Eating healthy is a choice many of us would like to make. So what do you do when you want to eat healthy? Stroll over to the section that has a “natural foods” label on them? Sadly, that will make as much of a difference as working out on a static treadmill. “Natural” and “organic” are not the same thing, and with food industries deceptively hiding behind these confusing labels, the consumer has much to know.

Raising Public Awareness on These Organic Food Gimmicks

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has long been fighting for the case of misleading labels, for the benefit of the public. Executive director, Michael Jacobson, has been working on the subject of deceptive titles such as “whole grains” and “natural”, for decades now. A survey conducted by Consumer reports revealed that nearly one in every three persons who were questioned believed that “natural” and “organic” were the same thing. While organic food has been regulated, and stands for food without synthetic fertilizers that have been produced using approved methods, natural food doesn't have a regulated definition by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration).

Many products that come with the tag “natural”, often contain many non-natural ingredients. Jacobson says that it is just a buzz word that these companies use to get the consumers' attention, and many of them are willing to pay a tad bit more for “natural” products. Another term that is trending among product labels is “artisan”. The FDA doesn't have a definition for “artisan” with respect to food labels, despite which there are already about 800 products in the market that bear the new buzzword on their labels. With a plethora of marketing lingo and flashy words being thrown around, the consumer should watch out for ingredient descriptions to figure out what they truly mean.

Organic Food with Eco-Friendly Promotional Items

While we are on the subject of awareness, let us look into going eco-friendly. Eco-friendly promotional items can be a great way of spreading the word in an environment-friendly way. When compared to hoardings and print ads, eco-friendly promotional items can not only help in getting the word out, but also give you the satisfaction of knowing that you have done your bit in saving the planet.

Source: http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/lifestyle/2014/02/natural-vs-organic-how-food-labels-deceive/