Health By the Numbers
It’s one thing to say Americans are becoming healthier, but another thing to quantify it.
New data was unveiled here that sheds light on consumer knowledge of health topics and willingness to adopt healthy practices.
That data came in a report by the American Dietetic Association, released at the Healthy Baking Seminar, presented by Modern Baking and Baking Management, sister magazines to Supermarket News. Katie Martin, managing editor of the baking magazines, provided the post-show information for this blog post. The seminar was co-located with Expo West.
According the ADA findings, on a 1 to 5 scale, Americans have the most knowledge of low-fat (4.2) and the least knowledge of probiotics (1.9).
Meanwhile, in the past five years, Americans have increased their consumption of low-fat foods by 48%, low-carb by 27%, and allergen-free by 8%, the research found.
The seminar wasn’t all about hard numbers, however. For the first time, the program featured round-robin breakout sessions led by experts in various baking topics, all conducted simultaneously at different tables so that attendees can experience more than one. Some of the most popular were organic/natural, whole wheat/specialty flours and gluten-free/allergen concerns.
Some of the showmanship was left for the finale. Klaus Tenbergen, Culinology program director for California State University-Fresno, led a demonstration session that focused on formulating with raisin paste, rice protein, lupin flour and soybean shortening and oil.
