Consumers Want Clarity in Labeling

In 2003, food marketers began introducing portion-controlled snack packages, with labels trumpeting calorie content—at a time when the industry was focused on fighting a Food and Drug Administration proposal for more prominent display of calorie information on labels.

It was a clear response to consumers’ demands for foods that are convenient and healthy and don’t compromise on taste and flavor, combined with a growing awareness that American consumers were, well, overeating. Twenty years ago an…