I admit, I was a little shocked when I saw Frito Lay was not only a sponsor of the Healthy Living Summit, but was also offering an activity for attendees.
Potato Chips + Healthy Living = ???
Though I’m all about balance & not ruling foods out, I didn’t quite see the connection.
I went back & forth, and finally decided to participate in the tour of the Frito Lay plant. When I don’t understand something, the obvious solution is to learn more about it. Plus, I love “behind the scenes” activities. (Beer tours, anyone?)
To be honest, I was secretly hoping I’d find out some astounding health secret Frito Lay was working into their products, but not so much. It was, however, a fun & informative tour, and I’m glad I went. However, I was left feeling like the day was full of contradictions.
Health Stuff
– Several of Frito Lay’s “original” products contain only 3 ingredients: Potatoes, oil, & salt.
– The oils used are heart healthy! Olive & canola oils aren’t stable enough, but Frito Lay uses a lot of sunflower oil. A majority of the fat in their potato chips ends up being unsaturated.
– “Healthier” versions are being added to the line up: tortilla chips with whole grains, Sun Chips with extra fiber, potato chips with less salt.
The good: No crazy preservatives, chemicals, & fillers in many chips.
The bad: Added fiber comes from “corn bran”, 3 ingredient options only include “original” flavors, little “nutritional” value.
The ugly: Corn, corn, & more corn. Corn bran, corn oil, corn kernels. (Have you read The Omnivore’s Dilemma?)
Sustainability Stuff
– The Beloit, Wisconsin plant is Gold LEED certified.
– Frito Lay is working on a “Net Zero” project- how to make their product with having an impact on the earth. (Capturing heat, recycling water, compostable bags, renewable energy, etc.)
The good: Sustainability is pretty much the equivalent of gold. It rocks. Especially when big companies do it.
The bad: Not all of the plants are using all of the sustainability options the company has.
The ugly: Have I mentioned corn? I’m not sure how that’s being factored into the “zero impact” initiative.
The Tour
On to the actual tour. Seeing the factory at work makes me wish I had decided to be an engineer. Watching the machines in action was amazing. How cool of a job would it be to design a machine that uses color to identify chips that are too brown for consumption?!
Before we were allowed into the plant, we had to take some sanitization & safety precautions.
Hair nets & lint rolling.
Goggles & earplugs.
Ready to hit the factory floor!
Then it was time for some chip action.
Peeled potatoes. I wish they’d leave the skin on. 🙁
Corn squishing for tortilla making.
Uncheesed Cheetos.
Freshly seasoned Cooler Ranch Doritos.
Doritos hot off the press. (So much better than from the bag. Although I accidently tasted the cheeseburger flavored version- gag.)
Evaluating what makes the “perfect” chip.
Lunch & Learn
While we lunched, we listened to a Frito filled presentation.
Lunch was a spinach wrap of marinated veggies, a monster salad, and some fruit.
Have I ever mentioned how much I love fresh pineapple?
There were lots of salad topping options: carrots, sprouts, dried cranberries, walnuts, gorgonzola, croutons, and balsamic dressing.
Health salad balance by yummy treats: a peanut butter cookie & my weakness, Diet Mt. Dew.
Plus plenty of chip snacks- during the presentation, on the tour, and on the bus.
These were some of the regional flavors. We tried the Tangy Carolina BBQ & Garden Tomato Basil. I had to toss my NC loyalty aside- I hated the BBQ version, but the Tomato Basil was great.
The Mad Dash
After a 3 hour bus ride [enter unintentional detour here] to the plant in Beloit, Wisconsin, we were hoping for a quick & uneventful trip back to Chi-town —> a cocktail party was awaiting!
However, no such luck. Chicago traffic had other plans, and eventually it became clear our best option was to debus and hop on the L. 20+ bloggers with overflowing bags of chips rushing through the train station and piling in a single car during train rush hour was quite a sight, but made for a great adventure.
Luckily, we made it in the nick of time. Cocktail party here we come!
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