They were the best of foods, they were the least of foods, they were products of wisdom, they were products of foolishness, there were speakers that invoked belief, there were speakers that invoked incredulity.
—Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (modified)

I had expected that attending the trade shows Natural Products Expo West (NPEW) and Nutracon, followed by a visit to the Research Chefs Association's (RCA) annual meeting, would provide me with two important, but very different approaches to food. I was not disappointed.

With a foundation in health, NPEW and Nutracon provided updates on what is good for you and what is not.

Nutracon speaker Thomas Aarts, executive editor of Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ), San Diego, noted changes in the beverages industry and quipped that one famous Coca-Cola jingle could become, “I'd like to buy the world a…shelf-stable, children's lactic drink.”

In 2001, the $10 billion U.S. sports nutrition/weight loss product category showed the greatest growth—at 15%—in the U.S. nutritional products market, according to NBJ. The natural/organic foods market is now at $12.9 billion and is expected to increase to $25 billion by 2010. “Everyone is moving toward functional foods; it's the hot trend, it's where the future is,” Aarts said, and added that 30% of sales in the $18.5 billion U.S. functional food market were from five companies: Pepsico, General Mills, Kellogg, Kraft and Coca-Cola.

The sensory quality of products at NPEW has improved over the last half decade. Still, many need to be qualified with the word “considering.” For example, “battered and seasoned products from Quorn Foods are amazingly good, considering it's fungus.” Or, pies from Natural Feast Corp., Dover, Mass., were great, considering they didn't contain anything (at least no hydrogenated oils, cholesterol, refined sugar, corn, dairy products, wheat, animal fats, additives, preservatives, etc.).

Contrast that with, “My favorite sautéeing oil is pork fat,” offered by an unapologetic chef at the RCA meeting. Although healthful foods are crucial to a long, healthy life, a long life does not always equate with a “joy of life.” Those involved in the creative preparation of food express this spirit through cuisine that is a reminder that the culinary arts are, indeed, an art. They provide pleasure to the senses of taste and smell, just as music does to hearing, and a painting does to sight. Foods proffered at RCA booths and at conference events rarely required the “considering” qualifier.

Such contrasts serve as a reminder that the “good-for-you” hot fudge sundae in Woody Allen's 1973 movie “Sleeper” will always be the standard for which the food industry needs to strive.

Internet Information

For more information on subjects covered in this issue, see the following websites.

Making Change
www.infores.com — Information Resources Inc.
www.kraft.com —Kraft Foods
www.kraftfoods.com/postcereals/post_index.html
— Post Cereals

The Kids Are Alright
Cfahey@frankel.com — Colleen Fahey
www.devinefoods.com — Devine Foods
www.newdream.org — Center for a New American Dream

A Focus on Hypertension
www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhanes.htm — Home page for the National Health and Examination Survey
www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/otheract/icd9/abticd9.htm — International Classification of Diseases

Full-Spectrum Foods
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/phytochemicals
— Florida State University site on phytochemicals from ajoene to ellagic acid to zeaxanthin
www.siu.edu/~ebl/leaflets/algae.htm — Southern Illinois University ethnobotanical leaflet on algae

GRAS Ingredients in the 21st Century
http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~rdb/opa-gras.html
— List of self-affirmed GRAS ingredients
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~rdb/opa-gras.html
— Inventory of GRAS Notifications
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/fr970417.html — Federal Register Proposed GRAS Notification Procedures, 1997
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/eafus.html — Food Additive and

Specifying Starches
www.newport.com.au/support/support_rva/applica
tions_rva/viscosity_article/viscosity_article.html
— General discussion of starch terms and behavior
http://home3.inet.tele.dk/starch/isi/starch/index.htm — International Starch Institute; general information
www.orst.edu/instruct/nfm236/starch/index.cfm
— Oregon State University presentation of basics and
terminology

Vitamin E & Tocotrienols
www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fdpreser.html — FDA release on using tocopherol as a preservative in food
www.tocotrienol.org — Details on tocotrienol
http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/flg-5-2.html
— FDA regulations on vitamin E in Nutrition Facts panel
Chill Factors
www.foodsafety.gov — Government food safety information