Photo: Spreading the toast with butter.
Ian
Should I buy low fat margarine or butter to spread on my toast? Thanks P.L at the breakfast table?
Reply.
I am really trying not to preach to people about food additives. I feel as though I must make an exception here, so please excuse me whilst I blow the dust off my soapbox.
The current trend for polyunsaturated margarines, followed by ever-lower fat, low-fat spreads is a perfect example of being duped by processing companies. Polyunsaturated margarine include in their list of ingredients cheap, nutrient-poor waste products such as skimmed milk or whey powder. These are then made into an emulsion with plain water, and you have a low-fat spread. They even whip it up with air and call it something like “lite”. It couldn't be cheaper to produce and, since its price competes with that of butter, it can be sold at a vast profit. The public is buying rubbish and paying the earth for it. I can think of no reason why anyone would want a low-fat spread, but if you do, why not merely spread butter thinner? That would be cheaper and it's a heck of a lot healthier than any margarine.
Many brilliant (and well paid) minds are inventing new foods all the time. They hydrogenate fats; modify starches, then thin or thicken them to give a range of textures. They add emulsifiers, thickeners, preservatives and antioxidants to stop them going rancid, artificial flavours because they have no taste or the taste is pretty foul. Colourings are added to make them more appealing, artificial sweeteners (several of which are known to cause cancer), waxes, oils, bleaching agents and improvers. Some of these additives are there to make the gunge acceptable to the buying public. Some is there so that it runs through the machines more easily. The food content is generally so poor that what you buy in most cases is an appetising-looking product, which is lacking in real nutrients. In many cases you get no real food at all. Lemonade doesn't contain lemons - even the flavour doesn't come from lemons; cheese and onion flavour crisps contain no cheese and no onion. The food scientists can synthesise just about anything; and the ad-men can sell it. And if they tell you it has added vitamins and minerals, you are more likely to buy it - so they do. If it were real food, however, it wouldn't need to have vitamins and minerals added.
The next time you shop in your supermarket, look at the labels. If the first, and thus the largest, ingredient is water, or if you can't find any food among the additives on the label, don't buy it. If we all get together and don't buy a product, the manufacturers will soon get the message and change. There, I feel better for that. I hope you enjoy your toast and butter!
Ian
Should I buy low fat margarine or butter to spread on my toast? Thanks P.L at the breakfast table?
Reply.
I am really trying not to preach to people about food additives. I feel as though I must make an exception here, so please excuse me whilst I blow the dust off my soapbox.
The current trend for polyunsaturated margarines, followed by ever-lower fat, low-fat spreads is a perfect example of being duped by processing companies. Polyunsaturated margarine include in their list of ingredients cheap, nutrient-poor waste products such as skimmed milk or whey powder. These are then made into an emulsion with plain water, and you have a low-fat spread. They even whip it up with air and call it something like “lite”. It couldn't be cheaper to produce and, since its price competes with that of butter, it can be sold at a vast profit. The public is buying rubbish and paying the earth for it. I can think of no reason why anyone would want a low-fat spread, but if you do, why not merely spread butter thinner? That would be cheaper and it's a heck of a lot healthier than any margarine.
Many brilliant (and well paid) minds are inventing new foods all the time. They hydrogenate fats; modify starches, then thin or thicken them to give a range of textures. They add emulsifiers, thickeners, preservatives and antioxidants to stop them going rancid, artificial flavours because they have no taste or the taste is pretty foul. Colourings are added to make them more appealing, artificial sweeteners (several of which are known to cause cancer), waxes, oils, bleaching agents and improvers. Some of these additives are there to make the gunge acceptable to the buying public. Some is there so that it runs through the machines more easily. The food content is generally so poor that what you buy in most cases is an appetising-looking product, which is lacking in real nutrients. In many cases you get no real food at all. Lemonade doesn't contain lemons - even the flavour doesn't come from lemons; cheese and onion flavour crisps contain no cheese and no onion. The food scientists can synthesise just about anything; and the ad-men can sell it. And if they tell you it has added vitamins and minerals, you are more likely to buy it - so they do. If it were real food, however, it wouldn't need to have vitamins and minerals added.
The next time you shop in your supermarket, look at the labels. If the first, and thus the largest, ingredient is water, or if you can't find any food among the additives on the label, don't buy it. If we all get together and don't buy a product, the manufacturers will soon get the message and change. There, I feel better for that. I hope you enjoy your toast and butter!
Environmental
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