Loblaws Loses Its Artificial Colours

Good news for moms. I read last week in The Globe and Mail that Loblaws has announced plans to remove all artificial colours and flavours from their signature line of President’€™s Choice products.
Artificial additives in food have quickly become one of the biggest nutritional issues for Canadians in recent years. Consumption of faux-coloured and flavoured foods has been linked to everything from allergies and ADHD, to behavioural problems and, in some cases, cancer.

While members of the medical and scientific communities are still divided as to whether there are risks with ingesting these products, most consumers don’€™t want to wait around for the professionals to form a cohesive opinion. Instead, according to the article, they are demanding there be a shift in the food manufacturing industry, and companies are starting to respond.

Loblaws will be the first Canadian chain to embrace this movement, and by the end of this year, all artificial colours will be removed from the PC line; the artificial flavourings will follow in 2013. Now that Loblaws is positioning itself as a company that is highly interested in our health, experts are predicting this could translate as a good move for their bottom line.

However, according to a professor at Ryerson University, we need to be cautious about assuming that all naturally enhanced products are good for us. Despite the lack of dyes and chemical flavourings, they may still contain stabilizers, preservatives and excessive amounts of sodium and sugar which aren’€™t good for our health either.

I’€™m curious, are artificial additives a concern to you when it comes to feeding your family?