Girl Scouts will peddle less trans fat in cookies

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Girl Scouts will peddle less trans fat in cookies

 

http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/105736

 

By Lisa Gutierrez

KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS

 

But do they still taste good?

 

Customers will want to know as Girl Scouts around the nation start their annual cookie drive between now and early next year with new, healthier treats: cookies with zero trans fat.

 

East of the Mississippi, Scouts have taken the villainous substance out of three of their most popular cookies: Thin Mints, Caramel deLites and Peanut Butter Patties. Two new cookies, the fudge-covered Thanks-A-Lot and reduced-fat Cartwheels, don't have trans fat, either.

 

In the West, Tag-A-Longs and Lemon Coolers now have zero trans fat. Dominick San Angelo, development manager for the Saguaro Girl Scout Council, which spans Southern Arizona, expects more cookies to follow suit in coming years. In Tucson, Girl Scouts start taking orders in early January, and the cookies (still $4 a box) start arriving by mid-February.

 

"The fact that five of them are trans-fat-free is big news to them," says Martha Singleton, spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts of Mid-Continent Council. By next year's drive, all of that council's Girl Scout cookies will be free of the fat that scientists now tell us is more harmful to our hearts than saturated fat.

 

"I think our sales will go up because of it," said Dianne Brungardt, leader of two troops in Independence, Mo. "I hear every year that everyone's on a diet, and they love cookies, and they love Girl Scout cookies and want to help out with our programs, but they want something with reduced fat or something healthier."

 

Girl Scout cookies join a parade of other foods, from Doritos to Goldfish crackers, that have been de-trans-fatted in anticipation of new FDA labeling requirements that go into effect Jan. 1. That's when foods containing trans fat must state amounts on the nutrition label.

 

The rule is expected to affect 40 percent of the stuff on supermarket shelves, from breakfast cereal and snack crackers to candy and microwave popcorn.

 

Trans fats - used to increase shelf life, stabilize flavor and make foods creamy - usually come from partially hydrogenated oils found in most cookies, cakes and processed foods. The food industry used them for decades because they were cheap and thought to be healthier than saturated fats.

 

But scientists have found that's not the case, with studies finding a relationship between diets high in trans fat and high LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, levels.

 

Trans fatty acids 101

 

Here's what the Food and Drug Administration wants you to know about trans fats:

 

The government recommends that Americans limit trans-fat consumption to no more than 2 grams a day.

 

It's everywhere. It's in foods such as vegetable shortening, margarine, crackers, candies, baked goods, snack foods, fried foods, salad dressings and many processed foods.

 

Read the label. If it includes shortening, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil or hydrogenated vegetable oil, it contains trans fat.

 

Zero isn't always zero. The FDA allows a food product containing less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving to be listed as 0 grams on the Nutrition Facts panel. That's why consumers might see a few products that list 0 grams of trans fat, while the ingredients list will have "shortening" or "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.