This month's product focus is on Hamburger Helper® - Stroganoff Flavor.
Manufacturer: Betty Crocker/General Mills.
With 44 separate ingredients listed on the package, Hamburger Helper Stroganoff immediately sends up red flags. In summary, this is a highly processed "food" that requires the addition of several nutrients to replace a small portion of the nutrients found in the original food items.
Several of the ingredients in this product may contain monosodium glutamate (MSG) even though this is not listed (or required to be listed) on the package. Specifically, hydrolyzed ingredients, citric acid, maltodextrin, and autolyzed yeast extract may contain monosodium glutamate.
Hydrogenated ingredients contain trans fats which raise bad cholesterol and lower good cholesterol. Two are listed on the ingredients: partially hydrogenated soybean oil and cottonseed oil.
Two of the ingredients - Disodium Guanylate and Disodium Inosinate - are not allowed to be sold in foods consumed by young children and infants due to the possibility that they may trigger gout.
Ingredients such as "natural flavor and "artificial color", both listed on the package, are not regulated by the FDA beyond assurance that the chemicals in the coloring or flavoring are "generally recognized as safe", a designation open to arbitrary interpretation. Failure to identify specific flavorings and colorings is in itself a red flag. Further, recent citations by the General Accounting Office have strongly implied that the FDA has little or no interest in implementing a food safety program (GAO-08-909T), providing adequate food labeling oversight (GAO-08-597), or even providing fresh produce safety (GAO-08-1047).
Several componenets within this product contain wheat, soy, corn, and animal protein components or derivatives or may be affected by equipment or processes that are themselves affected, and may be hazardous to those with allergies to these ingredients.
