Code of Federal Regulations, Title 9: Part 317... a good law

For this blog post, I am happy to announce that there is a agricultural law that benefits me HUGELY. Let me preface this blog by a small story: I am overweight. I have been for years, and for years, I have done nothing but gain weight. I had tried all sorts of diets/exercise combos, and had even attempted a few "miracle pills", but nothing worked, I would always lose, then gain far more than I had ever lost. A little less than a year ago, however, I finally decided to give Weight Watchers a try. I have had a great amount of success. In the last year, I have lost 40 lbs, which is amazing, because for the 10 years previously, I had gained an average of 16-20 lbs per year. That is a net gain, including "weight loss" attempts. This is my first year in the last decade where I have had a net loss. I still have a ways to go, but I have confidence that I will be able to continue losing weight until I am at my desired size.

How does this relate to farming and agriculture you might ask? Well... quite simply, there is a regulation on food manufacturing that requires proper labeling and disclosure of ingredients (as mentioned in the title to this post), as well as caloric content, and grams of fat, protein, carbohydrates, and fiber. The researchers at Weight Watchers have determined that those four key elements are the basis for weight loss (or weight gain). As a result, they have determined a "points" system that is derived from the percentages of those food components. Now, me, the end user, simply have to input how much fat, carbohydrate, fiber, and protein a specific food has in a serving, and voila! I know how many "points" it is, and I can easily determine what is a healthy portion for me, as well as measure a serving easily. Because of the required labeling of most foods, I can easily determine what I want to eat, without being restricted to specific food designed and sold by a weigh loss company (which are inevitably difficult to enjoy), giving me the freedom to eat what I want, which is the main factor which has kept me on this diet.

Example of the current food labels required by the FDA, as well as proposed changes to this model.

So I would like to say a resounding THANK YOU to the FDA as well as Weight Watchers. I would not have been able to lose weight without your efforts!!