The new year saw the release of the brand new Canada’s Food Guide (2019)! Canada’s new go-to guide for healthy eating has generated a lot of buzz, in the nutrition community and beyond. This is because it is very different from the old guide! In fact, the old food guide, called Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide (2011), was published 8 years ago. You may recall the familiar structure of this food guide – 4 different food groups arranged in a colourful ‘rainbow.’ The old food groups were (1) Vegetables and Fruit; (2) Grain Products; (3) Milk and Alternatives; (4) Meat and Alternatives. The OLD food guide also had numbers of recommended servings for each age and gender group.
The NEW Canada’s Food Guide (2019) has done away with all of that. Instead of the rainbow, it uses the healthy plate model. This is a picture of a real plate, with real food, that shows Canadians how they should fill their plates. The new Food Guide has only 3 food groups (1) Vegetables and Fruits; (2) Grain Products; and (3) Protein. None of these groups have numbers tied to them – NO counting of servings! Also, no numbers means greater flexibility, reflecting the fact that each individual needs different amounts of food.
There is also a whole new focus on food/media literacy and on mindful and social eating. This post is going to walk you through each of the sections of the New Canada’s Food Guide (2019). At the end of the post, we are going to respond to some questions and comments that we have received by your fellow students!
Section 1: Food Groups
Vegetables and Fruits
As you can see in the picture, fruits and vegetables should make up half of your plate at each meal. It is encouraged that you pick vegetables and fruits that you actually like – that’s right, if you don’t like spinach, pick something else! All vegetables and fruits are nutritious, providing things like fibre, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Try and eat a variety. If you choose produce that you like, you are more likely to want to eat more of it. The new Canada’s Food Guide (2019) also NO LONGER INCLUDES fruit or vegetables juices. Juices are not considered to count towards the vegetables and fruits category because they are high in sugar and low in fibre – consume the whole vegetable or fruit instead, and drink water! It is also recommended that you choose vegetables and fruits that are prepared with less sugar, salt, oil, and/or heavy sauces. So, for example, choose fresh or steamed vegetables over fried, and choose fruits that are not packed in syrup. The salad bars in campus cafeterias are great places to find fresh vegetables and fruits. You can also find a great variety of vegetarian dishes and vegetable sides at places like Nature’s Best and Mom’s Kitchen.
Whole Grains
Grains should make up about one quarter of your plate. The emphasis now is on making all of your grains WHOLE grains. These are grains that are minimally processed. Compared to refined grains (like white rice, white bread, etc.), whole grains have more fibre and micronutrients. It is encouraged that you try a new whole grain each week. Some examples include quinoa, oatmeal, brown or wild rice, amaranth, buckwheat, and many more. Similar to the vegetables and fruits group above, try to select whole grains that are prepared with less salt, sauces and/or spreads.
When trying to identify if a product truly contains whole grains, it is important to look at the ingredients list for items that have “whole grain” written in front of them. Foods labelled “multi-grain” may not be “whole grain” – be food label savvy and check the ingredients list! For more information on reading food labels, check out the “Using food labels” section of the online guide here.
Protein
This food group was previously called “meat and alternatives.” However, the name has changed to “protein foods” to turn the emphasis away from meat products, promoting the inclusion of plant proteins. Indeed, the new Canada’s Food Guide (2019) is very plant-focused, encouraging you to eat plant-based protein foods more often. These include beans, lentils, soy products (like tofu), nuts and seeds. Why the focus on plant-based protein foods? Compared to animal products, plants are lower in saturated fat and higher in fibre. Also, from an environmental perspective, plant foods often generate less greenhouse gases than animal products. These are two of the largest motivations behind the vegetarian and vegan diet trends. Canada’s Food Guide (2019) does NOT suggest that you completely stop eating meat; it just recommends decreasing your intake of meat and increasing plant-based alternatives. For plant-based options, check out Nature’s Best in the on-campus dining halls.
If you wish to follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, there are some nutrient considerations to keep in mind, which are not spelled out in the Food Guide. For more information, check out this link, or book an appointment with Lindzie O’Reilly, the on-campus dietitian to learn more about having a balanced vegetarian or vegan diet.
Where’s the milk?
You may have noticed that the new Food Guide does not have the food group “Milk and Alternatives.” A large part of the reason why milk and milk alternatives used to have its own food group was because of pressures from the Canadian dairy industry. Health Canada has not allowed this industry to influence the development of the new Food Guide; dairy is now included under the “protein foods” category. It is recommended that you chose low fat dairy products as part of protein foods.
Section 2: Food Marketing
It is important to be aware of food marketing because it can influence your food choices!
What is food marketing?
Food marketing is advertising that promotes the sale of certain foods or food products that are usually high in sodium, sugars or saturated fats. This type of marketing takes on many forms that you probably see on a daily basis: branding, endorsements, commercials, product placement, and social media. Sponsored posts on social media are a new and effective form of marketing as it is more difficult to recognize when you are being advertised to! Ads can be strategically targeted to an individual based on personal data like age, gender, purchasing history, and web browsing history.
Food marketing can influence your food choices
Food marketing is all around us and is hard to avoid. This can make it difficult to make healthy food choices. Ads are designed to encourage you to buy certain foods or drinks, buy foods to get promotional items, or create food trends and brand loyalty (to continue to purchase from a certain store or a particular brand name). Usually, these marketed foods are ‘energy-dense, nutrient-poor,’ a term that dietitians use to describe foods that provide a lot of calories (in the form of refined carbohydrates, sugars, and/or fat) but not a lot of micronutrients or fibre.
Tips for awareness & making informed choices for food
Being aware of food marketing is a food skill that can help you recognize when foods are being marketing to you and decide whether the food is healthy by using food labels versus relying on marketing messages. Try making a grocery list of the items you need to avoid impulse purchases. Ask yourself questions when you’re shopping! Why do you want to purchase this food or drink? (Do you think it’s cool? Healthy?) What form of marketing did you get these ideas from? (celebrity endorsement?)
Section 3: Food Mindfulness + Cooking
Healthy eating is more than just the foods you eat; it is about being mindful of your eating habits, taking time to eat and noticing when you are hungry or full.
What is food mindfulness and its benefits?
Being mindful of your eating habits means being aware of how, why, what, when, where and how much you eat. Being mindful can help you make healthier choices, positive changes to eating behaviours, and reconnect to the eating experiences (through feelings, thoughts, emotions).
How to be mindful of your eating habits?
There are multiple ways to be mindful! First, create a healthy eating environment as it changes depending where you live, learn, work and play. Secondly, use your senses and appreciate the aromas, textures, and taste of the food. Lastly, consider your eating habits and think back to the last meal or snack you had. Can you describe how, why, what, when, and where you ate? Being able to recall and describe these events mean you were most likely being mindful of your eating habits!
Benefits of cooking more often
Cooking more often can help you develop healthy eating habits. It allows you to learn new skills, rely less on highly processed foods, control the ingredients in the foods you are consuming, and save money by avoiding extra eating out. Cooking doesn’t have to be hard if you follow some of these ideas! Set a day where you cook and cook enough for another meal or multiple to be frozen for convenient week-day meals. This can save you time and money. For example, cook double the rice for your stir fry and use the extra for rice pilaf. For batch cooking, you can also make chili, soups, or stews to easily store and freeze in the freezer for a quick meal.
Addressing Your Questions and Comments
While the New Canada’s Food Guide (2019) has made various improvements over the old guide, there are still some issues. The most common concern expressed by University of Guelph students was the affordability of the Food Guide plate. Many thought that the makeup of half the plate with fresh fruits and vegetables was positive from a nutrition standpoint. However, due to high prices, they felt that they would not be able to actually put together such varied, produce-rich plates. This is a very important concern for many Canadians, especially the student population, and reflects issues of food security that the new Food Guide may not fully address. That being said, there is a useful section on tips for healthy eating on a budget, which can be found here. It is important to remember that this new Food Guide encourages you to follow your own personal preferences and choices, and this applies to cost as well. As mentioned before, all produce, especially fresh produce, is a great source of important nutrients, so choose what works best for your budget!
Written by Isabella Gregov & Toby Zhou, SNAP Volunteers
SNAP 