Food labels: the science and politics behind them

+ AI supercharges data center energy use; bull sharks thrive in warming Gulf US Edition - Today's top story: Nutrition Facts labels have a complicated legacy – a historian explains the science and politics of translating food into information [View in browser]( US Edition | 17 July 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Which sounds more objective: Nutrition Facts, Nutrition Values or Nutrition Guide? Does 2,000 calories meet your daily energy needs, or would 2,350? Such are a few of the consequential decisions the FDA, USDA and other agencies pondered when designing that staid, black-and-white label gracing the side of your cereal box and countless other food items. You might have glanced at the Nutrition Facts label while deciding between two similar products at the grocery store – a little more fiber here or a little less salt there might have cinched your choice. But, as historian Xaq Frohlich of Auburn University notes, this label does much more than just provide consumers with nutritional information. “While envisioned as an education tool, I believe the [Nutrition Facts label in practice has worked more like a market infrastructure](,” he writes, “reshaping the food supply to meet shifting dietary trends and public health goals long before consumers find those foods at the supermarket.” Frohlich unpacks some of the political and technical choices behind the daily values percentages and serving sizes, among others – exploring how the way food is translated into information shapes the health of the nation. Also in this week’s science news: - [The science behind Ariana Grande’s voice change]( - [What scientists know about Mars from meteorites]( - [How to protect your home from wildfires]( If there’s a subject you’d like our team of science editors to investigate, please reply to this email. Vivian Lam Associate Health and Biomedicine Editor The Nutrition Facts label is designed to meet shifting dietary trends and public health goals. NoDerog/iStock via Getty Images Plus [Nutrition Facts labels have a complicated legacy – a historian explains the science and politics of translating food into information]( Xaq Frohlich, Auburn University The process of converting food into nutritional information is more than just a scientific process. It involves many political and technical compromises that continue to shape the food industry today. [AI supercharges data center energy use – straining the grid and slowing sustainability efforts]( Ayse Coskun, Boston University AI is everywhere these days, which means more data centers eating up more electricity. There’s no easy fix, but some combination of efficiency, flexibility and new technologies could ease the burden. 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