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What do you think of artificial sweeteners being allowed in organic products?


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I do not know the validity of this source, but present it here for discussion.

 

Here are some quotes:

 

In 1998, Monsanto applied for FDA approval for a monster molecule, “based on the aspartame formula†with one critical addition: 3-dimethylbutyl

[listed on EPA's most hazardous chemical list].

 

 

The food labeling requirements required for aspartame have now been dropped for Neotame, and no one is clear why this was allowed to happen. Neotame has been ruled acceptable, and without being included on the list of ingredients, for:

 

  1. USDA Certified Organic food items.
  2. Certified Kosher products with the official letter k inside the circle on labels.

 

 

 

 

The article also talks about a sweetener made with Neotame for the purposes of sweetening cattle feed. It's cheaper than the molasses they are currently using. One telling quote says, "Cattle consume more fodder when mixed with Sweetos." Wouldn't logic then follow to say that people eat more when their food is mixed with the sweetener, too?

 

 

So, organic products are now allowed to include artificial sweetener without labeling. Lovely.

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without being included on the list of ingredients

 

Well I'm not by any stretch a food purest either. But THIS part really infuriates me. Any ingredients, and goes double for added unnecessary chemicals, should be listed in ingredients, whether it is organic or not.

 

People have the right, or should have the right, to know what they are buying and certainly what they are eating.

 

Yeah, many might not care and buy it anyways.

 

But to slip it in without listing it at all as an ingredient is flat out lying to consumers about what they are buying.

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That describes me too.

 

Another labeling distinction I dislike is "all natural". I bought some all natural ketchup once (mostly because it was on sale) and there was nothing special about the ingredient list. There were things like high fructose corn syrup, etc. Yeah yeah, that's made from corn, but it doesn't seem particularly natural to me.

 

But the key there is that it was listed. So a couple more seconds of your time at the store and you could have decided to not purchase it. And either way, you did at least have the ability to know what you were buying/eating.

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So, organic products are now allowed to include artificial sweetener without labeling. Lovely.

i believe the author of that article is hugely mistaken. As far as I can tell, the labeling change is NOT that it can be omitted from the ingredient list. The only change I found is that it needn't carry a "contains phenylalanine" warning for those with PKU. That is a completely different issue.

 

Regarding whether or not it can be used in organics, I'd like to see an independent source, as this one seems unreliable.

 

i detest poor science journalism. :glare:

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I don't know about this, but I won't be buying it. Monsanto aims to rule the world and our government officials are all too willing to accept the bribes that will allow them to do that.... Once they make it acceptable for ingredients not to be shown on labels any more (which I'm sure will come, eventually, if we won't buy their garbage knowingly), then I guess I'll be growing my own food....

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I can't find anything on this. I am on an organic farmers list, and nothing has come through there.

 

The site seems a little rabid.

 

I don't know.

 

Until I know more, I have to table it, along with the teacher & the marker story. I don't like agenda-driven sites that cherry-pick information, and I am not sure this isn't one of those.

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I'm not anti-artificial sweeteners, but they don't belong in certified organic foods. There are plenty of options for sweeteners in organic products- stevia, agave nectar, etc.

 

I don't believe that HFCS should be allowed in products labeled "all natural" either. Nothing natural about it!

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This wouldn't affect me, because I try to avoid processed foods whether organic or not. The "organic" label slapped on boxes of mac & cheese, or frozen entrees, just doesn't impress me. I am currently trying to buy mostly organic veggies & grains, and some organic dairy.

 

I'm shocked at the ingredient lists on organic health & beauty products, and am wondering if they are any better than non-organic. :(

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It will affect you if cattle are allowed to be fed grain that contains "sweetos" for sweetening, instead of molasses, because this is neotame.

 

You're correct about H&B aids in that requirements are different. Many companies have taken a pledge not to include some of the worst offenders regarding chemicals and you can find their names listed online. Some stores, such as Whole Foods, have also pledged not to stock products that do not meet stringent guidelines.

 

But you do have to read the labels on everything. Now, however, it may be that even reading the labels won't help us. If neotame is not required to be included on the label, or may be listed just as a "natural sweetener" or "sugar", then we're all in trouble unless we eat nothing sweetened whatsoever....

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