BSLG’s Peter Cross Joins LIMA Charity Drive

by Broad Street | Published 03/24/2015 | Health

Carole Francesca, President of Broad Street Licensing Group, announced today that Account Executive, Peter Cross, has been appointed to serve on the Licensing Industry Manufacturers Association (LIMA) Charity Committee, working on behalf of the Children’s Brain Tumor Foundation (CBTF). LIMA is the licensing industry’s trade association, and has worked to raise money for a variety […]

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The Coming Backlash Against “Natural” Foods

by Broad Street | Published 12/03/2013 | Alcoholic Beverages, Consumer Package Goods (CPG), Government Regulation, Health, Litigation, Marketing Trends, Organics, Retailing

Unlike organic, no government regulations limit the use of the term “natural,” nor are there any guidelines for its use. That may all be changing: a “food label modernization bill” was introduced in September in Congress that would require the FDA to establish a standardized labeling protocol. While the bill has not been passed, food companies are acting to remove “all natural” designation on their own or because of lawsuits. Over 100 suits have been filed against products ranging from Ben & Jerry’s ice cream (which contains partially-hydrogenated oils or trans fats) to Beam, Inc.’s Skinnygirl alcoholic drinks. One of the thornier issues is whether GMOs (genetically-modified organisms) are natural or not. Judges this past Summer in cases against Gruma Corp.’s Mission tortilla chips and General Mills Inc. Nature Valley granola bars have delayed ruling until the FDA decides whether GMO foods can be marketed as “all natural.”

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Reformulating Products Won’t Fix Childhood Obesity

by Broad Street | Published 11/05/2013 | Health, Opinion

Whether marketing 100-calorie packs or replacing high fructose corn syrup with “natural” sweeteners, food marketers have been hoping to attack childhood obesity by tinkering with their products in a process called reformulation. This study casts cold water on the hopes of food marketers that reformulating their products will impact the childhood obesity problem.[1] Nearly 40% […]

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