This weekend we went to BJ’s to do our grocery shopping (BJ’s is a “warehouse club” like Costco or Sam’s club). On weekends, a place BJ’s or Costco often is giving away free samples of different food products.

One of the sample tables was serving chili. Irena tried some and she really liked it, so she asked me if we could buy some (this is the intended purpose of the samples, so here is an example where it worked). I looked at the label, and it was Hormel Private Reserve Chili. We went and found it in the canned food aisle. It came as a six-pack.

So we bring it home and Irena wants to have it for dinner. Leigh cooks her a can, and as Irena is eating it she says to me, “Oh, this is soooo good – try it.” I eat a spoonful, and she is right. It is excellent. But it is a little too excellent, as in, “this is not your normal chili”. Prior to this experience, I would have considered chili to be a relatively healthy food. Normal chili contains a lot of meat and a lot of beans in a sauce. But like I said, this chili was a little too tasty.

So I picked up the can. It is a normal 15 ounce can. It is the sort of can that, in a prior life, I would have poured into a bowl and eaten without thinking about it. As I looked at the label, I realized why it tastes so good. Here is the nutrition info:

Hormel Private Reserve Chili – With Beans

As you can see, a serving contains 360 calories, about half of which come from fat. Plus there’s about a gram (970 mg) of sodium.

The problem is, the can contains 2 servings. So that’s 720 calories, 38 grams of fat, 58 grams of carbs and 1,940 milligrams of salt. All in one little can of Chili. Yikes! So I say to Leigh, “Guess how may calories this can of Chili contains.” She guesses 300, which is exactly what I would have guessed prior to reading the label. That would be completely wrong.

This kind of “exploding food” thing happens a lot with fast food. I am reminded of Week 14 where I ate a Spicy chicken sandwich at Chick-Fil-A. I’m thinking it contains 300 calories (it’s just a little piece of chicken and a bun), but later when I go check it I realize it contains 490 calories (!), to some degree because it contains 20 grams of fat (!), 46 grams of carbs (!) (from where, that little bun???), and (drum roll) an amazing 1,730 milligrams of sodium (!!!). And I had eaten 2 of them.

It feels like, if there had been a big label on the chili that said, “this can of chili is not normal – it contains an amazing 720 calories and 2 grams of salt – be careful!” and if the sandwich’s wrapper had said the same, we would at least know what we are getting ourselves into when we approach exploding food. Because a lot of the processed foods that are being created today are nothing like “normal food”.

So, is it capitalism at its best to create processed foods that are loaded with fat, calories and salt, or is it criminal?

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