Girl Scout Cookie Ingredients and Real Food

by on January 11, 2011

I love Girl Scout cookies. I was a Girl Scout all the way through Senior (high school), even though my own girls aren’t Scouts.

Girl Scout cookies are as American as apple pie, right?

I won’t be buying any this year.  Every single variety has GMO soy in it, most have hydrogenated oils, and a few have HFCS.  Of course they all have white flour in them, but so do almost all cookies on the shelf of the store.  These are cookies, after all, not nutrition dense snacks.  (Personally I don’t think an occasional treat with white flour or white sugar hurts anything.  It’s the other ingredients that I think are more harmful.)

When I started looking at the Girl Scout cookie ingredients of the different varieties, here are some red-flag ingredients you might want to be aware of.  The website lists a couple of different versions of favorites (i.e., Peanut Butter Patties/Tagalongs®) and depending on what bakery or name they are marketed under, they contain different ingredients.

Artificial food dyes: Dulce de Leche (yellow #5, yellow #6, blue #2), Caramel deLites ® (Red #40, Yellow #5, Blue #2), Peanut Butter Patties (Red #40, Yellow #5, Blue #1, Blue #2) note, a few cookies contained caramel color, often derived from GMO corn sources.

MSG: no Girl Scout cookie lists MSG or its various other names on their ingredient list.

Hydrogenated oils, partially hydrogenated oils, trans fats: Do-Si-Dos®, Samoas®, Tagalongs®, Thin Mints, Caramel DeLites®, Peanut Butter Patties®, Thanks a Lot, Lemonades.

High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS): Dulce de Leche, Thin Mints (ABC), Peanut Butter Patties®, Reduced Fat Daisy Go Rounds, Thanks a Lot.

GMO Soy products: All varieties (usually in the form of soybean oil and/or soy lecithin)

GMO corn products: Lemon Chalet Cremes, Do-Si-Dos®, Samoas®, Dulce de Leche, Thank U Berry Much, Tagalongs®, Thin Mints, Reduced Fat Daisy Go Rounds, Peanut Butter Sandwich, Thanks a Lot, Lemonades.

Artificial flavors: Lemon Chalet Cremes (artificial ginger flavor), Trefoils, Samoas®, Dulce de Leche, Tagalongs®, Thin Mints, Reduced Fat Daisy Go Rounds, Thanks a Lot, Lemonades

Other notes: Shortbread is traditionally made with butter, flour, and sugar.  The Girl Scout variety contains no butter but does have 11 ingredients, including palm oil and artificial flavors.

The cookie closest to ‘real food’ is possibly the Thank U Berry Munch, which has actual dried cranberries and no hydrogenated oils, but it still contains corn syrup solids and artificial flavors.

The cookie farthest from ‘real food’ are Peanut Butter Patties, Caramel deLites and Dulce de Leche. Peanut Butter Patties have sugar as the first ingredient, hydrogenated oils, food colors, HFCS, artificial flavoring, and GMO ingredients.  Caramel deLites have sugar as the first ingredient, GMO corn and soy, hydrogenated palm oils, HFCS, Red #40, Yellow #5, and artificial flavors.  Dulce de Leche cookies contain GMO ingredients, HFCS, and yellow #5.

The products produced by Girl Scout cookie supplier ABC Bakeries are particularly filled with “fake” food, especially HFCS and fake colors.

Are you buying Girl Scout cookies? My favorites are Samoas but I will sadly pass on them this year.

Daisy Go Rounds,Thanks a Lot, and Lemonades are registered trademarks of GSUSA.

Linking up to Healthy Home Economist Real Food Carnival!



I love comments. Tell me what you think!

  • Susan January 15, 2012 12:57 am edit

    As a Girl Scout leader and Girl Scout national deleagate, I to agree that Girl Scouts need to clean up the ingredients, but please remember that the girls and troop selling the cookies do not have immediate control over it. What they do have control over is working their butts off to sell cookies and earn money for themselves and Girl Scouts nationally.

    With help from cookies and other money earning projects my girls have gone to DC, spent 10 days in Savannah where Girl Scouts started 100 years ago, this June we are going to DC to join over 250,000 other scouts to celebrate the 100th and in 2 short years they want to explore Europe! I could not guide them to these experiences not to mention all that cookies do for girls beyond our little troop of 13.

    So as others have said please consider making a donation to a local troop, council or National in lieu of buying cookies and then let GSUSA and Anna Maria Chavez know about your feelings on the ingredients in the cookies.

    My commitment to you is I have girls who are looking to earn the highest award in Girl Scout, the Gold Award, and I will suggest to them to take on the issue of food dyes and additives. I have one girl who is already doing a school project on it because me making them aware if the issue.

    Maybe it is a current Girl Scout who will change the US’s view on food dyes.

    Thank you for loving all our children and supporting Girl Scouts who Are building girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.

    Sincerely a life long Girl Scout

    Reply
  • dlight January 16, 2012 10:38 am edit

    Susan said, “please remember that the girls and troop selling the cookies do not have immediate control over it.”
    I’ve worked behind-the-scenes in corporate America long enough to know that all it takes is for troops and their leaders to stand up to the national organization.
    In turn, the contract with the bakeries could be re-negotiated at some point to allow other bakeries to bid on producing a ‘cleaner’ version of these cookies.
    And there you go! All the while you’re teaching the girls…
    * How to stand up for themselves, or others.
    * How to help empower the community, and create positive changes
    * How to have respect for their bodies by realizing the health-related consequences of certain ingredients.
    Is this organization’s goal to build character, or troop funds?

    Reply
  • Marin January 23, 2012 10:17 pm edit

    Most people aren’t aware of the GS connection to Planned Parenthood . . . Check out this website: http://www.honestgirlscouts.com

    Reply
  • Rebecca January 24, 2012 1:30 pm edit

    Hey thanks for writing about this issue. I just posted on my “Die, Food Dye!” blog about our “Cookie Conundrum” yesterday. We had to opt out too. Here’s hoping enough of us write to National to let our preferences be known. I think there is such potential for GSUSA to be LEADERS in an important aspect of wellbeing for scouts – food.

    Reply
  • Sarah February 1, 2012 11:39 pm edit

    “Here’s hoping enough of us write to National to let our preferences be known.”

    Rebecca hit the nail on the head. If we simply refrain from buying the cookies, no message will be sent – how easy would it be to chalk up the decline in sales to a rough economy? However, a letter sent to the decision makers will let them know WHY we are not buying, which gives them a chance to make positive changes. If you really feel passionate about the issue, take a few minutes to let your voice be heard!

    Reply
  • Firedup February 3, 2012 12:49 am edit

    I noticed that Keebler makes the exact same cookie (same bakery?) the ingredients aren’t any better, but they are available year round.

    I hate when they come out every year and my DH always has to have the thin mints, but I hate what they stand for because they are indeed toxic and send a message of promoting disease.

    Reply
  • Firedup February 3, 2012 12:16 pm edit

    Sarah I followed your lead and wrote them an email. It’s not so much the selling of cookies, it’s what’s IN the cookies that bothers me so much and the fact that a blind eye is turned.

    I hope everyone else follows lead and writes – there are PLENTY of companies out there selling products without these dangerous ingredients, at least sell something that is more natural or as natural as possible – we don’t need all the artificial and overly processed stuff.

    Reply
  • Connor February 22, 2012 12:17 am edit

    Thanks for this article and spreading the word about the some of the fundamentals of proper nutrition. Never will a Girl Scout cookie enter my mouth again.

    Reply
  • Sandra March 8, 2012 5:55 pm edit

    I only remember buying Girl Scout cookies once abut 25 years ago and threw them away because I thought they were horrible. I don’t really care for sweets and only bought them because of the organization. I’ve never felt guilty since then for not buying them again. Interestingly, I’ve never been asked to make a donation instead of buying the cookies and I would have done it. I admit it should have occurred to me but it didn’t. They should ask. I would really like to see them sell a higher quality product as well…but, a cookie is a cookie after-all.

    Reply
  • Susan March 9, 2012 7:41 am edit

    Sandra, in Girl Scouts rules it states that at the troop level they can not ask for a donation without delivering a service or product. This is why you have never been asked. They however can gladly accept if you offer!

    Reply
  • Loretta March 4, 2013 4:55 pm edit

    Palm oil is very bad. Don’t eat it. I threw out my cookies once I saw so many heart unhealthy ingredients in GS Cookies.

    Reply

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Desperately thrifty mom of 9, sharing my frugal tips, easy shortcuts, recipes, and thoughts on natural living and real food.

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