSTITUTE AND DIRECTOR OF CALIFORNIA PROJECT LEAN

“The Public Health Institute and PHI’s California Project LEAN applaud today’s announcement by the FDA and First Lady Michelle Obama of changes in the Nutrition Facts Panels.

 

“The new format will make it easier for consumers to find and interpret information, by more prominently highlighting calorie counts and servings per container. New, more realistic serving sizes will more closely match how much people really eat. It will also require information on potassium–important for maintaining normal blood pressure in conjunction with keeping salt lower–as well as Vitamin D.

“The biggest boon to consumers will be the ability to quickly understand how much sugar has been added to products. This allows consumers to screen for healthier naturally occurring sugars, such as in milk products, versus unhealthy added sugars such as in sodas and processed foods. We are disappointed, still, that the FDA is expressing added sugar in grams rather than teaspoons, which would have been easier for consumers to understand, and which many organizations supported.

“Consumers want to know what’s in their food and how it contributes or detracts from their health. Today’s announcement from the FDA is a major step in giving consumers the power and knowledge to make the best decisions for themselves and their families.”

 


More Updates

Work With Us

You change the world. We do the rest. Explore fiscal sponsorship at PHI.

Bring Your Work to PHI

Support Us

Together, we can accelerate our response to public health’s most critical issues.

Donate

Find Employment

Begin your career at the Public Health Institute.

See Jobs

Mural and kids' paintings hanging on a fence at a playground

Close

New Public Health Primer: Engaging Community Development for Health Equity

How can the public health and community development sectors to work together to advance health and racial equity? A new primer from PHI’s Build Healthy Places Network and partners provides a roadmap for forging upstream partnerships, with recommendations, strategies and lessons-learned from national, state and local leaders.

Explore the primer

Continue to PHI.org