Frito-Lay Will Stop Using Hydrogenated Oils in Some Snacks Next Year
Snack food company Frito-Lay announced this week that it will stop using trans-fatty, or hydrogenated, oils in its Doritos, Tostitos and Cheetos brand products beginning in early 2003, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. The company, "bowing to the demands of the low-fat culture," made the announcement to cut trans fat from its products following an FDA decision to require warning labels on food packages revealing trans fat levels by early next year (Piller, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9/25). This summer, a National Academy of Sciences report linked trans fat to heart disease and high cholesterol and said that no level of trans fat consumption was safe (California Healthline, 9/4). Frito-Lay will "apparently avoid" having to use the FDA warning labels on their modified product packages, the Star-Telegram reports. Frito-Lay North American President and CEO Abelardo Bru said the change will not "rob" the products of their "great taste." And with healthy snack product sales growing 20% annually, Bru said the company may begin experimenting with adding vegetables in its products. In addition, the snack giant has hired aerobics entrepreneur Dr. Kenneth Cooper as a consultant to provide nutritional and exercise information on snack-food packages. Frito-Lay, as well as McDonalds and other snack and fast food companies, have been "in the bull's-eye" of consumer groups and the federal government recently over the use of hydrogenated oils, the Star-Telegram reports. Similar to the tobacco industry, snack and fast food manufacturers are being targeted for "causing debilitating health conditions" (Piller, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9/25).
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