This is a package of frozen sugar snap peas. My husband bought them, thinking they would be a healthy vegetable to serve with dinner. When he tasted them, he found them to be awfully sweet, which prompted him to take a closer look at the box.
Well there’s the reason. They had added sugar! Salt, too. I was flabbergasted at the unhealthy (and sneaky) addition to something that is so naturally good. And can you see the Weight Watchers endorsement on the package in the first photo? For a product with added sugar, which is completely unnecessary and bad for you? What were they thinking?
The takeaway from this is twofold:
1) Read labels more carefully (I thought we were already doing that, but this one slipped by us)
2) Don’t trust the food companies
Makes me pine for those sugar snap peas I grew and enjoyed last summer.
Digging RI 
And people scratch their heads and wonder why are we in an obesity crisis? This is why. Sneaky is right!
LikeLike
and no one does anything to stop them. I guess our only defense is to refuse to buy these products.
LikeLike
Or they could market unadulterated peas, but in that case they’d have to use decent quality vegetables with flavor. To me, this is how inflation sneaks up on us. Prices don’t seem to go up, but the quality (or quantity) goes down. If you want to keep buying peas that taste like peas and have some nutritional value, then you’ll be buying them at a higher price (local, organic, heirloom, Green Giant super duper premium or whatever). I guess that’s OK, but it would be nice if it weren’t so haphazard and/or sneaky. Because the way things are now, we end up reading our labels, and wondering, “WHAT did I just buy?!”
LikeLike
So true, Andy. and so sad.
LikeLike
It kind of defeats the purpose of eating healthy, which is what this should be. Salt and sugar should be left to the buyer’s discretion; those who want to add, will, and those who don’t, won’t. Simple enough. I’m surprised at Weight Watchers endorsement, though. In any case, buyers need to be more vigilant by reading labels very carefully. At least the ingredients are there for us to see.
LikeLike
We thought we were so careful about labels, but I guess my husband was caught off guard.
I don’t know about you, but it has never occurred to me to add sugar to vegetables. And that Weight Watchers endorsement is totally bogus.
LikeLike
I totally agree! I’ve never thought about adding sugar to vegetables. It is not necessary. Some spices? Sure, why not? But sugar? NO! It’s sad how we can’t take anything for granted as being healthy, particularly frozen vegetables.
LikeLike
I think Canada is stricter about additives, but less picky about ingredient labeling.
LikeLike
Sugar is everywhere. It’s in toothpaste!
LikeLike
I know. Isn’t that terrible? I have quite a sweet tooth myself, so I am not above craving it, believe me.
LikeLike
Tell me about it. I’m still a fiend for Cap’n Crunch and I definitely know better.
LikeLike
There oughta be a law.
LikeLike
You mean one like the “do not call” registry? The one that companies ignore completely?
LikeLike