Day 51: Truth in Advertising

In the US we often have to delve into the fine print on the back of food packaging to look at sugar, fat, and other ingredients to determine if an item is healthy, or not. We noticed in France there was a simple system on packages where they displayed a ”Nutri-Score” of A (healthy) to E (not-so-healthy) which made it easier to select foods healthier for us. Other European countries are considering, or have adopted similar educational labeling.

When we lived in Chile they had similar labeling that told us at a glance if food was high in fat or sugar, meaning we didn’t have to dig out the reading glasses to peruse the fine print. The system is not without problems, as this article notes, but it is a good step in the right direction. Frankly, I’m not going to tell you we only eat foods on good end of scale, but it is good to know that we’re making poor choices.

Far off away from the healthy end of the scale are cigarettes, way too popular in Europe. In an effort to deter their use, graphic photos illustrating the health effects of these cancer sticks are printed on each package. I talked to one French pilgrim about the pictures—as she smoked a cigarette. She said she didn’t like when they came out, but they have not slowed her down. I’m only posting a few of the many we’ve seen. You’ll get the idea…

On the Trail

Speaking of truth, we had been warned by our guidebook and several friends that the camino out of Santander was industrial and not fun. We opted for a train ride for the first nine miles that took us past the railroad bridge that can lead to working on the prison farm. See this post from yesterday about the prison option. We are now in a city that has been described as one of the most beautiful in Spain. We’ll do some exploring and give you our own evaluation tomorrow. So far…muy bueno, I mean, thumbs up.