Healthy in the Eye of the Beholder?
One New England supermarket chain is taking extra steps to show its customers what foods are really healthy - despite what the label says. Today's New York Times explains how Maine-based Hannaford Brothers, a grocery retailer of over 150 stores, has developed a self-proclaimed "nutrition navigation system" known as Guiding Stars. The proprietary system analyzes the vitamins, minerals, fiber, cholesterol, sugar, sodium, and fat content in a 100 calorie sample of a given food product, and gives the product a star rating right on the store shelf price tag. Ratings range from zero stars (no nutritional value or not rated) to three stars (best choice). Hannaford rates 27,000 of its products, and only 23% qualified for one or more stars. Surprisingly, many brands bearing health claims acceptable by FDA standards scored zero Guiding Stars. Kudos to Hannaford for taking the initiative in demystifying supermarket shopping.
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Hannaford's is a wonderful grocery store.