Save Chocolate!

Like OMG.

The FDA wants to change the rules for chocolate making. They want to let "real chocolate" be made not with cocoa butter but with fat substitutes. Vegetable fat.

You can read about it here in the L.A. Times. In part, it says:

The FDA is entertaining a "citizen's petition" to allow manufacturers to substitute vegetable fats and oils for cocoa butter.

The "citizens" who created this petition represent groups that would benefit most from this degradation of the current standards. They are the Chocolate Manufacturers Assn., the Grocery Manufacturers Assn., the Snack Food Assn. and the National Cattlemen's Beef Assn. (OK, I'm not sure what's in it for them), along with seven other food producing associations.

This is what they think of us chocolate eaters, according to their petition on file at the FDA:

"Consumer expectations still define the basic nature of a food. There are, however, no generally held consumer expectations today concerning the precise technical elements by which commonly recognized, standardized foods are produced. Consumers, therefore, are not likely to have formed expectations as to production methods, aging time or specific ingredients used for technical improvements, including manufacturing efficiencies."

Let me translate:
"Consumers won't know the difference."

I don't know about you, but I will notice the difference. Cocoa butter chocolate melts in your mouth; its the texture that gives good chocolate its nearly orgasmic sensations. We already have "imitation" chocolate - and I don't eat it. It's the stuff you try to pawn off on kids when you accidentally purchase it at the store.

They don't eat it either.

The scarier thing about this is that essentially this "citizen petition" is asking for a complete relaxation of food standards by the FDA on the basis that we have labels now and if we don't read them to see that things in the food will kill us that's our problem.

This is a request to relaxe food standards.

The lack of government oversight during recent years has brought us the peanut butter scare, the dog food scare, the spinach scare, etc., etc. ad naseum .... need I say more about what we're in for if food standards are lessened? It's not just about the taste.

Read the FDA thing for yourself here. If you want to comment, go here.

Thanks to redsneakz over at Separation Anxiety for pointing this out.