WHY THE NUTRITION INFORMATION PANEL DOESN’T TELL YOU WHAT IT SHOULD

For health-conscious individuals, the nutrition information panel (NIP) on food packaging, along with the ingredients list and allergen statements are the source of truth. They cut through the marketing claims and fancy packaging, and get to the nuts and bolts of what is in the food. Is it safe for me? And what nutrition can we expect to receive if we or our loved ones ate the food? For many, this information is what drives the decision of what to buy or not. Have ‘consumers’ given food manufacturers more trust than we should?

At Eat for You, we proudly batch test the nutrient content of all our food. We know most food producers don’t do this. We know because we’re constantly asked why we bother?! It’s not an industry standard after all. So why go the extra mile? It’s logistically challenging with packaging, it’s costly and it reveals things that many aren’t willing to acknowledge, our food system is in trouble. But for us, this is why we WOULD go there. We are committed to producing food that supports and nurtures future generations. This means acknowledging the nutritional deficiencies creeping into our raw ingredients and dealing with it, not pretending it isn’t happening.

This is why we batch test:

1. We pride ourselves on honesty and transparency, so if we don’t actually know what is in our food before we sell it, we aren’t aligning with our values.

2. We get a kick out of seeing how nutrient contents vary with season and source, it helps us refine our sourcing process, so that we are working with suppliers that provide us with the highest quality, most nutrient dense certified organic ingredients.

3. We have developed a range of foods that deliver real health and wellbeing benefits, using only whole food ingredients. For us to deliver on this commitment, we need to know the nutrients are in the food to give the benefits.

4. If we don’t know the nutrient content of the food we are making and selling to people to nourish their families, how will we know if there is an issue that needs addressing? I can tell you, from our data alone, there is a serious issue in our food production system. There are some ingredients that we source that are completely devoid of key nutrients. Foods that are hailed as superfoods because of their nutrient content, are missing the very things that give them the superfood status - their nutrients! WHAT?! Yes, read that again…

We know we aren’t the only ones who are aware of the nutrient deficiency issue. The explosion in synthetic vitamin and mineral powders being added to our foods is a clear sign of how far off track we already are with the nutrient quality of food. Not to mention the growing supplements industry - $4.6 Billion in Australia at last report. We know that Food Standards Australia New Zealand is charged with providing us with the food nutritional information databases that we use to develop our generic NIP. Currently it contains over 1500 food items, with up to 254 nutrients per item - it could be a fantastic resource, but the data has not been updated since 2011. Of course, constantly updating the database would be costly and labour- intensive, but without regular updates the database has the potential to create deeply misleading nutritional information.

Eat for You is proud to be Australia’s only batch nutrient tested snack, but we are also disappointed that others don’t see the immense value in this approach to making truly healthful and healing convenience and snack food. It begs the question, why are you making and selling food to people if not to meet their most fundamental nutritional needs so that they and their family thrive?

Dr Hayley Dickinson, a reproductive physiologist, with a PhD from Monash University. Hayley left her academic research position in 2018. Hayley now enjoys sitting between academia and the rest of the world, sharing the stories and applying the science, providing real life solutions for people. Hayley has been scientific advisor to endota spa and developed endota Nurture, an organic range of skin care products for mothers and babies. Hayley founded, and is CEO of Eat for You, a health and wellness company committed to making nutrient dense, real food snacks for people seeking vitality.