See that Randomites? That says that I am banned from using Facebook for 7 days because some asshole reported that picture up there. Fuck that.
So we will exclusively be posting on here until the 7 days has passed. Enjoy!
While at work I was about to drink some of my Pure Crystal Light beverage when I began to read the package. The package indicates that this a pure drink mix with “No artificial sweeteners, flavors, or preservatives.” It also said that it composed purely of natural flavors. (See photo 1)
But the back of the package says shows something completely different. (See photo 2)
The ingredients list says that this drink mix contains “Less than 2% of natural flavor” and this it is also made with Truvia brand sweetener. This lead to an investigation on what exactly Truvia is. The internet search lead to Livestrong.com, they had an article on Truvia sweetener. This is what it had to say:
“Truvia is a sugar substitute manufactured by the Cargill Company in conjunction with the Coca-Cola company. It is a zero-calorie natural sweetener derived from the stevia plant, according to Cargill’s website. Stevia, native to South America, has been used for centuries as a natural sweetener. In recent years, stevia has become a popular sugar alternative found in natural food shops . While it is true that Truvia is derived from stevia, it is a chemically-processed sweetener, leading some experts to caution that Truvia and stevia are two entirely different compounds and that Truvia is not as healthy or natural as Cargill claims.
What Exactly is Truvia?
According to the Truvia website, Truvia has three ingredients: rebiana, erythritol and natural flavors. Rebiana is a Cargill trade name to describe a particular extraction of the stevia plant. Erythritol is a fermented sugar alcohol Cargill also developed, which has been shown to have many negative side effects on individuals and rats in several tests. The Cargill website does not detail its process for making Truvia, nor does it elaborate on what constitutes “natural flavors.” There is no evidence that Truvia is either natural or safe, according to the Regulatory Affairs unit of the Public Health and Medical Fraud Research Cooperative.
Concerns
The Food and Drug Administration, FDA, does not approve the plant stevia as a sweetener but approves Cargill’s chemically-processed version. Although stevia has been used for centuries as a natural sweetener, the FDA’s research findings showed in the early 1990s that it could be a carcinogen when consumed in high amounts. The Public Health and Medical Fraud Research Cooperative believes that because Cargill is a multinational corporation with a strong influence over the FDA, it was able to manipulate the system. In essence, Cargill and Coca-Cola petitioned the FDA to endorse rebiana as a safe “purified” form of the plant. The Cooperative also notes that it would be nearly impossible to consume the amounts of stevia described in the study, since stevia is between 100 and 300 times sweeter than natural sugar and is therefore used more sparingly.”
http://www.livestrong.com/article/477429-problems-with-truvia/
So essentially Truvia is not “natural” at all. It is a manufactured sweetener (we will get to this problem in just a bit). Seems like Kraft is lying. When you search the Kraft website on what is in Crystal Light you get directed to the “FAQ” section and see things like this : (See photo 3)
Wait, that looks different, the site says that the package says it contains “less than 2% of non-nutritive sweeteners” but the actual package says that it contains “less than 2% of natural flavor.” So what is it? Is it a non-nutritive sweetener or is it a natural flavor? Come to think of it, what does Kraft define a natural flavor as? Well we are in luck because they have that in their “FAQ” as well. (See photo 4)
When the Kraft information line was called and was specifically asked “why is Truvia considered a natural sweetener?” they simply responded with “Because it has zero calories. That is what makes it natural.” Ahh yes, because every natural food contains zero calories, of course! That right there was a crap answer. So then they were asked what ingredients are used in the production of Truvia, they said that they didn’t have that information and were not able to get that information. They were asked if they could point towards a website that contains the ingredients or a report that lists the ingredients and they said they could not do that and that they did not have that information. When asked what other actions could be taken to get the ingredients that make Truvia, they simply said “You could always try another source such as a dietician.” Wow. It seems that Kraft is not willing to give simple information as to what goes into their product. You would think they would love to assure people that only natural ingredients are in their product, but so far, they have not responded like that.
Perhaps if enough people ask the question, they will finally give an answer. But until then, this is the best we have, courtesy of the Truvia website. (See photo 5)
Thank you Mr. Haas for this awesome piece of artwork and amazing submission haha!
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Opening weekend box office records from 1983 to present.
