BDN quotes Hopkins in article on rethinking sugar labeling

The Bangor Daily News quoted Kathy Hopkins, a maple syrup expert and extension educator at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, in an article on the FDA’s reconsideration of changes in sugar labeling. The initial proposal would have required maple syrup and honey producers to label their pure products as containing added sugar to comply with updated nutrition guidelines recommending lowering sugar intake to reduce the risk of health problems. Members of the maple syrup and honey industries have expressed concerns over the proposed change, which they say would confuse consumers about the contents of a pure product naturally high in sugar and do more harm than good. The FDA plans to revise its approach to the labeling change in response to this feedback, according to the BDN. Hopkins clarified that the proposed label indicating maple syrup and honey have “added sugar” would really mean they contain “excess sugar over the recommended amount” established by the FDA. WGME (Channel 13 in Portland) carried the BDN article.