Nutella could carry warning...

Should the EU proceed and label Nutella with a warning: "Danger: May cause obesity"?

http://fr.news.yahoo.com/68/20100628/tsc-nutella-un-danger-pour-la-sant-selon-04aaa9b.html

Italian Minister: "Maybe it is time to let consumers take responsibility for themselves," he said, mentioning "nutritional fundamentalism."

Can we EVER take the Nanny State too far?

Originally posted by spruce112358
Should the EU proceed and label Nutella with a warning: "Danger: May cause obesity"? [...]

Can we EVER take the Nanny State too far?

Is a health warning a restraint of trade in any significant way?

In what sense are you unable to simply ignore this warning if it strikes you as being too 'nannying' for your ideological tastes?

Originally posted by spruce112358
Can we EVER take the Nanny State too far?

Surely any serious discussion about the Nanniness of the Nanny State would start with something like U.S. and E.U. or Japanese farm subsidies, rather than about a health warning label on a jar of Nutella?

Originally posted by spruce112358
Should the EU proceed and label Nutella with a warning: "Danger: May cause obesity"?

http://fr.news.yahoo.com/68/20100628/tsc-nutella-un-danger-pour-la-sant-selon-04aaa9b.html

Italian Minister: "Maybe it is time to let consumers take responsibility for themselves," he said, mentioning "nutritional fundamentalism."

Can we EVER take the Nanny State too far?

We could go around painting freedom warnings on MPs houses.

Originally posted by spruce112358
Should the EU proceed and label Nutella with a warning: "Danger: May cause obesity"?

http://fr.news.yahoo.com/68/20100628/tsc-nutella-un-danger-pour-la-sant-selon-04aaa9b.html

Italian Minister: "Maybe it is time to let consumers take responsibility for themselves," he said, mentioning "nutritional fundamentalism."

Can we EVER take the Nanny State too far?

Is it ONLY Nutella?

Why not just label all food that way? Isn't food the leading cause of obesity? Sure, inactivity contributes, but only if you actually eat.

Rough translation of the article:

EU regulators are considering new food labeling legislation which would be more strict than the current one which just states contents of carbohydrates, fat, protein, etc. This might mean [wild speculation] that a Nutella warning label would read: "warning: may cause obesity", just like the cigarette packets.

I suppose either your French or your honesty is not very good, spruce, since this author is obviously just satirizing.

As for the labels, I'm in favour of the "traffic light" system proposed by some MEPs - i.e. you can see at a glance if a product contains a lot of fat, carbohydrate, salt, etc. using a colour coded picture. Using this system, consumers can quickly decide how healthy they want their food to be. But from what I understand, this proposal didn't get through the European Parliament.

Originally posted by KazetNagorra
As for the labels, I'm in favour of the "traffic light" system proposed by some MEPs - i.e. you can see at a glance if a product contains a lot of fat, carbohydrate, salt, etc. using a colour coded picture. Using this system, consumers can quickly decide how healthy they want their food to be. But from what I understand, this proposal didn't get through the European Parliament.

If consumers really did want that system they would buy only products from producers that labelled their food with some kind of code.

Fact is, it's not consumers that want it, it's a bunch of busybody bureauRats.

Originally posted by Wajoma
If consumers really did want that system they would buy only products from producers that labelled their food with some kind of code.

Food producers do not want to draw attention to the unhealthiness of some of their products.

Originally posted by KazetNagorra
Rough translation of the article:

EU regulators are considering new food labeling legislation which would be more strict than the current one which just states contents of carbohydrates, fat, protein, etc. This might mean [wild speculation] that a Nutella warning label would read: "warning: may cause obesity", just like the cigarette packets.

I su ...[text shortened]... ench or your honesty is not very good, spruce, since this author is obviously just satirizing.

Speaking of honesty, where do you see the phrase "wild speculation" in that article?

" Ainsi, un peu à la manière des paquets de cigarettes, les pots de Nutella pourraient se voir décorés d'un message d'avertissement du type : "Attention, danger, favorise l'obésité"."

which I translate as:

"So, a little bit like with packets of cigarettes, jars of Nutella could be seen sporting a warning message like this: 'Caution: Could cause obesity.'"

and which Google translates as:

"Thus, a bit like cigarette packets, jars of Nutella could be decorated with a warning message like: "Warning, danger, promotes obesity."

?

Originally posted by AThousandYoung
Is it ONLY Nutella?

Presumably not.

Originally posted by FMF
Food producers do not want to draw attention to the unhealthiness of some of their products.

Has putting warnings on cigarettes decreased smoking?

Presumably like with the new "graphic" tobacco warnings, we would want to put a picture of a grotesquely obese, naked human being on the jar of Nutella to really drive home the message.

How appetizing!

I eat Nutella. I'm not fat.

Originally posted by spruce112358
Has putting warnings on cigarettes decreased smoking?

Presumably like with the new "graphic" tobacco warnings, we would want to put a picture of a grotesquely obese, naked human being on the jar of Nutella to really drive home the message.

How appetizing!

graphic tobacco warnings...

...or state mandated graffiti.

It's a freedom of expression issue.