Halloween may be the season of spooky thrills and chills, but there’s a real scare lurking year-round: the food industry’s use of misleading buzzwords and greenwashed marketing.
Buzzwords and Greenwashing Give Us the Creeps
In the world of packaged foods, certain words and images are designed to cast a spell on consumers, making products seem healthier than they really are. Let’s take a closer look at some of the creepiest offenders.
“Natural”: A Masked Villain
The word "natural" conjures images of fresh, wholesome ingredients, but in reality, it's a loosely regulated term that food manufacturers often use to give products a "health halo." Two of the most common culprits in this disguise game are "natural flavors" and "all-natural."
Despite sounding wholesome, “natural flavors” can be chemically processed, and the origins are often far from "natural." These flavor additives are often made from plant or animal sources but are processed in ways that strip away their original form and nutritional benefits.
The phrase "all-natural" certainly implies minimal processing or additive-free ingredients. However, it’s not well-defined or regulated, leaving manufacturers free to label products as “all-natural” even when they contain ingredients that are scary and far from natural! Many “natural” or “all-natural” soups seem like a wholesome choice, evoking images of homemade cooking. But a closer look often reveals ingredients that are hard to pronounce, contain too much sodium, and certainly aren't things you'd find in your kitchen. Even with the label “all-natural,” these soups can be far from truly unprocessed or nutritious, making “natural” a mask that hides what’s really in the bowl.
Nature-Inspired Packaging: Might be a Costume
Many food brands wrap their products in earthy colors, images of farms or fields, and even rustic fonts to give an impression of wholesomeness. These designs are meant to evoke feelings of purity, simplicity, and health. But beware—this is often just a spooky costume that hides ultra-processed and unhealthy ingredients, like refined grains, sodium, seed oils and artificial flavors!
Selective Ingredient Highlights: The Monster Lurking Beneath
When products boast phrases like “made with real veggies” or “whole grains” on the label, it can give the illusion of quality ingredients. But this trick often highlights only a small part of the product. For instance, a “made with real veggies” food might contain only a minimal amount of veggies (which could even be made from concentrates), while the rest is sodium or sugar. Similarly, snacks labeled with “whole grains” often also include refined grains and sugars, providing little nutritional benefit.
Don’t Get Tricked—Tips for Choosing Healthier Foods
Navigating the grocery store can feel like a haunted house of misleading claims and scary surprises. Do your best! Find brands you trust by:
Looking Beyond the Buzzwords
Don’t rely on terms like “all-natural,” “whole grain,” or “made with veggies" as markers of quality. Instead, check the nutrition facts and ingredient list to see what’s really inside! Ingredient lists don't lie! We're looking for ones that are simple and easy to understand. Ingredients you can pronounce, that you'd find in your grandma's kitchen! Avoid products with long lists of additives, sugars, or “natural flavors”. Check out one of our ingredient lists:
Simple! Remember, here at Soupergirl, if you don't find an ingredient in Soupermom's kitchen, you won't find it in our soups.
Watch Out for Added Sodium
Sodium can be a real ghost hiding behind many seemingly “all-natural” soups and products, with some varieties packing upwards of half the daily recommended amount per serving. Ideally, being under 400 mg per serving can help you avoid excessive salt content. This is especially important for canned soups, which rely on sodium as a preservative.
Verify Ingredient Claims
"Made with real veggies" - great! Flip it over, and check those ingredients! Verify that it is indeed REAL veggies, and not a byproduct of a once-real veggie... or, a real veggie under a mountain of highly processed junk.
As always, we're here to provide you with nourishing, TRULY natural, protein-packed, hand-crafted soups. No tricks. No disguises. No fluffy buzzwords. No shortcuts. JUST. GOOD. SOUP.