cover story
ing messages are skewing children’s most highly in the consumer percep- Acrylamide is formed in starchy foods
ideas of what is normal food, and is tion of healthiness. The use of HOSO cooked at very high temperatures,
undermining their understanding of has resulted in crisps with levels of and was identified as a carcinogen
treats.” saturated fatty acid at less than ten commonly present in many foods,
The market research company percent, and with mono-unsaturates including crisps, in 2002. The UK FSA
Mintel produced a report on the Chil- at close to 80 percent. These figures has a policy to monitor, and try to
dren’s Snacking Market in July 2007, contrast to average composition of keep public exposure to acrylamide
estimating that there were six billion potato crisps figures listed in Mc- ‘as low is as is reasonably practical’.
child-based snack occasions each Cance and Widdowson’s The Com- There has been a 40 percent reduc-
year, and that 71 million of these position of Foods (6th ed,) at close to tion in the acrylamide content of
were during travel to or from school. 30 percent saturates and 40 percent savoury snacks including crisps from
An amazing 84 percent of children for mono-unsaturates. early 2000 through a combination of
have packets of savoury snacks such In addition to improving the measures including changes to the
as crisps in their lunch boxes most nutritional profile of frying oils, there length of frying, to the more stringent
days. Still, parents did not appear are also various reduced fat ver- removal of ‘dark’ crisps before pack-
to be fully aware of their children’s sions of potato crisps on the market. ing.
snacking behaviour, and the au- While standard crisps have a per The concerns over excess intakes
thors of the report felt that parents’ 100g calorie and fat content that is of energy, fat and salt in UK diets,
estimates were likely to be ‘under’ higher than for milk chocolate, lower means that crisps will continue to
actual intakes. The Mintel authors fat versions of crisps can trim about be a food with a ‘watch it’ warning.
conclude that because there were 60 calories and nearly 15g of fat off There are many welcome develop-
now fewer children in the UK popula- the per 100g data. Fat reduction in ments in the production of potato
tion, but with increased numbers of product made from potato granules crisps to make them ‘better-for-you’,
grandparents and working mothers rather than potato slices is easier to but to avoid mixed messages, they
fuelling rising affluence, the opportu- achieve, and in 2007 the Proctor & should stay in the treats/occasionals
nities for children to enjoy snacks was Gamble brand ‘Pringles’ launched category. However, they are such a
considerable: in other words a green a version to which rice powder was regular component of so many UK
light for further investment in this mar- added to potato granules because diets, that small improvements in their
ket. there is less fat adhesion to rice com- nutritional profiles could do much to
So what can be done to im- pared to potato. move the diets of many people in
prove the healthiness of potato After fat content, salt is of course the right direction. To some degree,
crisps? Many companies have now the next trigger of nutritional critique consumer choices on the products
replaced their frying oils from veg- for potato crisps. The sodium content now available will define the size of
etable oil mixtures that included a lot of potato crisps is currently typically the health halo around crisps.
of palm oil (very stable, but relatively about 500-800mg/100g, but the Food In the book, In the Devil’s Garden
high in saturated fatty acids) to sun- Standards Agency (FSA) has en- – a sinful history of forbidden food,
flower oil. But not the golden product gaged in a long-term step-by-step Stewart Lee Allen suggests that the
lining supermarket shelves, which al- programme with the UK food industry pleasure of ‘crunch’ snacks such as
though very high in polyunsaturated to reduce the salt content of the UK crisps is linked to primitive human urg-
fatty acids, would be unsuitable for diet, and potato crisps are one of the es for violence and aggression. Alan
industrial food production due to it’s’ 85 categories of food selected, with Hirsch of the ‘Small and Taste Treat-
instability, and would result in very the specific target of maximum sodi- ment and Research Foundation’ in
short-shelf-life crisps. um levels of 600mg/100g. Up to 2002 Chicago is quoted in the book: “One
The new star ingredient is sunflower there was a reduction of approxi- aspect of the appeal of crunchy
oil that is the offspring of sophisti- mately 20 percent in the salt added foods is definitely a primitive sense of
cated plant breeding: high-oleic to crisps, but subsequent reductions the act of destruction. When you de-
sunflower oil (HOSO). HOSO contains are now more limited; manufactur- stroy, you get a sense of power, and
a complete reversal of the fatty acid ers are always keen to report that that’s why so many people find the
composition of traditional sunflower crisps contain similar salt levels to sensation of ‘breaking’ these foods so
oil; more than 80 percent monoun- bread, but ‘seem’ saltier than many satisfying”.
saturated oleic acid (rather than 20 other foods because the salt is on Other psychologists go further, and
percent), and less than ten percent the surface, and so is detected more accuse crunch foods of causing ag-
polyunsaturated fatty acids (rather immediately. ‘Lightly salted’ crisps gression. A person eating a mouthful
than 70 percent). In fact, the oleic (containing about half the standard of crisps experiences a sound level
fatty acid content of HOSO is higher levels of salt) and salt-free potato of about one hundred decibels, a
than the high-street champion of crisps (with the option to self-dose level that is within the levels of noise
monos: olive oil. The low poly content from an enclosed little blue packet of shown to cause anxiety/anger. Hirsch
of HOSO provides much improved salt) are also available, and commer- reports that crunch cravings are
oxidative stability (and hence shelf- cial ‘messages’ from consumers to deep-rooted, and almost as strong as
life), without the nutritional down- marketers will determine the degree the appeals of salt or of chocolate.
sides of using frying oils high in satu- to which these products capture shelf Perhaps the appeal of crunching
rates or Trans fats. HOSO do not stand space. loud and brittle foods such as crisps is
alone in the healthy frying oil boom, Acrylamide is a health issue that a part of the bone shattering noises
and high-oleic safflower and rape- has taken up much industry time, and sensations that must have been
seed oils have also been developed, although not received the media a component of caveman diets?
although sunflower probably scores and consumer focus of fats and salt.
NHDmag.com May ‘08 - issue 34
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