Course:FNH200/Assignments/2020/Kraft Miracle Whip

Introduction

Miracle Whip is a condiment manufactured by Kraft Foods in 1933 as a less expensive alternative to mayonnaise. Mayonnaise is a condiment frequently used in households and restaurants. It is used as a base for sauces, in sandwiches and many more. Known to consist mostly of oil, mayonnaise may be viewed as an unhealthy sauce and potentially healthier alternatives of mayonnaise can be explored. Miracle Whip cannot even be considered as mayonnaise as it contains less than 65% vegetable oil. Miracle Whip is therefore considered a spread, which contains less fat and calories than mayonnaise, and has alternatives available. We would like to compare the original, calorie wise and fat-free choices.

Pictures

Miracle Whip Calorie Wise Nutrition Label

Miracle Whip Calorie Wise (front view)

Miracle Whip Calorie Wise Ingredient Label

Miracle Whip Original (front view)

Miracle Whip Original Nutritional Label

Miracle Whip Original Ingredient Label

Miracle Whip Fat-Free (front view)

Miracle Whip Fat Free Nutritional Label

Miracle Whip Fat Free Ingredient Label

Miracle Whip Identity of Business (details apply to all three Miracle Whip products)

Ingredient Lists

Table 1: Ingredients

Miracle Whip Original Spread	Miracle Whip calorie-Wise Spread	Miracle Whip Fat-Free Spread
water, soybean oil, sugar/glucose-fructose, vinegar, modified cornstarch, egg yolks, salt, mustard, spices, potassium sorbate (maintains quality), calcium disodium EDTA, dried garlic.	water, soybean oil, glucose-fructose, vinegar, sugar, modified cornstarch, salt, whole eggs, egg yolks, corn dextrin, mustard, microcrystalline cellulose, spices, potassium sorbate, xanthan gum, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, calcium disodium EDTA, dried garlic	water, sugar, vinegar, modified cornstarch, soybean oil, salt, corn dextrin, microcrystalline cellulose, egg yolks, citric acid, xanthan gum, colour, potassium sorbate, sodium carboxymethylcellulose, mustard, lactic acid, spices, calcium disodium EDTA,  sodium aluminum silicate,dried garlic

Table 2: Fat Substitutes, Sugar Substitutes, Additives

	Fat Substitutes	Sugar Substitutes	Additives
Miracle Whip Original Spread	modified cornstarch	none	potassium sorbate (preservative) calcium disodium EDTA (sequestering agent)
Miracle Whip calorie-Wise Spread	modified cornstarch corn dextrin microcrystalline cellulose xanthan gum sodium carboxymethyl cellulose	none	microcrystalline cellulose (stabilizing and thickening agent) potassium sorbate (preservative) xanthan gum (stabilizing and thickening agent) sodium carboxycellulose (stabilizing agent and thickening agent) calcium disodium EDTA (sequestering agent)
Miracle Whip Fat-Free Spread	modified cornstarch corn dextrin microcrystalline cellulose xanthan gum sodium carboxymethyl cellulose	none	microcrystalline cellulose (stabilizing and thickening agent) xanthan gum (stabilizing and thickening agent) potassium sorbate (Preservative) sodium carboxymethylcellulose (stabilizing agent and thickening agent) lactic acid (pH adjusting agent) calcium disodium EDTA (Sequestering agent) sodium aluminum silicate (anticaking agent) color (coloring agent) citric acid (preservative)

Roles of Fat Substitutes, Sugar Substitutes and Additives

Fat Substitutes:

Fat substitutes are materials that simulate the chemical and physical properties of fats used to replace fat in high fat foods. These carbohydrate based fat substitutes (corn dextrin, xanthan gum, modified cornstarch, microcrystalline cellulose, sodium carboxymethylcellulose) are used to thicken, flavour, and smoothen the texture of the product to provide a fat mouthfeel while contributing to fewer calories.

Sugar Substitutes:

Sugar substitutes are materials that simulate the chemical and physical properties of sugars. Sugar substitutes can be used for weight loss, preventing dental decay and helps to control blood sugar in those with diabetes. Sugar substitutes add a sweet taste to food. Sugar substitutes were not used in these products.

Additive:

An additive is a substance which affects the characteristics of a food when used.

• Types of additives:

1. Anticaking agent: Additive that prevents lump formation in powders and allow them to move freely (eg. sodium aluminum silicate)
2. pH adjusting agents, acid reacting materials and water correcting agents: Adjusts the pH of food to maintain acidity or alkalinity (eg. lactic acid)
3. Preservative: Slows down the onset of food spoilage by inhibiting the growth of bacteria (eg. potassium sorbate and citric acid)
4. Sequestering agent: An agent that binds to undesirable metal ions in foods that may cause color, flavour or textural changes (eg. calcium disodium EDTA)
5. Stabilizing agent and thickening agent: Stabilizes the food system by thickening the product to the required consistency and gives the food more body (eg. xanthan gum, microcrystalline cellulose and sodium carboxymethylcellulose)
6. Colouring agents: Adds appealing appearance and restores colour loss during processing.

Comparison of Alternatives

Table 3: The Similarities and Differences

Miracle Whip Original Spread	Miracle Whip calorie-Wise Spread	Miracle Whip Fat-Free Spread
Only contains modified cornstarch as a fat substitute Contains 3.5g of fat per tablespoon Contains 1g of sugar per tablespoon	Contain other fat substitutes including corn dextrin, microcrystalline cellulose, xanthan gum, and sodium carboxymethylcellulose. Contains 2g of fat per tablespoon Contains 2g of sugar per tablespoon Advertised to be lower in calories (calorie-wise, which contains 30 calories per tablespoon, is 25% less calories than original, which contains 40 calories per tablespoon)	Contain other fat substitutes including corn dextrin, microcrystalline cellulose, xanthan gum, and sodium carboxymethylcellulose. Contains 0g of fat per tablespoon Contains 2g of sugar per tablespoon Contains 62.5% less calories (15 calories per tablespoon) than the original spread (40 calories per tablespoon) Contains a colouring agent to acquire cream colour Contains lactic acid (pH adjusting agent) while the other 2 products do not contain this additive. The fat-free spread products use lactic acid to enhance the tart flavour in the product. Lactic acid is also a pH adjusting agent, which will help prevent bacterial growth in the product. It can be noted that the body also uses extra calories to absorb lactic acid. Contains sodium aluminum silicate (anticaking agent) to maintain a smooth texture. It prevents lump formation and allows powders to flow freely. Contains an additional preservative additive called citric acid to prevent bacterial growth.
No sugar substitutes are used in any of the 3 products All 3 products listed potassium sorbate, calcium disodium EDTA, vinegar , soybean oil, egg yolks, salt, mustard, spices and dried garlic as an ingredient

Both alternative products contain less fat compared to the original product, which could account for the differences in calories per serving size in each product. In addition, fats play a large role in the flavour, texture and colour of the products . Thus, the two alternative products included fat substitutes to compensate for the decrease of fats content in their products. To further reduce the fat content, the fat-free product needed to use less of certain ingredients. For example, soybean oil is listed as a 5th ingredient on the list, while the other two products listed soybean oil as a 2nd ingredient on the list. These other ingredients that were lowered in amount may contribute to the characteristics and preservation of miracle whip. Thus, the additional additives and fat substitutes seen in the fat-free product are to compensate for its lower amounts of fat and certain ingredients.

Labels

All three products meet the labelling regulatory requirements enforced by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) . A description of the information found on the labels and the regulatory requirements that were met are summarized in the table below.

Table 4: Label description and regulatory requirements

	Miracle Whip Original Spread	Miracle Whip Calorie-Wise Spread	Miracle Whip Fat-Free Spread
Bilingual labelling	The food labels that are shown in both official Canadian languages (i.e. English and French)
Common Name	Spread
Net Quantity	890 ml per jar
Identity of Business	Kraft Canada Inc., Don Mills, Ontario  M3B 3L6 (found below ingredients list, the name and principle place of business is provided)
List of ingredients	The ingredients are listed in descending order of proportion by weight (view list in Table 1)
Nutritional facts	The nutrition facts per 1 tbsp (15 mL) serving size and % Daily Value was provided. The nutrition facts included total amount of calories, fats (saturated and trans fats (g)), cholesterol (mg), sodium (mg), carbohydrates (fibre and sugar (g)), protein (g), calcium (%), Vitamin A (%), Vitamin C(%), and iron (%) (view list on Table 2).
Legibility and location	The label is clearly shown, and is readily discernible and legible. The bilingual labelling, common name and claims are located in front of the jar. The net quantity, identity of business, list of ingredients, nutritional facts, allergens, best before date/storage information, and country of origin are located on the back of the jar.
Irradiated Foods	Not applicable so not labelled (is not an irradiated food)
Sweetners	Not applicable so not labelled (do not contain sweeteners with mandatory labelling requirements)
Allergens	Below the list of ingredients, the products say they contain egg and mustard in bold font (Top 10 allergens in Canada)
Date Marking/Storage Life/Durable Life	The label states "Refrigerate after opening" and "Do not freeze." The label includes a best before date which is required for products with a shelf life less than 90 days. Miracle whip usually lasts one month when stored in the fridge after opening.
Country of origin	The label states "Prepared in Canada" (thus, these products are not one of the specific imported prepackaged products that require a " Product of [Name the country of origin]" label)
Claims	“No artificial flavours or colours” The product meets the requirements to claim because the product does not contain any additives that alter the "natural" status of the flavouring and colouring.	“Lower in calories” and “Less calories” The product meets the requirements to claim because the product (30 g calories per serving size of 15 ml) contains 25% less calories than miracle whip original (40 g calories per serving size of 15 ml). “No artificial flavours or colours” The product meets the requirements to claim because the product does not contain any additives that alter the "natural" status of the flavouring and colouring.	“Fat free” The product meets the requirements to claim that it is “fat free” because each serving contains less than 0.5 g of fat per serving size. “Less calories” The product meets the requirements to claim because the product (15 g calories per serving size of 15 ml) contains more than 25% less calories than miracle whip original (40 g calories per serving size of 15 ml). “No artificial flavours” The product meets the requirements to claim because the product does not contain any additives that alter the "natural" status of the flavouring.
Kosher Label (not one of the labelling requirements enforced by the CFIA)	Kosher means "fit" in Hebrew and is divided into 3 main categories: dairy, meat and pareve. All three products contain a circle logo (see above in the Pictures section). The logo identifies the 3 products as a Pareve food product by MK Canada's Kosher Certifier which means that it does not contain meat or dairy. The Torah, a Hebrew bible, has guidelines on what foods are acceptable for Jewish people and Kosher certifies and regulates these food products.

References

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This Food Science resource was created by Course:FNH200.