Yuka

[stoaX]

Anyone here using the Yuka app? It scans the barcode of a food item and gives it a rating of poor, bad, good, excellent, etc. and tells you why.  It has a free basic level and a premium level with a monthly cost. I use the free level.  What do all of you users out there think about it?

I like it but I make sure I know why a product got a bad score so I know whether it applies to me.

[roomtempmayo]

If you're trying to buy healthy food, wouldn't a good first step be trying to buy mostly food without a barcode?

[stoaX]

Where I live I can't have a cow or goat so I buy dairy at the store.  I'm lazy so I don't make tortillas from scratch.  And yes, I buy canned beans and frozen vegetables at times.

Finally, the lack of a barcode doesn't guarantee healthiness. For example, the shrimp in the "fresh" fish section of  local grocery store is just a brand of frozen shrimp that they thawed out. If you scan the barcode of that frozen shrimp Yuka notes that it has potentially harmful additives.

[stoaX]

But you are, of course, correct that fresh fruits and vegetables are key to a healthy diet.

[Cranky]

Where I live I can't have a cow or goat so I buy dairy at the store.  I'm lazy so I don't make tortillas from scratch.  And yes, I buy canned beans and frozen vegetables at times.

Finally, the lack of a barcode doesn't guarantee healthiness. For example, the shrimp in the "fresh" fish section of  local grocery store is just a brand of frozen shrimp that they thawed out. If you scan the barcode of that frozen shrimp Yuka notes that it has potentially harmful additives.

But don’t you just buy milk and butter and cheese, given your lack of backyard cows?

I’m not at all clear what an app would tell you about those?

[wageslave23]

Man these responses have been annoying.  Yes I have used the app when buying certain packaged food items. All things being equal I try to buy the bread or crackers that have less harmful additives. I haven't researched the additives that the app labels harmful but that would be the next step.

[stoaX]

Where I live I can't have a cow or goat so I buy dairy at the store.  I'm lazy so I don't make tortillas from scratch.  And yes, I buy canned beans and frozen vegetables at times.

Finally, the lack of a barcode doesn't guarantee healthiness. For example, the shrimp in the "fresh" fish section of  local grocery store is just a brand of frozen shrimp that they thawed out. If you scan the barcode of that frozen shrimp Yuka notes that it has potentially harmful additives.

But don’t you just buy milk and butter and cheese, given your lack of backyard cows?

I’m not at all clear what an app would tell you about those?

One good example is the Mont-something brand of goat cheese.  The goat cheese in it's crumbled form has a harmful additives but the goat cheese log doesn't. Another example is that triscuit crackers come out good, many similar crackers don't.