Elisabeth Wrede

With the number of Tulsa and Oklahoma City individuals who have to navigate life without gluten because of an illness like Celiac Disease, it is helpful to know that gluten-free snack options are now more readily available. A recent report from Research and Markets, Gluten-Free Foods in the U.S. 6th Edition, projected that sales of gluten-free foods in the following categories—Salty Snacks, Crackers, Fresh Bread, Pasta, Cold (ready-to-eat) Cereal, Baking Mixes, Cookies, Flour, and Frozen Bread/Dough—are expected to grow to more than $2 billion by 2020. That is a lot of gluten-free food and snack selections to choose from.

So, what exactly is gluten? The Celiac Disease Foundation defines gluten as “a general name for the proteins found in wheat (wheatberries, durum, emmer, semolina, spelt, farina, farro, graham, KAMUT® khorasan wheat and einkorn), rye, barley, and triticale – a cross between wheat and rye.” Gluten behaves as the glue that holds food together. Several different categories of ingredients such as fruit, vegetables, and protein do not naturally have gluten. Creating snacks and other grain-based products requires additional knowledge about how each gluten-free ingredient works as the many of the frequently used grains contain gluten.

There are, however, many plant-based gluten-free ingredient options that are now being used to create healthy, tasty, and filling snacks. The following are a few that Tulsa and Oklahoma City employees might be familiar with:

Whole Grain, Gluten-Free Ingredients

• • Amaranth

• • Buckwheat groats (or kasha)

• • Corn (maize)

• • Gluten-free oats

• • Millet

• • Quinoa

• • Sorghum

• • Teff

• Wild Rice/Brown Rice
  

Plant-Based, Gluten-Free Ingredients

• • Arrowroot

• • Pulses (beans, lentils & chickpeas)

• • Cassava

• • Chia

• • Flax

• • Nut flours

• • Soy

• • Tapioca

• White Rice
  

Researchers from Gluten-Free Foods in the U.S., 6th Edition found that “pulse-based [ingredients] are particularly valuable in improving the nutrient quality of gluten-free products, as they are richer in fiber, protein, and micronutrients than GF [gluten-free] staples rice and tapioca flour. The appeal of ancient and sprouted grains is much like that of pulses. For food processors [or manufacturers], these ingredients provide whole food, plant-based protein sources that enhance appearance, deliver unique tastes and textures, pack a nutritional wallop, and invite variety and innovation.”

With such a wide variety of ingredients and the different ways that they can be used, the availability of tasty gluten-free snacks in Tulsa and Oklahoma City has grown to include many different salty and sweet snack choices. Gluten-free salty snacks often include rice and corn puffs flavored with aged cheddar or popped potato chips with barbecue flavoring. Sweet treats vary from cookies made with rice or oat flour to gluten-free Greek yogurt with a wide variety of fruit choices.

Have you considered offering both gluten-free and traditional snacks and beverages in your office break room? Blue Sky Supply offers both traditional options as well as products that are gluten-free for those who need gluten-free choices. We can also help you determine the best mix of choices to offer in your office break room. For more information, contact Blue Sky Supply at (918) 599-9100.

Is it healthy, not so healthy, or somewhere in between? If it’s not so healthy, you are part of a large number of Americans who feel that their diet is unhealthy. Recent research by Mintel, a market intelligence agency, found that “less than half (42 percent) of Americans consider their diet to be healthy.” Yikes!

While negative dietary influences vary greatly from person to person, there is one thing that impacts the majority of Tulsa and Oklahoma City consumers—being able to determine the validity of health-related claims on food packaging. As a consumer, how can you combat the uncertainty that often comes with reading food packaging?

Before looking at the packaging issue, it is important to understand what a food or health-related claim is. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) describes a health claim as “a relationship between a food substance (a food, food component, or dietary supplement ingredient), and reduced risk of a disease or health-related condition.” An example of an FDA-approved health claim that explains the benefit of calcium on the risk of osteoporosis is, “Adequate calcium throughout life, as part of a well-balanced diet, may reduce the risk of osteoporosis.” For a manufacturer to be able to include this claim on the packaging of one of their products, the product must meet a list of specific requirements.

Given that it is often difficult to know those requirements while reading different packaging, the nutrition label and ingredient list are a great resource. Ingredient lists and nutrition labels often contain a large amount of information. To better understand that information, here are a few strategies for reading them.

Nutrition Labels

• Determine how big or small the serving size is for each packaged item. Often the serving size is different than the amount of food or drink in the package. To correctly understand the other information on the nutrition label, knowing the correct serving size is key.
• Understand that the “percentage daily value” listed on the nutrition label is not the same for everyone. Most nutrition labels are based on a 2000 calorie per day diet. If you are taller or shorter or male or female or 17 or 39 or 82 or super active or a couch potato, it is likely that your caloric needs are different. Use the amount listed, 2000 calories per day, and adjust it up or down based on your own needs.
• Pay special attention to the amount of sugar, unhealthy fats, and sodium that are in a serving as those are ingredients that many individuals need to limit.

Ingredient Lists

• Look for recognizable ingredients. If it is an item that you have never heard of or cannot pronounce, look it up or ask someone what it is.
• Consider which ingredients are listed first or early in the list of ingredients. The earlier the ingredient is listed, the larger the amount is of that ingredient.
• If choosing a food that doesn’t come in a labeled package such as fruits or vegetables isn’t an option, choose products that have shorter ingredient lists. (See previous tip)

Now that you are armed with a few strategies for understanding the information on packaged foods and beverages, you are ready to head out and make healthy snack and beverage choices.

We at Blue Sky Supply would like to help make things a little easier for everyone by offering a selection of snacks and beverages in your Tulsa and Oklahoma City office break room. For more information about our products and services, call us at (918) 599-9100.

What are the ingredients in your favorite vending machine snack or beverage? Do you know? If you do, you belong to a growing group of consumers who not only know which ingredients are in their food, but also know the number of ingredients. According to Andrew Mandyz, Director of Strategic Insights at Nielsen, “There’s a shift in how people are thinking about ‘better for you.’ People are looking for back-to-basics, simpler ingredients.”

Ingredient Labels

Seeing the recipe for your snack or beverage would be the best way to learn about what is in it, and how much of each thing was used. But since that is rarely an option, there is another way for Tulsa and Oklahoma City consumers to learn about what is in their food and drink—by reading ingredient labels. Ingredients are listed in a very specific order. The largest ingredient is listed first, followed by each ingredient until the smallest ingredient. For example, a ready-to-drink cold tea that lists the ingredients tea (water, tea), sugar, and lemon is letting the consumer know that there is more tea than sugar, and more sugar than lemon in the beverage. Nielsen found that “about 61 percent [of consumers] said that the shorter the ingredients’ list, the healthier the product.”

Online Resources

In addition to reading ingredient labels, consumers are researching health information online. Mandzy found that the number of consumers who went online for information went from 48% in 2014 up to 68% in 2016, a 20% increase. With the large amount of health information available online, and more Tulsa and Oklahoma City consumers using the internet, it is important to know how to determine if a website contains reliable information. Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center offers some tips:

• Don’t search the entire Internet. Start with the Johns Hopkins Medicine Health Library [or other hospital website] or MedlinePlus.gov.
• Evaluate commercial (“dot com”) sites carefully for bias and conflict of interest.
• Check to see if the information is current (less than three years old).
• Look for the credentials of the author (i.e. doctor, nurse, psychologist) to make sure the information is written by a health professional.

Technology as a Tool

Using technology to track health-related activities and numbers are also on the rise. There are apps that are worn during activities such as running or walking, ones that track the number of hours slept and the quality of sleep, ones that track what an individual has eaten and count calories, and others that track heart health or healthy habits. With so many apps available, it can be challenging to find one that meets a Tulsa and Oklahoma City user’s needs. Harvard Health Publications recommends several things to consider when looking for the right app.

• Have realistic expectations of the technology and watch out for unrealistic claims.
• Read reviews. Try out a few different ones.
• Read the fine print.
• Ask for recommendations.
• Look for ones “sponsored or created by established health advocacy groups, medical organizations, or universities”

Reading ingredient labels, researching health information and monitoring one’s own health-related activities are just a few of the many ways that consumers can become more knowledgeable. Sharon Allison-Ottey, MD and health educator, recently expressed that “the overall trend of a more-educated consumer is excellent” especially when it comes to a person’s diet. Which snack and beverage ingredients do your consumers want to see in their Tulsa and Oklahoma City healthy vending machines?

Contact Blue Sky Supply at (918) 599-9100 to learn more about our vending options.

 

If your New Year’s resolution was to lose weight and/or eat healthier, keep your commitment to yourself and choose “bubbly” sparkling water instead of champagne or soda for your Valentine’s Day celebration.

Why make sparkling water your beverage of choice in 2017?

• It’s Healthier – Many leading brands, such as LaCroix, don’t have any calories, sweeteners, sodium or anything artificial.
• It’s Cheaper – With many cities and counties across the country imposing extra taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages, it’s better for your budget to stay away from sodas.
• It’s Trending – According to the Wall Street Journal’s article LaCroix Bubbles Up in Water Brand Competition, sparkling water consumption grew 26% from 2015-2016. And according to an article from Huffington Post, Sparkling Water is the New Soda, between 2009 and 2014, the volume of carbonated bottled water sold in the U.S. increased by 56.4%.
• It’s Diverse – Sparkling water offers a large variety of flavors not commonly found in soda. Think black cherry dragon fruit, orange grapefruit, and kiwi watermelon.

This year as you work to improve your own drinking habits don’t forget to help your Tulsa and Oklahoma City employees do the same.

Whether you offer traditional vending, micro markets or pantry service benefits to your employees, your local vendor can stock your healthy breakroom with sparkling water options.

Some of our favorites include:

ICE – Started in the early 1990s in the Pacific Northwest, the ICE line now includes sparkling teas and lemonades in addition to their twelve succulent varieties of sparkling water.

Dasani Sparkling – All 6 varieties of Dasani Sparkling water are unsweetened and have no artificial flavor. They also are juice free.

LaCroix – Originating in the 1980s LaCroix has made a serious comeback complete with a whole new look. Today they are easily the leading name in sparkling water.

For more sparkling water or juice options call Blue Sky Supply at (918) 599-9100 today. We’ll be happy to add some healthy carbonated beverages to your Tulsa and Oklahoma City vending machines or pantry service with your next refill.