Last week we pointed you toward the New York Times’ report on the dubious Smart Choices campaign, an industry-backed, pseudo-science marketing effort to convince you Froot Loops and other sugary cereals really are part of a complete, healthy breakfast. The Sustainable Food blog is not amused at the existence of such a program, and put together a list of 10 reasons Smart Choices is bogus.

The post is pretty much a cavalcade of scientists talking smack about the program:

-Involving the food industry in the program is “a classic case of the fox guarding the henhouse,” said Dr. David Katz, director of the Yale Prevention Research Center. The Chicago Tribune reports that Katz led the development of the NuVal system, one of the few impartial food-labeling programs.

-Walter C. Willett, chairman of the nutrition department of the Harvard School of Public Health, explained that including sugary and processed foods in the program make for “horrible choices,” further explaining to the New York Times that “it’s a blatant failure of this system and it makes it, I’m afraid, not credible.”

Don’t you just love it when scientists get snippy? If you want to join in the fray, you can sign this petition attacking the program.

The depressing reveal is, once and for all, Froot Loops aren’t health food. Oh well.

Ten Reasons Why the Smart Choices Food Labeling Scheme is Outrageous [Sustainable Food] (Thanks, Mike!) (Photo: brockzilla)

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