READ IT BEFORE YOU EAT IT! CURIOUS GEORGE 
AND THE NEW FOOD LABEL

Curious George is always curious about food!  He has lots 
to tell boys and girls--and their families--about the new 
food label. 

Read some labels with George.  And have fun as you learn 
about them together.

Curious George doesn't monkey around with food!

	Curious George always looks before he eats
	Breakfast, lunch, or tasty treats

	Before it hits the table,
	He checks out the food label...

	That food info label!

Curious George is a smart monkey!  Labels help him learn 
about foods he eats.  Even his favorite foods have labels.  
Your favorites do, too.

From milk to marshmallows, labels tell about nutrients in 
all kinds of foods.  Curious George wants you to know about 
nutrients you see on food labels.  

Look at the label for George's favorite treat--Banana 
Munchie Crunchies.  Find the nutrients:

-----------------------------------------------------------

Banana Munchie Crunchies
Nutrition Facts 
	Serving Size 1 cup (60 g)
	Servings per Container 2
	
Amount per serving
Calories  210       Calories from Fat  25

					% Daily Value*
Total Fat            3g              5%
Saturated Fat  	   1g              3%
Cholesterol          0mg             0%
Sodium             270mg            11%
Total Carbohydrate  42g             15%
	Dietary Fiber  6g             24%
	Sugars        15g
Protein              4g

Vitamin A                           30%
Vitamin C              			 2%
Calcium               			 2%
Iron                 			30%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Unscramble the nutrients you see below.  Like George, 
you'll know how nutrients help you grow strong and healthy.

TROYHADRACEB
gives you energy to learn and play.  This nutrient comes 
from food, such as bread.  Energy has another name, 
calories.

TAF
provides calories, too.  George gets most of his calories 
from carbohydrate and less from fat.

ROTENIP
builds muscles and helps you grow.  

NATMIVI s
keep you skin healthy and hair shiny.  Some help heal your 
cuts and help you see in the dark, too.

CLAMUIC
helps grow strong bones and teeth.

ORIN
is an important part of your blood.

MISOUD
helps control fluid, such as perspiration, in your body.

REBIF
helps you digest food.

To stay healthy Curious George needs the right mix of these 
nutrients from foods during the day.  So do you!

That's why George checks out food labels.  Then he picks 
foods for breakfast, lunch and his favorite treats.

Like Curious George , read it before you eat it.

	George reads the package sides and backs
	To find a food's Nutrition Facts.

	He sees the serving size,
	Then checks on nutrients inside...      
	That food info label!

Food labels give George the facts about the servings, 
calories and nutrients in food.  All the Nutrition Facts 
are just for one serving.

Be like Curious George.  Step by step, read the food label 
on Banana Munchie Crunchies!  Ask someone to help you.  He 
or she will learn about labels with you.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Banana Munchie Crunchies
Nutrition Facts 
	Serving Size 1 cup (60 g)
	Servings per Container 2
	
Amount per serving
Calories  210      Calories from Fat  25

					% Daily Value*
Total Fat      	     3g    		 5%
Saturated Fat   	     1g            3%
Cholesterol            0mg           0%
Sodium               270mg          11%
Total Carbohydrate    42g           15%
	Dietary Fiber    6g           24%
	Sugars          15g
Protein                4g

Vitamin A             			 30%
Vitamin C               		  2%
Calcium                			  2%
Iron                  			 30%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Find the Serving Size.  How much is one serving?

How many servings does the container have?

Check the Calories.  How many calories does one serving 
have?

That's how much energy Banana Munchie Crunchies gives.  If 
you're seven to ten years old, you need about 2000 calories 
each day.

Figure it out.  How many calories do two servings have?

-----------------------------------------------------------

Circle the % Daily Value on the label.  The symbol % means 
percent, or part of the whole.  The % Daily Value column 
makes it easy to see if a food has a lot or a little of 
different nutrients such as fat or calcium.

Here's how.  If the number in this column is 50% it would 
mean that one serving would be half the amount of fat for 
one day.  That's a lot.  For Banana Munchie Crunchies, the 
% Daily Value for fat is 5--that's a little.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Look at the percent column of the food label.  In one 
serving how much of the following nutrients can you find?

Fiber
Vitamin A
Iron
Calcium
Fat

-----------------------------------------------------------

To learn about percents, George took bites from a slice of 
bread.  The whole slice is 100%.  The small bite is 10%, or 
part, or the whole slice.  The bite that is 25% is bigger!

-----------------------------------------------------------

Go label hunting with Curious George.  Follow the maze in 
the Monkeyville Food Store to find him.  Look at the food 
labels along the way.

Be like Curious George.  Go on a label hunt in the 
supermarket with someone in your family.

In each part of the store, check food packages from top to 
bottom and side to side.  Find food labels with nutrition 
facts. 

Look for nutrition facts on signs where fresh fruits, 
vegetables, meat and fish are sold, too.

What foods did you find in the store with nutrition facts?

-----------------------------------------------------------

Read the labels at the kitchen table!

	Now join George for some label fun
	With foods you find in your kitchen.

	For favorites on your table,
	Read what's on the label...
	That food info label!

By reading food labels you see that foods aren't the same.  
They have more of some nutrients and less of others.

Hunt for food labels like Curious George does!

	George finds food labels in the store
	On boxes, cans and jars galore.

	Near fresh fruits, veggies, meats,
	The signs give facts on foods he eats...
	That food info label!

Here's another label hint from Curious George:

You may get nutrition facts on your favorite restaurant.  
Just ask!

-----------------------------------------------------------

For more news about nutrition and the new food label, 
contact:

FDA/USDA Food Labeling Education Information Center
National Agricultural Library
10301 Baltimore Blvd.
Room 304
Beltsville, MD  20705-2351
Phone:  301-504-5719
Fax:  301-504-6409

USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service
14th Street and Independence Ave. SW
Room 1180 South
Washington, DC  20250
USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline
800-535-4555

USDA Cooperative Extension System
Call the Cooperative Extension Service in your city or 
county.  You can find the number in the government pages of 
your area phone book or by calling information.  Or use 
email at agam@esusda.gov.

American Cancer Society
1599 Clifton Road, NE
Atlanta, GA  30329
800-ACS-2345

The American Dietetic Association
216 West Jackson Blvd., Suite 800
Chicago, IL  60606-6995
Consumer Nutrition Hot Line
800-366-1655

American Heart Association
7272 Greenville Ave.
Dallas, TX  75231
Heart Information Service
800-242-8721

American Academy of Pediatrics
Department C, Nutrition
P.O. Box 927
Elk Grove Village, IL  60009-0927
(Please include a self-addressed stamped envelope)

International Food Information Council Foundation
1100 Connecticut Ave. NW
Suite 430
Washington, DC  20036

Juice Labeling c/o
The Florida Department of Citrus
1115 East Memorial Blvd.
P.O. Box 148
Lakeland, FL  33802

Label Power c/o
The Sugar Association, Inc.
1101 15th Street NW
Suite 600
Washington, DC  20005
202-785-1122