Pushing Sugar – Breakfast Food Industry Tries Self-Regulation

Newspapers across the U.S. carried this story last month: the Kellogg Company announced that they will discontinue advertising products that contain more than 12 grams of sugar per serving, 2 grams of saturated fat or 200 calories during children's television programming. What's behind this decision? Two advocacy groups, including Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, were preparing a lawsuit against Kellogg and Nickelodeon under a Massachusetts law that limits the marketing of junk food to kids. After a year of negotiations, the food giant agreed to these terms and the lawsuit plans were dropped. What does this mean to you? There are four grams in a teaspoon of sugar or a single sugar cube. Because of the work done by CCFC, your child is much less likely to see an ad for Cocoa Krispies and dozens of other sugar-laden products.



The Blue Lake take on it:
First, we salute the people at Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood for showing that grassroots organizations can impact influential corporate behavior. Now, about that sugar… it's easy to do your homework online. Market leaders Kellogg and General Mills do a good job of making nutrition information available. Note the serving size – higher sugar content cereal servings often report smaller portions (¾ cup) than less sugary choices (1 cup). FYI, a single unfrosted Blueberry Pop-Tart has 18 grams of sugar. Eight ounces of Sprite (two-thirds of a can) has 26 grams of sugar. And 100% real fruit juice? Eight ounces of some popular choices: orange juice (22g), apple juice (26g), grape juice (38g). And finally, the Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley has a fun set of activities for kids to explore sugar in their lives.