Manufacturers have been prohibited from making false or misleading claims about their products since the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act was passed in 1906. However, for many years the most information a food manufacturer needed to provide was the common name of the food, net weight, manufacturer or distributor information and a list of ingredients in descending order by predominance by weight.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provided manufacturers with guidelines in 1973 to voluntarily list a limited amount of nutritional information on food packages. However, by the mid 1980s some manufacturers became a bit overzealous, posturing for health and nutrition superiority, with "high fiber", "low sodium" and other claims the FDA had yet to define for the food industry to use. The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) of 1990 changed all that. Details for the Nutrition Facts panel for retail-food packages were finalized in 1993 and went into effect in May 1994.

NLEA mandates that nutrition information be included on the food package for most manufactured foods. Retailers may voluntarily provide information for fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as for fresh meats and seafood. As of January 2006 information on potential food allergens and trans fat, for those foods containing fat, must also be included.

Manufacturers today must abide by FDA definitions for numerous health and/or nutrient content claims they may want to make about a particular food. There are strict guidelines that must be followed before a food can use terms such as "Low calorie,""Low fat," "Sugar Free" or many other enticements that may be used to lure the health- and diet-conscious consumer into a purchasing decision.

One of the most useful pieces of information on the Nutrition facts panel is "% Daily Value" (% DV), which can help the consumer determine how a particular food may fit into an overall healthful diet.

Although the % DV is based on a sample diet of 2000 Calories, very few people actually eat an exact number of Calories per day. Nevertheless, this section can help the consumer navigate through the concept of "nutrient density." Nutrient density evaluates the amount of nutritional value a food provides compared to the number of Calories it provides.

Ideally, we should target foods with high-nutrient density to ensure a diet high in nutritional value without a lot of nutritionally empty Calories. Daily Value information is provided for a number of, but not all, nutrients the food may contain. One hundred percent, or the maximum recommended daily consumption for each of those nutrients, based on a 2000 or 2500 calorie diet, would be:

Remember, when looking at any food label, that there are no good foods or bad foods, per se, just good diets and bad diets.

Phillips crab meat is a real star of a food choice for avid label readers with only 45 Calories, 0 g. total fat and no sugar per 2 oz. serving. Try the following recipe, which features high protein, fat-free crab meat as a snack or light meal idea:

Low Fat Wrap

Yield

About 4 portions

Ingredients:

3 Tbsp. fat free Italian dressing

2 Tbsp. reduced fat or fat free mayonnaise dressing

1 plum tomato, seeded and chopped

2 oz. lettuce, shredded

1 oz. crumbled mild Feta cheese

8 oz. Phillips Backfin Crab Meat

fresh cracked black pepper, if desired, to taste

4 - 6" fat free flour tortillas

Directions:

In small mixing bowl, gently fold all ingredients together, except flour tortillas. Portion the mixture evenly along the upper third of each of the 4 tortillas. Roll tortillas up. Serve, seam side down, cut into pinwheel pieces, if desired.