Overview

How did the Nutrition Facts label come to appear on millions of everyday American household products? As Xaq Frohlich unearths, this legal, scientific, and seemingly innocuous strip of information is in fact a prism through which to view the high-stakes political battles and development of scientific ideas that shaped the realms of American health, nutrition, and public communication.   From Label to Table tells the biography of the food label. By tracing policy debates at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Frohlich describes the emergence of our present information age in food and diet markets and how powerful government offices inform the public about what they consume. From the early years of FDA food standards, with concerns about consumer protection, up to present-day efforts to modernize the Nutrition Facts panel, Frohlich explores the evolving popular ideas about food, diet, and responsibility for health that inform what goes on the label and who gets to decide that.

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9780520298811

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Reviews

"""From Label to Table presents the history of institutionalism around nutritional facts, the social construction of consumers, the changes around the perception of food and its marketing, and the search to make food scientific and objective in the United States during the twentieth century."" * Not Even Past * ""This thought-provoking book is a must read for anyone interested in understanding American food and wellness culture, and for anyone who reads nutrition labels. While it includes lots of policy detail, it is well written and accessible. Fantastic images help illustrate the arguments, and the biography of the label at the heart of the text is compelling and convincing."" * California History * ""This thought-provoking book is a must read for anyone interested in understanding American food and wellness culture, and for anyone who reads nutrition labels. While it includes lots of policy detail, it is well written and accessible."" * California History *"

"""From Label to Table presents the history of institutionalism around nutritional facts, the social construction of consumers, the changes around the perception of food and its marketing, and the search to make food scientific and objective in the United States during the twentieth century."" * Not Even Past *"

Author Information

Xaq Frohlich is Associate Professor of History of Technology at Auburn University. He works on issues relating to food and risk at the intersections of science, law, and markets.

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