Controversy could crumble sales of Girl Scout cookies

Kim Severson, Chronicle Staff Writer

Saturday, March 6, 2004

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/artic...MNG4F5FR1E1.DTL

It's a tough year to be a Girl Scout.

As girls fan out across the Bay Area to sell what probably will be 2 million boxes of cookies, the sweet icon of American entrepreneurial spirit finds itself dunked in some of the nation's hottest topics -- abortion, obesity and labor relations.

And if that isn't bad enough, the low-carb craze could torpedo the century-old American tradition.

The first blow came from an anti-abortion group in Waco, Texas, that staged a Girl Scout cookie boycott last month. At issue was a summer sex-education conference for girls sponsored by Planned Parenthood and endorsed by the local Girl Scout council.

For boycott leaders, the final straw came when the local chapter named a Planned Parenthood executive as a Girl Scout "Woman of Distinction," said John Pisciotta, co-director of Pro-Life Waco and an economics professor at Baylor University.

Anti-abortion cookie lovers can breathe easier, however. Pisciotta, who aired his case on NBC's "Today Show'' on Friday, said that the Bluebonnet Council of Girl Scouts, which oversees troops in the Waco area and 13 other counties, has agreed to sever ties with Planned Parenthood.

That means the boycott is off. Pisciotta is even going to buy some of his favorite Girl Scout cookies, the top-selling Thin Mints.

Nutritionists who are trying to help the nation trim calories and avoid dangerous trans fat might not be as pleased. The Girl Scouts' national office has received complaints because the cookies are made with plenty of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil -- think Crisco or margarine -- which the Food and Drug Administration and the nation's top medical researchers agree is the most dangerous fat in the human diet.

The artificially manufactured fat, which raises bad cholesterol, lowers good cholesterol and is suspected of interfering with the body's metabolic process, is considered so unhealthy that the FDA is forcing companies to disclose trans fat amounts on food labels by 2006.

Finding an inexpensive alternative, as food manufacturers from Kraft Foods to McDonald's are finding out, is one of the most vexing issues in the food business today.

But the intrepid Girl Scouts are trying.

"We're actually fast-tracking that ourselves," said Nikki Van Ausdall, spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts of San Francisco Bay Area, which has a membership of about 30,000 girls.

Trans fat amounts will be listed on cookie boxes next year -- a year ahead of the FDA mandate -- and the companies that bake Girl Scout cookies are being encouraged to find an alternative oil as soon as possible, she said.

"I think people are really understanding of the fact that nearly every cookie in the grocery store has trans fat in it and that we are working toward resolving this," Van Ausdall said.

She also points out that one of two new cookies this year, the Lemon Cooler, has less fat than other Girl Scout cookies. In fact, each cookie has 26 calories and less than a gram of fat, which includes trans fat. One Thin Mint, the most popular cookie, has 35 calories and 3.5 grams of fat, about half of which is trans fat. The most fattening cookies, if you're worried about it, are the Samoas. One cookie is 75 calories and 4 grams of fat.

This year's cookie clash doesn't end there. With more than 20 million Americans on some form of a reduced carbohydrate diet, Girl Scout leaders are worried that the low-carb craze will hurt sales.

To counter that, the Bay Area council is advertising its "Gift of Caring" program. Atkins dieters and others avoiding carbohydrates are encouraged to donate the cost of a box or two of cookies. The actual product will be delivered to local food banks.

At least California troop leaders have stopped worrying about whether their girls will have to take sides in a labor dispute. The strike at Safeway stores, long a popular spot for Girl Scouts to set up card tables to sell cookies, ended last week.

At the national offices of Girl Scouts of the USA, which coordinates the programs for 2.9 million girls and 986,000 adults, this year's crop of cookie headaches are being cast as a great lesson in the fickle nature of the American marketplace.

"The cookie program is an entrepreneurial program. It encourages them to look at various fluctuations in the market, whether it's the Atkins craze or grocery store strikes," said spokeswoman Marion Swan. "Our emphasis is not on the proceeds from the cookies but the skills that the girls learn."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cookies at a glance

Top sellers: In order -- Thin Mints, caramel-coconut Samoas, chocolate- peanut butter Tagalongs.

New flavors: Low-fat Lemon Coolers, chocolate Double Dutch.

Cost per box, Bay Area: $3.50

Cost per box, Boston: $4.50

Profits: Each troop keeps 12 to 17 percent of sales.

In the beginning: First record of a Girl Scout cookie sale is in 1917 by the Mistletoe Troop in Muskogee, Okla.

Offline: For personal safety reasons, Girl Scouts are barred from selling cookies over the Internet.

A-OK: All Girl Scout cookies carry the kosher approval seal.

Sources: Girl Scout Web site and the Girl Scouts of San Francisco Bay Area

E-mail Kim Severson at kseverson~sfchronicle.com.