In a class-action lawsuit filed by Center for Science in the Public Interest in California, plaintiffs Nancy Coe, Tori Castro, and Pamela Mizzi, who are acting on behalf of the group, accuse the defendant of misusing the word “protein” in Cheerios Protein. A consumer watchdog group is suing General Mills, taking aim at Cheerios new “Protein” cereal, accusing the company of false advertising.
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We reached to to the Cheerios people-a.k.a. General Mills- and they obviously have a very different take on the matter.
Litigation director for the CSPI, Maia Kats, stated that the only significant difference between Cheerios Protein and original Cheerios is actually in just the sugar content. One serving of the original Cheerios has 3g (grams) of protein and 1g of sugar.
“Cheerios Protein has 17 times as much sugar per serving, as Cheerios, which General Mills does not prominently disclose”, the center says.
When you’re on the lookout for protein-rich food, the first thing you turn to is cereal, right? Um… The press release from the company stated that Cheerios Protein has 18 more grams of protein than regular Cheerios. So adding a sugar-laden cereal such as Cheerios Protein to one’s diet will max out everyone’s daily limit in no time.
After adjusting for the difference, Protein Cheeriosthat muscular-looking bowl of morning goodnesspacks only about a gram more protein by weight.
According to official recommendations, women should not consume more than five teaspoons of sugar per day and men should not go beyond nine. By weight, Protein Cheerios has just over eightinstead of seventeentimes as much sugar as its simplercounterpart. Or that a new flavor isn’t quite as healthy as the original. If General Mills can prove their protein claim, will the sugar issue be enough to sustain the lawsuit? And all of themevery single oneis made with more sugar than the original. But that is to be expected given thatthe spinoffs include flavors likeChocolate, Apple Cinnamon, and Honey Nut. CSPI said that the new product is not as good as it promises.
It believes people would not purchase the protein version is they knew of the facts. “But that fact isn’t obvious”. Cheerios Protein contains 7 grams of protein per serving – and it does qualify as a good source of high-quality protein under the FDA standard. “Cheerios Protein provides a good source of protein in every labeled serving – and it is accurately labeled”.
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However, Mike Siemienas, who is a General Mills spokesman, dismisses the comparison between their products. So, too, has the protein bar market, which was worth more than $500 million in 2013. Sales of health and wellness bars, which often advertiseprotein content, aregrowing more than twice as fast as the overall food industry.
