CR tests find Lunchables and similar lunch kits contain relatively high levels of lead, cadmium and sodium; all but one contain harmful phthalates  WASHINGTON, D.C.…

Consumer Reports called on the Department of Agriculture today to remove Lunchables food kits from the National School Lunch Program. CR recently compared the nutritional profiles of two Lunchable kits served in schools and found they have even higher levels of sodium than the kits consumers can buy in the store. CR also tested 12 store-bought versions of Lunchables and similar kits and found several contained relatively high levels of lead and cadmium. All but one also tested positive for phthalates, chemicals found in plastic that have been linked to reproductive problems, diabetes, and certain cancers.

  • cristo@lemmy.worldEsperanto
    2·
    7 months ago

    Did you read past the abstract and see the part about how in 2011 the government prevented the USDA from reclassifying pizza as a vegetable because it contains 30ml of tomato paste?

    • candybrie@lemmy.world
      1·
      7 months ago

      That’s not what that said. The USDA tried to raise how much tomato paste was required to count as a vegetable which would make pizza not count. Congress said no, pizza still counts.

      In 2011, Congress passed a bill that barred the USDA from changing its nutritional guidelines for school lunches. The proposed changes would have limited the amount of potatoes allowed in lunches, required more green vegetables, and declared a half-cup of tomato paste to count as a serving of vegetables, rather than the current standard of 2 tablespoons (30 mL). The blocking of these proposed higher standards meant that the smaller amount of tomato paste in pizza could continue to be counted as a vegetable in school lunches.