DAVE ROSS

Food labels and sticker shock

Feb 28, 2014, 5:58 AM | Updated: 9:45 am

The ingredient labels should be on people. So if you see a fat guy, you’d read his label and ...

The ingredient labels should be on people. So if you see a fat guy, you'd read his label and know what not to eat, and then if Brad Pitt or Sofia Vergara walk by, you could look at their labels - and say, "I'll have what they're having." (AP Photos/File)

(AP Photos/File)

My big food label shock came on an ordinary day about five years ago when I picked up a shrink-wrapped cookie at a coffee shop and was about to eat it because it was only 230 calories when I happened to notice that according to the label, this ordinary-sized cookie in my hand was three servings.

So in fact, it was closer to 700 calories!

This wasn’t a cookie, it was a survival ration.

The point is, a food label can be technically accurate and still lie.

So the latest government food label proposal would do a few things, which I think make a lot of sense.

Servings must be a reasonable size, and the number of servings and the calorie count have to be in print big enough that somebody over 40 can read it.

Yet, even the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration can’t promise it’ll work.

“The label alone won’t magically change how America eats,” said FDA commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg.

Because face it, American food is just too delicious.

Our snack foods are better than sex, and our reality cooking shows have turned us all into competitive chefs who can create dessert out of a couple of parsnips and a walnut, so we have no chance.

The government would have to mandate tamper-proof seals that prevent even you from opening the package. People eventually tune out the labels because we’re labeling the wrong thing.

The ingredient labels should be on people. So if you see a fat guy, you’d read his label and know what not to eat, and then if Brad Pitt or Sofia Vergara walk by, you could look at their labels – and say, “I’ll have what they’re having.”

And you’d actually know what it is they’re having.

Dave's Commentary

Dave Ross on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM
  • listen to dave rossTune in to KIRO Newsradio weekdays at 5am for Dave Ross on Seattle's Morning News.

Dave Ross

car culture...

Dave Ross

Ross: Are we killing car culture? Or is car culture killing the US?

I don’t think the question is whether we're going to "kill" our car culture. The real question is can we stop our car culture from killing the U.S.?

3 days ago

drivers data insurance...

Dave Ross

Ross: As cars release driving data to insurance, is your driving my business?

Every move you make, every swerve you take, every lane change you fake – someone’s watching you. Do drivers have a right to keep driving data private?

10 days ago

rent control...

Dave Ross

Ross: Rent control was never the answer in Wash.

The rent control bill died in the Washington State Legislature this week, even though Democrats control both houses.

1 month ago

end of democracy...

Dave Ross

Ross: Conservative activist earns applause for pledging an ‘end of Democracy’

The theme from Jack Posobiec's speech is that Jan. 6 was a righteous attack not on democracy, but on those who threaten democracy.

1 month ago

Image: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colorado, is seen on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2023. (Photo: Alex Brand...

Dave Ross

Ross: Voters can help cull bad politicians from the herd early

Let's remember that just about every occupant of a higher office once occupied a lower office, and was put there by us, Dave Ross says.

1 month ago

Super Bowl celebration...

Dave Ross

Ross: The NFL does it again

The NFL once again put on a show that was able to keep me tuned in for four hours even though I had no stake in either team.

2 months ago

Food labels and sticker shock