In the summer of 2016, when I joined Chobani, the FDA had recently passed regulation mandating that all packaged food labels call out “added sugars” by 2020.

War On Sugar 

The industry was a twitter – a consumer ‘war on sugar’ was already raging and this new labelling would be very bad for many businesses competing in the $8B US snack market. 

Yet leading better-for-you companies, including my then-employer, were excited. This new labelling standard was going to be an incredible, category-redefining opportunity to broadly educate and inform Americans about the difference between naturally occurring sugars – like fructose in an apple, or lactose in dairy yogurt –  

The abundant added sugar sweeteners used in so many competitive products; sugars that our bodies cannot process, that we know feed unhealthy addictions, that have fuelled an obesity epidemic, among countless other health-related crises both nationally and internationally.

Unfortunately, among the first orders of business for the current administration when they came to office in 2017, was to delay a transition to the new labelling protocol indefinitely.

However, some companies went forward anyway – including KIND bars. Today, despite some questions of ownership and accountability (the Mars Company of M&M fame, holds a 40% stake) – KIND and its founder, Daniel Lubetzky – are working behind-the-scenes to shift label laws and food policies at the FDA, along with making an increasingly public effort to correct how food shoppers see the world.

“We’ve invested heavily in what’s right for society, and we’ve always thought that that’s ultimately going to be the right answer for us too.”

So again, here’s a private company stepping up to act where the public sector is not or will not.

I say it again and again and will keep working on this with clients: the responsibility for bettering our world today and our collective futures – whether that’s about packaging waste & sustainability, health & nutrition, labor & human rights, or so many other important topics – change and leadership must come from the private sector.

So, if it “turns out the secret ingredient in the $8 billion snack-bar market is actually consumer ignorance, or at least confusion.

This article was contributed by our expert Lisa Gralnek

Frequently Asked Questions Answered by Lisa Gralnek

Q1. When did added sugars get added to the nutrition label?

FDA Announced in the year 2016 that a new label will be required on packaged food with more focus om added sugars. 

Q2. Does the FDA regulate labelling?

Yes, all the food labels are regulated by FDA.

Q3. What must be on a Nutrition Facts label?

The Nutrition fact label must show all the information including the serving size, calories, total fat, added sugar, nutrients etc.