THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, September 25, 1995 TAG: 9509210012
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 36 lines
Your article about food additives (Sept. 7) provided much useful information, but it failed to note that additives are often used to cheat people.
Artificial colorings and flavorings replace real fruit.
MSG enables companies to use less meat or poultry in their soups and other foods.
Chemically modified starches are used in many baby foods to replace fruit.
The article also relied too heavily on quotes from Manfred Kroger, a professor who consults widely for the food industry and has made a career of defending additives. While most additives are safe, several have been proved to be deadly (cobalt sulfate in beer, sulfites in salads - both now banned for those uses), some cause allergic reactions (dyes, MSG) and a few have caused cancer in animals and should be viewed with great suspicion (nitrite, saccharin, BHA, BHT).
Consumers should read labels carefully and avoid the handful of questionable additives.
Michael F. Jacobson, executive director
Center for Science in the Public interest
Washington, D.C., Sept. 12, 1995
Center for Science in the Public interest by CNB