TheChocolateLifeLIVE – Healthy: What’s in a Word?

TheChocolateWire - 02 Mar 2023

When it comes to food, what does it mean to be Healthy?

Along those same lines, what even is the difference between being natural and all-natural? Surely a product that is not all-natural is partly un-natural. Or is/can it?

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Use of the Term “Natural” in the Labeling of Human Food Products; Request for Information and Comments

Can a healthy food be hyper-processed – that is made from ingredients that are themselves processed in some way in a lab or factory? What kinds of processes are okay and what distinguishes them? What affect can the processing have on the nutritional value of the food before it can no longer be considered healthy? Can adding vitamin or mineral supplements turn something that is otherwise not healthy into something that is healthy?

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Believe it or don’t, the FDA’s guidance on what the word healthy means and how it can be used on labels has been ... well, let’s say wide open to generous interpretation.

But all that may be about to change based on a recent FDA announcement.

Spoiler Alert

Major players in the CPG (consumer packaged goods) Food Industry are not happy with the proposed updates to the rules. Not happy at all.

In this episode of TheChocolateLifeLIVE we’ll discuss what the proposed ruling means in general and what the implications are for “healthier-for-you” chocolate, chocolate confection, and baked goods with chocolate in them.

The FDA’s proposed framework for the updated definition of “healthy” focuses on ensuring that nutrient-dense foods that help consumers to build a diet consistent with current dietary recommendations can qualify to bear the claim.