-By Warner Todd Huston
On Monday, February 11, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg proudly announced that he had succeeded in cajoling 21 companies to remove more salt from some food products.
Companies such as Butterball, Heinz, Starbucks, Oscar Mayer, and Kraft Foods have committed to taking more sodium out of products ranging from popcorn, to cold cuts, to breakfast sandwiches.
Bloomberg announced that 21 companies out of 24 agreed to the changes.
“These companies have demonstrated their commitment to removing excess sodium from their products and to working with public health authorities toward a shared goal — helping their customers lead longer, healthier lives,” Mayor Bloomberg said.
Bloomberg cannot take all credit for the campaign to eliminate salt in our nation’s food products. Many companies have been taking measures to eliminate salt all on their own. For several years, for instance, Sarah Lee Corp. has undertaken its own campaign to lower the salt content from its products.
Other companies have also been following their own desalination projects. ConAgra, makers of Chef Boyardee and Marie Callender’s products, have also been following guidelines it set for itself in 2009.
Bloomberg has made a name for himself as a crusader on a campaign to change people’s habits by launching attacks on soft drink sales, trans fats content in restaurant foods, and other frivolous campaigns.
____________
“The only end of writing is to enable the reader better to enjoy life, or better to endure it.”
–Samuel Johnson
Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer. He has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and before that he wrote articles on U.S. history for several small American magazines. His political columns are featured on many websites such as Andrew Breitbart’s BigGovernment.com, BigHollywood.com, and BigJournalism.com, as well as RightWingNews.com, RightPundits.com, CanadaFreePress.com, StoptheACLU.com, AmericanDaily.com, among many, many others. Mr. Huston is also endlessly amused that one of his articles formed the basis of an article in Germany’s Der Spiegel Magazine in 2008.
For a full bio, please CLICK HERE.