food labels what do they mean? · nutrition information servings per package: 3 serving size: 150g...

NUTRITION INFORMATIONServings per package: 3Serving Size: 150g

Quantity Quantity per Serving per 100g

Energy 608kJ 405kJProtein 4.2g 2.8gFat, total 7.4g 4.9g – Saturated 4.5g 3.0gCarbohydrate, total 18.6g 12.4g – Sugars 18.6g 12.4gSodium 90mg 60mg*Percentage of recommended dietary intake

Ingredients: Whole milk, contentrated skim milk, sugar, banana (8%), strawberry (6%), grape (4%), peach (2%), pineapple (2%), gelatine, culture, thickener (1442).

All quantities above are averages

1 Nutrition information panel. Most packaged foods must have a nutrition information panel. The information must be presented in a standard format which shows the amount per serve and per 100g (or 100ml if liquid) of the food. Examples of a nutrition information panel and the nutrients that have to be listed in the nutrition information have been outlined below.

There are a few exceptions to requiring a nutrition information panel such as:

• verysmallpackageswhichareaboutthesizeofalargerchewing gum packet

• foodswithnosignificantnutritionalvalue(suchasasingleherborspice),tea,andcoffee

• foodssoldunpackaged(unlessanutritionclaimismade)• foodsmadeandpackagedatthepointofsale,forexamplebreadmadeinalocalbakery.

6 Date marking. Foodswithashelflifeoflessthantwoyearsmusthavea‘bestbefore’date.Itmaystillbesafetoeatthosefoodsafterthebestbeforedatebuttheymayhavelostqualityandsomenutritionalvalue.Thosefoodsthatshouldnotbeconsumedafteracertaindateforhealthandsafetyreasonsmusthavea‘useby’date.Anexceptionisbreadwhichcanbelabelledwitha‘bakedon’or‘bakedfor’dateifitsshelflifeislessthansevendays.

7 Ingredient list. Youwillusuallyfindtheingredientlistonthebackoftheproduct.Ingredientsmustbelistedindescendingorder(byingoingweight).Thismeansthatwhenthefoodwasmanufacturedthefirstingredientlistedcontributedthelargestamountandthelastingredientlistedcontributedtheleast,comparedtotheotheringredients.So,iffat,sugarorsaltarelistednearthestartofthelisttheproduct contains a greater proportion of these ingredients.

8 Labels must tell the truth. Suppliers must label food products with accurate weights and measures information.WeightsandmeasuresdeclarationsareregulatedbyAustralianStateandTerritoryandNewZealandGovernmentfairtradingagencies.

FairtradinglawsandfoodlawsinAustraliaandNewZealandrequirethatlabelsdonotmisinformthroughfalse,misleadingordeceptiverepresentations.Forexample,afoodwithapictureofstrawberriesonthelabel must contain strawberries.

2 Percentage labelling. Packagedfoodshavetocarrylabelswhichshowthepercentageofthekeyor characterising ingredients or components in the food product. This will enableyoutocomparesimilarproducts.Thecharacterisingingredientforthisfruitsaladyoghurtisfruitandyoucanseefromtheingredientlistthatitisbanana8%,strawberry8%,grape4%,peach2%,andpineapple2%.Anexampleofapercentageofacharacterisingcomponentwouldbetheamountofcocoasolidsinchocolate.Somefoods,suchas‘whitebread’or‘cheese’,havenocharacterisingingredients.

3 Name or description of the food. Foodsmustbelabelledwithanaccuratenameordescription,forexamplefruityoghurtmustcontainfruit.Ifitweretocontainfruitflavouringratherthanrealfruit,thelabelwouldneedtosay‘fruitflavouredyoghurt’.

9 Food additives. Foodadditiveshavemanydifferentpurposes,includingmakingprocessedfoodeasiertouseorensuringfoodispreservedsafely.Theymaycomefromasyntheticoranaturalsource.Forexample,emulsifierspreventsaladdressingsfromseparatingintolayersandpreservativeshelptokeepfoodsafeorfreshlonger.Allfoodadditivesmusthaveaspecificuse,musthavebeenassessedandapprovedbyFSANZforsafetyandmustbeusedinthelowestpossiblequantitythatwillachievetheirpurpose.

Foodadditivesmustbeidentified,usuallybyanumber,andincludedintheingredientslist.Thisallowsthosepeoplethatmaybesensitivetofoodadditivestoaviodthem.Athickenerhasbeenusedinthisyoghurt-itsadditivenumberis1442.AfulllistofnumbersandadditivescanbeobtainedfromtheFSANZwebsite.Someadditivesarederivedfromfoodallergenswhichmustbeidentified,forexamplelecithin(soy).

4 Food recall information. Consideringthenumberoffoodsavailable,recallsofunsafeorunsuitablefoods are uncommon. Food labels must have the name and business address inAustraliaorNewZealandofthemanufacturerorimporter,aswellasthelotidentificationofthefood(ordatecoding).Thismakesfoodrecalls,ontherareoccasionthattheyarenecessary,moreefficientandeffective.InAustraliaeachyearthereareabout70foodrecalls,mostofwhichareprecautionaryanddue tothefoodmanufactureridentifyingaproblemfromtheirowntesting.

DetailsofAustralianrecallsareontheFoodStandardsAustraliaNewZealandwebsite at www.foodstandards.gov.au.NewZealandrecallsareontheNewZealandFoodSafetyAuthoritywebsite www.nzfsa.govt.nz.

5 Information for allergy sufferers. Somefoods,foodingredientsorcomponentsofaningredientcancausesevereallergicreactionsinsomepeople−thisisknownasanaphylaxis.Foodssuchaspeanuts,treenuts(e.g.cashews,almonds,walnuts),shellfish,finnedfish,milk,eggs,sesameandsoybeansandtheirproducts,whenpresentinfood,maycausesevereallergicreactionsandmustbedeclaredonthelabelhoweversmalltheamount.GlutenisalsoincludedinthislistbutthecautionismoreforthosewithCoeliacDiseaseratherthanallergy.Thosewhoarewheatallergicmuststayawayfromallwheatincludinggluten.

Inaddition,foodscontainingsulphitepreservativesmustbelabelledascontainingsulphitesiftheyhave10milligramsperkilogramormoreofaddedsulphites.Thisisthelevelthatmaytriggerasthmaattacksinsomeasthmatics.

FormoreinformationonfoodallergiesseetheAnaphylaxisAustraliawebsitewww.allergyfacts.org.auorAllergyNewZealandwww.allergy.org.nz.

10 Legibility requirements. AnylabellingrequirementlegallyrequiredintheFoodStandardsCodemustbelegible,prominent,anddistinctfromthebackgroundandinEnglish.Thesizeofthetypeinwarningstatementsmustbeatleast3mmhigh,exceptonverysmallpackages

11 Directions for use and storage.Wherespecificstorageconditionsarerequiredinorderforaproducttokeepuntilits‘bestbefore’or‘useby’date,manufacturersmustincludethisinformationonthelabel.Forexample,‘Thisyoghurtshouldbekeptrefrigeratedatorbelow4°C’.

12 Country of origin. AustraliaandNewZealandhavedifferentcountryoforiginlabellingrequirements.InAustralia,packaged,andsomeunpackaged,foodsmuststatethecountrywherethefoodwasmadeorproduced.Thiscouldjustbeidentifyingthecountrywherethefoodwaspackagedforretailsaleand,ifanyoftheingredientsdonotoriginatefromthatcountry,astatementthatthefoodismadefromimportedorlocalandimportedingredients.Australianlegislationalsolaysdownrulesabout‘ProductofAustralia’,whichmeansitmustbemadeinAustraliafromAustralianingredients,and‘MadeinAustralia’,whichmeansitismadeinAustraliawithsignificantimportedingredients.

InNewZealand,countryoforiginrequirementsonlyapplytowines.

1 Nutrition information panel

2 Percentage labelling

3 Name or description of the food

4 Food recall information5 Information for allergy sufferers

6 Date marking7 Ingredient list

8 Labels must tell the truth

9 Food additives

10 Legibility requirements

11 Directions for use and storage

12 Country of origin

Food LabelsWhat do they mean?

For more informationThere is more information about food labelling on theFSANZwebsitewww.foodstandards.gov.au or in the book Choosing the Right Stuff- the official shoppers’ guide to food additives and labels, kilojoules and fat content publishedbyMurdochBooks and available at all good bookshops. For expertnutritionanddietaryadvicecontactyourfamilydoctororanaccreditedpractisingdietitian.

Youcanfindadietitianinanumberofways:

In Australia: ContactNutritionAustraliaat www.nutritionaustralia.org

Visitthe‘Findadietitiansection’oftheDietitiansAssociationofAustralia’swebsitewww.daa.asn.au,checktheYellowPagesorcall1800812942tofindanAccreditedPractisingDietitiannearyou.

In New Zealand: ContacttheNewZealandNutritionFoundationon(09)4893417,emailnznf@nutrition.org.nzor website www.foodworks.co.nz/nutritionfoundation

Visitthe‘FindaDietitian’sectionofthe NewZealandDieteticAssociation’swebsiteat www.dietitians.org.nz or check the Yellow Pages.

Disclaimer:Thisposterhasbeenproducedasaguidetoconsumersonly.IndustryandenforcementagenciesshouldrefertotheFoodStandardsCode.