Your Health Educator: Label Claims

Monday, May 11, 2015

Label Claims

In the past, I have cautioned that ingredients, serving sizes, and calorie content can change over time, making it a good idea to keep a watch on even your staple products. For me, Smuckers All Natural Peanut Butter has been a staple for years. I noticed when I got home from the grocery store today that both the Nutrition Facts Panel in the back and the Front of Pack (jar) declaration had changed. To be truthful, I did not notice the Front of Pack calorie declaration on the jar in my fridge before today, but it says 210 cals per 2 tablespoon serving - kudos for 1) disclosing calories up front and 2) including a serving size that we can understand. Also, on the standard NFP, the type of fats are broken down on the older jar. I have often pointed out that Smuckers All Natural peanut butter is a source of 'good' monounsaturated fat, but the tides and the (interpretation of) science have changed on fat - and no matter the kind of fat - the calories are the same. (BTW, this is one of those rare occasions where the term natural really means natural.)

The reason I started comparing my two jars of peanut butter was because on the front of the jar I bought today there was a declaration of 8 grams of protein per serving. Peanut butter is usually a good source of protein - that is not new- declaring the grams on the front of the label is though. I guess there is a shift underway and protein is the macronutrient of the day. Because it was highlighted, I did think maybe the amount changed, but no, both jars have 8 g per serving. The older peanut butter does have more calories, just a few, but its weird that it went from 210 to 200 - same serving size. AND, other nutrition related fads (oh I mean concerns) are addressed on the new label, too. I'll let you pick them out below. BTW, the ingredients - peanuts and salt - are unchanged.

Here are the two jars and yes, I still LOVE this peanut butter.