Girl Scouts Cut Trans Fats From Cookies

Girls set up a Girlscout cookie sales table along in New York's Empire State Building in this 1998 file photo. The Girl Scouts have marked their 90th year in the cookie business by getting most of the artificial fat out of all varieties of their iconic treats, which had been under attack by a few health-focused consumer groups. (AP Photo/Scott Gries, FILE) (Scott Gries - Associated Press)

NEW YORK -- For much of the country, it's Girl Scout cookie time again. And this year, all those cookies, not just the Thin Mints and a few others, will come nearly free of harmful trans fats.

The Girl Scouts have marked their 90th year in the cookie business by getting most of the artificial fat out of all varieties of their iconic treats, which had been under attack by a few health-focused consumer groups.

The change reflects a movement by the scouts in recent years to add an element of health consciousness to their annual bake sale.

This year, about half of all Girl Scout troops are also offering a sugar-free cookie called the Little Brownie. A cookie with reduced saturated fat, the Cartwheel, was also introduced last year.

Tinkering with a popular recipe is something no cook does lightly, and Girl Scouts of the USA Vice President Denise J. Pessich said the changes were only made after the two commercial bakeries that make the cookies found trans-fat alternatives that didn't compromise flavor, texture or shelf life.

Pessich said she was confident fans would notice few differences. The recipe changes have also given troop leaders an opportunity to talk more about the importance of eating right, Pessich said.

"They know that, for one thing, you need to make informed choices. You need to read labels," she said.

In making the adjustments, the scouts are following other manufacturers who rid their products of trans fats after the Food and Drug Administration began requiring food labels to carry information on the substance last year. Scientific studies have linked trans fats to heart disease.

Cities around the country are also taking steps to ban trans fats at restaurants. New York became the first city to do so last year.

The first "zero trans" Girl Scout cookies made their debut in the fall of 2005, including a reformulated version of the top-selling Thin Mint. The remaining varieties had most trans fats eliminated by last October.

Consumer reaction is still developing. Most troops take their orders in January and begin deliveries in late February or early March.

But _ taste aside _ the initial feedback has been positive, said Anna Ho, who organizes sales for Troop 805 in Parsippany, N.J.