A few days ago I went to Subway for lunch. I got a 6″ Veggie Delite™ combo meal with a Coca-Cola® carbonated cola beverage and a 1.5oz. bag of SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks. On the front of the SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks package was a blurb that loudly advertised that SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks contain “30% less fat than regular potato chips.” I was then referred to the back panel for nutrition information. On said back panel, I was informed that, “Fat content of regular potato chips is 10g per serving; fat content of SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks is 6g per serving.” Now, I’m no mathematician, but as far as I know, 6g is 40% less than 10g. So why would Frito-Lay avoid making the stronger claim that SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks contain 40% less fat than regular potato chips? One possibility immediately presents itself: rounding error. I imagine that SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks may have up to 6.5g of fat, and they’d still be able to claim only 6g, whereas a claim of 10g for regular potato chips might be substantiated by only 9.5g of actual fat—a difference on the order of 31%. I’m still not sure why they wouldn’t make the stronger claim that SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks contain 31% less fat than regular potato chips. Maybe Frito-Lay thinks a number that doesn’t end in zeros will confuse us all.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE. According to the Nutrition Facts panel on the same package, SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks don’t contain 6g of fat—or even 6.5g of fat. Each serving of SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks contains a full 9g of fat, 1g of which is saturated.

Huh?

That’s right, folks. The package claims that each serving contains only 6g of fat, and not two inches below claims 9g of fat. This is no rounding error. From the Nutrition Facts panel: 

     Serving Size 1 package
     Servings Per Container 1

     Amount Per Serving
     Calories 210	Calories from Fat 80
     Total Fat 9g
       Saturated Fat 1g

There are approximately 9 calories per gram of fat, so 80 calories is consistent with 9g of fat, but not 6g. The catch? When I checked the nutrition information on the Frito-Lay website, I found that the 6g fat statistic applies to a 1oz. serving, whereas the Nutrition Facts panel on my package contained information for a 1.5oz. serving. One would assume that Federal regulations about serving sizes are pretty strict—how does Frito-Lay get away with reporting nutrition statitstics for two different serving sizes on the same package? A quick trip through the FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition website provides the answer:

Certain rules apply to food products that are packaged and sold individually. If such an individual package is less than 200 percent of the applicable reference amount, the item qualifies as one serving.

More details may be found in the FDA Food Labeling Guide Ch. 5.

According to Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 101.12 (21 CFR 101.12), the Reference Amount Customarily Consumed Per Eating Occasion for any type of snack food is 30g (just a hair more than an ounce). When making relative (or comparative) nutritional claims, the comparison must be made to an “average nutrient value” for a particular reference food. If nutrient values vary notably from product to product (which they are likely to do with regular potato chips), some average value must be used and the details must be provided to consumers and regulators upon request (more details may be found in the FDA Food Labeling Guide Ch.6 and in 21 CFR 101.13). Frito-Lay’s comparative claim about fat content must be based on a 30g serving (hence the 6g fat for SUNCHIPS® brand Multigrain Snacks) even on a 42.5g (1.5oz.) package (which still qualifies as a single serving because it is less than 60g).

Problem Solved. ■

NP: Mates of State, Über Legitimate