Build UP Catch UP - 11/24/23

Cricket Protein, Priorities for Shoppers, Fearmongering About Fruit (& Vegetables), Sense about Diet Sodas, Withdrawal Times and more

Are Crickets okay for VEGETARIANS?

(This question was posted in our Build Up Dietitians CLINICAL Group)

Question: ‘Is cricket protein powder considered vegetarian?’

ANSWER: No. According to the Vegetarian Society insects are NOT part of a vegetarian diet.

Additional note: If a person has an allergy to SHELLFISH they are likely also allergic to INSECTS. The Edible Insect Revolution Is Not for Those With Shellfish Allergies | Office for Science and Society - McGill University

#Just4FUN

From our friends at Bring Evidence

What’s Important to Shoppers? (What They Say vs What They Buy)

If you happen to be a retail/supermarket dietitian, you see this sort of thing all the time, i.e. what people say they buy or want to buy or will spend (additional) money on, may be quite different than what actually ends up in their shopping cart. Here’s a study that looked at how shoppers rated certain attributes. Notice what is the most important attribute? It’s not “free-range” or “sustainably produced” or even “locally grown” ….by far it’s PRICE.

Sustainability | Free Full-Text | Canadian Consumers’ Perceptions of Sustainability of Food Innovations (mdpi.com)...

“….consumer attitudes that are expressed outside of a grocery store often greatly differ from actual shopping habits. When shoppers are disconnected from the reality of the marketplace, or in instances when costs are hypothetically asked, responses can often be supportive, as the respondent is not actually spending any of their financial resources.” Much Ado About Nothing: The Difference Between Consumer Stated And Revealed Preferences - SAIFood

Fearmongering About Fruit (and Vegetables) because of Apeel/Edipeel

(NOT #Sponsored)

Have you gotten any questions about Apeel? This is a coating (Edipeel) made plant oils … “…composed entirely of purified monoglycerides and diglycerides, edible compounds that can be found in a variety of foods. They are safe to eat as verified by regulatory authorities around the world, including Health Canada, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the World Health Organization (WHO).”

The benefit of this coating is that it can extend shelf life and reduce foods waste. Less food waste equals less food creating more greenhouse gas emissions—and that’s a good thing, right?

But apparently some wellness/health coach sites are trying to incite fear about Apeel with a variety of claims:

Interestingly, the same folks, like ‘Healthy Home Economist”, who rose to fame spreading disinformation about GMO’s, gluten and glyphosate, are the same sites fearmongering about Apeel with claims that it is “poison” and “toxic’.

In this article by Snopes: Are Fruits and Vegetables With 'Apeel' Stickers Safe to Eat? | Snopes.com they debunk some of the misinformation floating around.