The Whole Grains Council, in response to consumers’ needs, took on the task of creating an easily identifiable label device for foods that contain whole grains. From a design perspective, its stamp is noteworthy. The stamp is memorable, transferable and lets consumers quickly determine if their purchases contain a reputable amount of whole grains—a great benefit in a marketplace where whole grain claims often are stretched.

In February, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) responded to the need for clear standards and clarified what constitutes whole grain and what constitutes an adequate serving of whole grain. FDA issued guidance on whole grain label statements. Bakers should commend FDA for taking this much needed step in clarifying labeling language for whole grains despite the fact that these recommendations are non-binding.

Consumers are looking to us, as bakers and marketers, to be honest and truthful with them. With clarity now given to what defines a whole grain—namely  that it must contain all of the bran, germ and endosperm found in the intact grain—there clearly is less room for unscrupulous marketers to stretch the truth. There is a problem, however, with FDA’s guidance, as it appears to undermine the excellent work of the Whole Grains Council.   

The Whole Grains Council, www.wholegrainscouncil.org, was founded by Oldways Preservation Trust as part of its mission to bring greater nutrition consciousness to the American public. In 2005, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued dietary guidelines recommending that Americans eat three servings of whole grain or more per day, with each serving containing at least 16 grams of whole grains.

The Whole Grains Council merged these recommendations with FDA’s definitions of “good” and “excellent” claims as they apply to nutrients. “Good” and “excellent” claims were intended to apply to dietary substances in addition to nutrients, but daily values have not been established for most dietary substances.

The Whole Grains Council’s stamps define “good” as a half serving (8 grams) and “excellent” as a full serving (16 grams), in keeping with the 2005 dietary guidelines. However, according to FDA draft guidance, the Whole Grains Council stamps’ descriptor levels of “good” and “excellent” sources imply a recommended daily value, and because FDA has not quantified what these levels are, FDA says “at this point we can’t say it’s appropriate” to use “good” and “excellent.”

In response to FDA’s guidance, beginning this month, Whole Grains Council is replacing the “good” and “excellent” claims with a specific gram content (i.e., 8 grams of whole grain) along with a statement that 48 grams or more are recommended daily. Consumers must now do the math themselves.

Because this entails an extra step for  consumers, and can be confusing, I believe consumers were helped more easily in their quests for good nutrition by the earlier language. It is my hope that these descriptors eventually are recommended by FDA.

Both from a design and a consumer perspective, the Whole Grains Council’s stamp is an excellent one. Because the criteria itself is not changing (the stamp will not appear on any product containing less than 8 grams of whole grain content), even if consumers skip the math and just look for the stamp, they are well served. And as of publication, the stamps are highly visible and are found on more than 600 products from 59 companies.

By joining the Whole Grains Council and using this stamp on our whole grain baked goods and breads, we can show our support of the Whole Grains Council and continue to give our consumers a trustworthy source of information on nutritional content.