Hannaford Brothers, the New England grocery chain, has developed a system called Guiding Stars that rates the nutritional value of nearly all the food and drinks at its stores--from zero to three
stars. Of the 27,000 products that were rated, 77% received no stars, including many of the processed foods that advertise themselves as good for you (like V-8 and most Healthy Choice Frozen Dinners).
Predictably, most fruits and vegetables earned three stars, as did things like salmon and Post Grape-Nuts cereal.
Hannaford says it is not trying to be preachy or to issue a yes-or-no
checklist--just to offer guidance to shoppers who want it. Food manufacturers were apprehensive at first, according to a Hannaford's spokeswoman, but relaxed when they learned that neither they nor
their products would be penalized.
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