So why on Earth is the government trying to track your Nutella consumption? The answer may surprise you.
Nutella has grown in popularity as a delicious treat that is spreadable on just about everything, and the government has developed a keen interest in understanding just how much Nutella Americans are consuming. That’s because the maker of Nutella is trying to get the product reclassified so they can put a smaller serving size on the label, and thus conceal just how much sugar is int heir product.
The current serving is two tablespoons, and Nutella comes in at an astonishing 200 calories at that level, which is why the company is trying to get the service size reduced to one tablespoon. Nutella maker Ferrero has petitioned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in recent years to get them to change it.
Basically, they are claiming that based on a consumer survey, people don’t use it as liberally as everyone seems to think. Now, the government is asking consumers to send comments on how they consume Nutella.
“The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) is announcing the establishment of a docket to receive comments, particularly data and other information, on the appropriate reference amount customarily consumed (RACC) and product category for flavored nut butter spreads (e.g., cocoa, cookie, and coffee flavored), and products that can be used to fill cupcakes and other desserts, such as cakes and pastries,” the FDA statement reads.
“We are taking this action in part because we have recently issued a final rule updating certain RACCs, and we have also received a citizen petition asking that we either issue a guidance recognizing that “nut cocoa-based spreads” fall within the “Honey, jams, jellies, fruit butter, molasses” category for purposes of RACC determination; or amend the regulation to establish a new RACC category for “nut cocoa-based spreads” with an RACC of 1 tablespoon (tbsp.). We also are taking this action in response to a request to amend our serving size regulations to establish an RACC and product category for cupcake filling,” the statement adds.
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