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For foods where the per portion criteria apply, the nutrient must be labelled red (high) regardless of its per 100g profile if the per portion criteria are met. From 2008 the per portion criteria will apply to all foods with a serving size of greater than 100g. In the intervening period, we suggest that the per portion criteria be used if the serving size is 250g or greater, but companies may wish to adopt a phased approach for using the per portion criteria to foods with a serving size of between 100g and 250g. The colour code should be based on nutritional information for foods ‘as purchased’ with the following exceptions:
Whilst the Agency is not recommending nutritional signpost labelling on drinks, the criteria in Table 2 should be followed if manufacturers of drinks choose to apply signpost labelling to their products. Table 2 - Drinks (per 100ml)
The criteria will be reviewed in 2008. 2.2 How to apply the nutritional criteriaThe appropriate traffic light colour for the signpost for any food is determined by following the 3 steps outlined below: Step 1: Use the criteria in Table 1 for foods and Table 2 for drinks. Step 2: Determine the colour code for each nutrient based on per 100g or per 100ml of the product. Step 3: Check the portion size of the product as specified on the packaging. If the portion size is greater than or equal to 250g, then the alternative red (high) per portion criteria outlined in Table 1 applies. If any nutrient meets this red (high) per portion criteria it must be labelled red (high), regardless of its per 100g profile. Where a selection of products is packaged together, for example a “take-away pack”, then an average value of all the products should be used.
To help ensure the criteria are applied correctly some worked examples are attached
at Appendix 2 which illustrate how to arrive at the correct colour coding for each
nutrient. 2.3 How the nutritional criteria were developedThe green/amber boundaries are determined by the new EU legislation on Nutrition and Health Claims. The amber/red (medium/high) boundaries are based on existing advice from COMA and SACN for fat, saturated fat and salt using 25% of recommended intake levels per 100g and 30% (40% for salt) per portion. The amber/red boundaries for fat, saturated fat and salt were agreed at the Agency’s March 2006 Board meeting. Setting the amber/red (medium/high) boundary for sugars is a complex task since nutrition information, for practical reasons, is given for total sugars but neither COMA nor SACN has provided advice on intakes of total sugars. An independent sugar review group was therefore set up to recommend an appropriate boundary based on total sugars. It noted the COMA advice on recommended intakes of non-milk extrinsic sugars (NMES, i.e. added sugars including extrinsic fruit sugars such as in fruit juice) and took this into account when developing the amber/red boundary for sugars. The criteria developed use COMA’s advice on NMES as the basis for the approach and include an adjustment based on the levels of fruit and milk sugars likely to be present in processed foods. For sugars, the per 100g amber/red boundary is set at 25% of the 50g DRV for NMES plus 2.5g to take account of intrinsic sugars. The per portion boundary is set at 30% of the DRV for NMES plus 3g to take account of intrinsic sugars. These criteria apply to total sugars. It should be noted that neither the Agency nor the sugar review group has made any comment on the suitability or otherwise of any of the IGD GDA values, including total sugars.
Because of the complexity of this issue, and the range of different views, consumer
research is to be carried out as described in section 1, and SACN advice will be
sought on sugars intakes. These, and other criteria, will be reviewed in 2008 taking
account of further information available at this time. 2.4 Additional notes on sugars labelling aspectsThe EU regulation on Nutrition and Health Claims defines sugars in accordance with the definition set out in the EU Directive 90/496/EEC on nutrition labelling of foodstuffs (i.e. all monosaccharides and disaccharides present in food, but excludes polyols). The regulation also states that claims indicating that “sugars have not been added” may only be used where the product does not contain any added mono- or disaccharides or any other food used for its sweetening properties. However where sugars are naturally present in the food it advises that the following indication should appear on the label “contains naturally occurring sugars”. Healthy EatingThe recommended daily allowances (often abbreviated to RDA on labels) of a particular nutrient were first devised in the 1970s.Today nutritionists talk about dietary reference values.These are only a guideline,since not one of us,thankfully, is a standardised unit:sex,age,height,weight,fitness and medical conditions will all influence the calculation for the optimum amount of any nutrient.Even a rough guide,however,is helpful when you are trying to eat and drink healthily.Many manufacturers don’t give the help they should,with high levels of sugars,salt and saturated fat disguised under vaguer umbrella terms.If you want to live healthily, it’s up to you to take control,and see past those deceptive marketing techniques. The government website www.eatwell.gov.uk is excellent.It is easy to use and has all the latest nutritional information.Also useful is www.eufic.org, the website of the European Food Information Council.Based in Brussels,its aim is to improve public understanding of nutrition and food safety. Guidelines for alcohol consumption were first introduced in the 1980s and related to drinks that were served in a pub (one unit equalled half a pint beer,lager or cider,one single measure of spirits,one small glass of wine,one small measure of e.g. port or sherry).However,today many drinks have increased in fortified wine, alcohol content,especially wine,cider and bottled beer.Therefore the only sure way to check your units of alcohol is to use the formula on page 10. Current guidelines for a healthy diet:
When the salt content is high it will often be labelled as “sodium”per tiny portion rather than for the whole packet.You have to multiply the sodium level by 2.5 to find the salt level (1g salt = 0.4g sodium;6g salt = 2.4g sodium)).
Unsaturated (poly-unsaturated and mono-unsaturated) fats: these are the good fats that help to lower rather than raise cholesterol,and help to improve your body’s well being.Food examples are:olive oil,vegetable oil,nuts and seeds, oily fish and avocados. Saturated fats: the upper limit for a man is 30g;for a woman 20g.These are the ones to consume with care.They raise the level of your cholesterol and therefore increase the risk of a heart attack.As with salt (see above),when the saturated fat content is high,too often it is labelled under the umbrella term of “fat”. You may well have to call the customer service number on the packet or even surf the manufacturer’s website for a more detailed breakdown.Food examples are:dairy products,pastries and meats. Trans fats: These are just as bad for you as saturated fats and should be added together with saturated fat content if the product contains both.Food examples are:chips,fast foods,pastry,biscuits and cakes.
The sugar content of a food will often be found by looking for the “Carbohydrate (of which sugars)”figure in the nutrition information panel on the label,or,when only the total carbohydrate figure is given,by looking in the ingredients list.This is where any added sugars are listed,starting with the biggest.A manufacturer may use several types in a product- e.g. sucrose,glucose or glucose syrup- so that the word “sugar”doesn’t appear first on the list.
Energy is measured in units called calories.Most foods are labelled with their calorie count,but check it against the weight or portion you actually eat rather than a suggested “normal”serving. Alcohol UnitsMen should consume no more than 4 units per day and women 3.The formula for working this out for all drinks is: The total millilitres multiplied by percentage of alcohol,divided by 1,000. Therefore:
Weekly guideline:
European wine labelling laws dictate that a wine bottle's alcohol percentage by volume is rounded up or down to the nearest 0.5%, for example, wine labelled Alc.13% can be anywhere between 12.6% - 13.4%. This is why you’ll see on this website and on the bottle’s back label a variation in alcohol units for a wine labelled with the same percentage of alcohol. Allergen LabellingThe twelve food ingredients listed below are required by European Law to be listed on the label of all pre-packed food and drink. More information can be found at: www.eatwell.gov.uk/foodlabels/labellingterms/allergenic
There are many other known food ingredient allergens, but as yet… they are Not required by European Law to be on the label of pre-packed food and drink. Some are listed below, but more detailed information can be found at:
Food Intolerance AdviceThe letters G,L,V and N/S in this book are intended to be taken as guide only, and whilst the utmost care has been taken in their research,products are often tweaked and therefore ingredients do change.Moreover,it’s important to check the ingredient list of every packet as they can alter with size and special offers. Anyone excluding a food group from their diet for health reasons must take care e.g. those following a to ensure their nutritional intake is not compromised dairy-free diet must ensure an adequate calcium intake from other sources. LactoseLactose intolerance is the most common food intolerance in the UK. The best information can be found on the website: www.eatwell.gov.uk.
Gluten
Nuts & SeedsProducts/ingredients to avoid for people with nut (including peanuts;which are legumes not nuts,although people with peanut allergies may also be allergic to tree nuts) and seed allergies or intolerance.Note that some people may be fine with sesame seeds,but may react to one or more of the other seeds.
Unfortunately, such is the sensitivity of some people’s intolerance that a mere trace of a nut or seed can trigger a reaction.Therefore,products without nuts or seeds that have been prepared or produced in a factory that uses them,have the possibility of containing a nut and/or seed trace.Indeed,many of the products sold from a delicatessen counter fall into this category and warnings are now being displayed at many supermarket deli counters. For further information contact:
Allergy UK
Coeliac UK
The Anaphylaxis Campaign E NumbersAll food additives (listed as E Numbers) permitted and used in the UK are passed as safe for human consumption.However,some are known to be harmful and should be avoided by people with food intolerance or where they contravene the consumer’s ethical,religious or special dietary requirements.The side effects listed below,such as hyperactivity in children,only occur in a small number of cases. Many of the colours below are banned in Norway and the USA. Click to jump to: Colours | Preservatives | Vegetable Gums, Emulsifiers & Stabilisers COLOURS
E Number - 102
E Number - 104
E Number - 107
E Number - 110
E Number - 120
E Number - 122
E Number - 123
E Number - 124
E Number - 127
E Number - 128
E Number - 129
E Number - 131
E Number - 132
E Number - 133
E Number - 142
E Numbers - 150a, 150b, 150c, 150d
E Number - 151
E Number - 154
E Number - 155
E Number - 160B PRESERVATIVES
E Number - 210
E Numbers - 211, 212, 213, 214
E Numbers - 220, 221 222, 223, 224, 225,
226, 227, 228
E Number - 235
E Numbers - 249, 252
E Numbers - 250, 251
E Numbers - 281, 282, 283
E Numbers - 310, 311, 312,
E Numbers - 320, 321 VEGETABLE GUMS, EMULSIFIERS, STABILISERS
E Number - 420
E Number - 421
E Number - 422
E Number - 440 (a)
E Number - 441
E Number - 518
E Number - 542
E Numbers - 620, 621, 622, 623, 624, 625
E Number - 901
E Number - 904
E Number - 924
E Number - 928
E Number - 951
E Number - 966 |
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Health