Baking&Snack - June 2011 - 13

NEWS

on either side of the 210-mg per-serving level that’s acceptable under the guidelines. The proposal further reduced the acceptable sodium level to 140 mg by the year 2021. Additionally, the guidelines appear not to allow the 0.5 g of trans fat per serving that currently may be contained within a product while still calling the food “trans fat free.” Achieving the changes will not be easy, IWG said. “The Working Group acknowledges that this is an ambitious goal but believes it is warranted by the urgent need to improve children’s diets and health and address the epidemic of childhood obesity,” the group noted in the proposal. Beyond limiting the marketing of certain foods, IWG said it hoped new products and reformulations would result from the plan. “The Working Group recommends that as the industry develops new products and reformulates existing products, it should strive to create foods that meet both of these two basic nutrition principles,” the group stated. “It further recommends that the industry focus these efforts on those categories of foods that are most heavily marketed directly to children, such as breakfast cereals, carbonated beverages, restaurant foods and snack foods. The proposed principles, if

fully implemented by industry for these categories, should lead to significant improvements in the overall nutritional profile of foods marketed to children.” According to the proposal, IWG is considering two different approaches for determining whether a food product qualifies as meaningfully contributing to a healthy diet. Under one approach, the food would need to contain at least 50%, by weight, of one of the so-called healthy foods such as fruits or whole grains. Under a second option, “specific minimum contributions are proposed for each of the listed food groups. For individual foods, the product meets the principle if it contains the specified amount of at least one, or a proportionate combination of more than one, of the listed food groups per Reference Amount Customarily Consumed,” the group said. Under the second option, ¾ oz whole grains would be required for a baked food to qualify (based on grain content) for marketing to children and teenagers. While food companies voluntarily have restricted marketing of many food products to children in recent years, IWG proposals would broaden the media included beyond television. Magazines, the Internet and social media would be included as off-limits for affected products. — L. Joshua Sosland, editor, Milling & Baking News

NEWS IN BRIEF
Aunt Millie’s reduced sodium in its deluxe hamburger and hot dog buns by at least 25%. Included in this
wave of sodium reduction are the white and whole grain varieties of the company’s hamburger and hot dog buns.

Gonnella Frozen Products, LLC, Chicago, IL, celebrates its 125th anniversary with a “Rising to the Top” scholarship for AIB International valued at $18,000. Applications
are due Sept. 1, 2011. The application form and more information are at www.gonnella.com.

Gruma SAB de CV, Monterrey, Mexico, acquired the tortilla production assets, inventories, brands and customer list of Albuquerque Tortilla Co., Albuquerque, NM. The
transaction was valued at $8.8 million.

Herr Foods Inc., Nottingham, PA, achieved Safe Quality Food Level 3 certification. The company
spent 15 months in preparation and training to gain the certification.

SymphonyIRI Group named Nature’s Pride one of the top food brands in the US. The brand from Hostess Brands,
Irving, TX, ranked No. 5 in the Top 10 Food and Beverage Brands of 2010 and No. 1 in the Top 10 New Product Pacesetters among food, beverage and non-food brands.

www.bakingbusiness.com

June 2011 / BAKING & SNACK

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Baking&Snack - June 2011

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