Important to understand processed food exists on a spectrum. Slicing an apple in half is one end; Pop-Tarts on the other. We need nuance when talking about processed food, hence the term 'ultraprocessed'. Yes, technically cooking quinoa is 'processing', I get it. Not the point.
— Andy Bellatti MS, RD (@andybellatti) February 4, 2018
Processed food can be considered a bogeyman of sorts. Dietitians tell us to eat around the outside edge of the grocery store. But what happens when a good dietitian asks us to rethink processed food in a positive way? Let's find out.
"All foods (with a few exceptions) are processed. It’s simply not possible, convenient, or even healthy to avoid all processed foods."
You could do rather well without processed foods. You would need tons of time and money. Fruits, vegetables, meat, fish in their natural state sound appealing. Milk and butter might fit her definition of processed food, but most people don't think of milk and butter as “processed food.” If you pick well, you could eat quite healthy without processed foods.
"The Industrial Revolution is what allowed us to achieve these important qualities in our food system. Food ingredients, from ones that are centuries old to ones more recently developed, help make possible a safe, convenient, healthful, flavorful and affordable food supply. By processing food and incorporating different ingredients, we are able to enjoy safer food (through the use of preservatives, like ascorbic acid, i.e., vitamin C), higher-quality food (which stays fresh longer), more nutritious food (by enriching with various nutrients), and more delicious food (enhanced taste and texture through flavors, spices, emulsifiers, etc.)"
Yes, the food industry and consumers have benefited from the Industrial Revolution. The objections to processed food have more to do with the last 40 years than the previous 100 years. And we aren’t worried about ascorbic acid.
We do have more enriched food than ever before but that is because we strip so many nutrients from food. A loaf of whole wheat bread from 100 years ago has a lot more nutrients but won’t last as long on the shelf as Wonder Bread. That classic loaf of bread isn't made artificially sweet with lots of high-fructose corn syrup. I'm picking the older loaf even if I know I had to eat it up much quicker.
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Our dietitian friend brings in a food historian and author:
"Farm products are not food; they are the raw materials for food. Turning plants and animals into something edible is just as difficult, just as laborious as farming itself."
Uh, farm products are food. Raw food but still food. Cutting up animals as "processed food" is a very odd definition. A steak or a pork tenderloin doesn't have chemicals and artificial colors and preservatives. I have enough respect for farmers to know their work is more laborious than minimal processing of plants and animals.
"Very few of our calories come from raw, unprocessed food. And if those calories are from fruits and vegetables, then it's only because centuries of breeding has [sic] made them less chewy, more tasty, and easier to digest."
She is correct on the first part. That's not a good statement but it's true. So hundred of years of breeding fruits and vegetables is the same as processed food, equal to processed food? That is rethinking processed food but not in a helpful way.
"Cooking, which is one part of processing, went hand in hand with becoming human. Human food is processed food."
The idea of taking raw ingredients and cooking them is a healthy step to avoid processed food. If cooking from raw ingredients counts as "processed food," then you've made a mockery of the term "processed food."
We are told by dietitians that you don't have to eat fresh fruits and vegetables; frozen fruits and vegetables can help out. By the definition of these two people, frozen fruits and vegetables are "processed food."
The design of this article appears to diminish the legitimate concerns about what is in our food supply by dragging in the Industrial Revolution and lumping butter and milk with heavily preserved items in the middle of the store.
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Not all of us will make our own ketchup or mayonnaise but we can buy smarter versions of these products. Sometimes, we will choose a more processed bread but we should know there are better alternatives out there. Chances are you don't use castoreum, high-fructose corn syrup, or food dyes when you cook at home.
Avoiding "processed food" by the standard definition is difficult, but a smarter consumer can pay more attention and make wiser choices in the processed food world. This advice might sound better coming from a dietitian, but sometimes agendas are in conflict.
Twitter capture: @andybellatti
photo credit: here
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