Grade your groceries: Mobile app furnishes product nutrition info for conscientious shoppers

Published August 8, 2011 in the Commercial Appeal

When Hemi Weingarten's twin daughters were 1 1/2, his wife brought home some glow-in-the-dark yogurt.

"The color was so bright that it led me to read an ingredients label for the first time in my life," he said.

The ingredient responsible for the yogurt's radiance was Red No. 40. He Googled it and discovered that it is a potential carcinogen that is being phased out in Europe.

"I realized that I was unequipped to decide what to put on the table for my family. I wanted to help myself and others," he said.

So, working with dietitians and other professionals, Weingarten created the Fooducate App. Now available for free at Fooducate.com for iPhone and Android phones, it allows the user to scan barcodes on products with the phone's camera...(Read more).