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PORTSIDE CULTURE

INDUSTRY FUNDED STUDY OF THE WEEK: RASPBERRIES  
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Marion Nestle
June 22, 2026
Food Politics
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_ Every food has its own industry, each more desperate than the next
to prove it is a superfood so you will buy it and not its competing
foods. _

Who knew raspberries were an industry?,
jeannetteferrary.photoshelter.com

 

INDUSTRY FUNDED STUDY OF THE WEEK: RASPBERRIES

Who knew raspberries were an industry.  As it happens, _every_ food
has its own industry, each more desperate than the next to prove it is
a superfood so you will buy it and not its competing foods.

Here’s how I heard about this one:

RED RASPBERRIES LINKED TO BETTER BLOOD SUGAR CONTROL AND MEMORY IN
OLDER ADULTS:  
[[link removed]]Adding
a cup of red raspberries to a carbohydrate‑rich meal may help curb
post‑meal glucose and insulin spikes while supporting short-term
cognitive performance in older obese or overweight adults…. Read
more
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As always, I went right to it:

* THE STUDY: Xiao D, Shukitt-Hale B, Rutledge GA, Fisher DR,
Edirisinghe I, Burton-Freeman B. Red raspberry improves postprandial
metabolic indices and cognitive function in older adults who are
overweight or have obesity. _British Journal of Nutrition_. Published
online 2026:1-13. doi:10.1017/S0007114525105497
* METHOD:“This randomised, single-blinded, controlled crossover
study evaluated the acute metabolic and cognitive effects of RRB
intake in older adults (55–70 years) with overweight/obesity.
* CONCLUSION: “These findings suggest that acute RRB
supplementation attenuated postprandial metabolic stress, reduced
markers of neuroinflammation and improved cognitive performance,
supporting RRB’s potential role in a dietary strategy for ageing
populations.”
* ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: “This work was supported by the National
Processed Raspberry Council and the Washington Red Raspberry
Commission (WA, USA). The authors thank Van Drunen Farms (Momence, IL,
USA) for providing the freeze-dried red raspberry powder used in this
project…The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

COMMENT: Et tu, raspberries?  They are coming into season on my
Manhattan terrace and I do love to go out in the morning and pick them
for breakfast in the week or so that they produce fruit.  I’ll take
whatever short-term cognitive benefit they convey.  But c’mon. 
Can one fruit, no matter how delicious, organically grown, local, and
seasonal deliver on such promises?  Seems like a lot to ask.  And I
continue to be amazed that the researchers see no conflict of interest
in having their study funded by raspberry trade groups, when so much
evidence demonstrates commercial funding to influence research
outcome.  This is one of those studies where I could predict the
funder from the title, and predict the outcome from knowing the
funder.

 

 

* industry funding
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* superfoods
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* food research
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