With the ever-growing focus and concern by consumers on labeling of foods, it is important that food business owners are aware of the importance of helping consumers make informed decisions by labeling products with accurate and legal information. In 2012 the European Commission published a new Regulation which was to make nutritional labeling mandatory for pre-packed foods from the 13th December 2016. Those food businesses who already had voluntary labeling had to comply with new regulations – Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011. While in 2016 the FDA published final rules on the new Nutrition Facts label to make it easier and clearer for consumers to make choices that are best suited for their health and lifestyle.
Consumers are becoming ever more conscious of what they eat and drink and in turn this does put emphasis on labeling requirements, hence food industry professionals need to be up to date when it comes to product labeling. Companies need to make sure that what they put on product labels is precise and to ensure that all products have the correct label, as after all it is one of most common and sometimes the only way in which information is communicated to consumers.
The food production process is intricate, encompassing various suppliers from countries with diverse regulations globally. Safefood 360°, crafted by food specialists, provides a comprehensive solution combining Food Safety Management and Supplier Management to simplify challenges in the food supply chain.
It is necessary to ensure that nutritional information is correct and legible and that any health claims are authorized and legitimate. Food business owners need to be conscious when selling their product to the public to assure the consumer that the product is the right choice for them.
Reviewing labels while browsing the shelves is an everyday occurrence and when consumers see that nutrition or health claim, more than likely they will take that at face value and rely on the labeling as guidance for them. However, with the ever-busy lifestyles of consumers, this means that they also want to be able to check product labels quickly during their trips to the shops and online due to the ever-growing trend of online shopping. They want the ability to see quickly and clearly if the product is for them and that it meets their nutritional and health needs.
So firstly, let’s see how these claims are defined by the regulatory bodies:
European Commission states: “’Nutrition claim’ means any claim which states, suggests or implies that a food has particular beneficial nutritional properties due to: The energy (calorific value) it: (a) provides, (b) provides at a reduced or increased rate or, c) does not provide.
The nutrients or other substances it: (a) contains, (b) contains in reduced or increased proportions or (c) does not contain”.
FDA states: “Nutrient content claims describe the level of a nutrient in the product, using terms such as free, high, and low, or they compare the level of a nutrient in a food to that of another food, using terms such as more, reduced, and lite”.
A health claim on the other hand according to the European Commission states: “A health claim is any statement about a relationship between food and health”.
FDA’s states that: “Health claims describe a relationship between a food substance (a food, food component, or dietary supplement ingredient), and reduced risk of a disease or health-related condition. A “health claim” by definition has two essential components: (1) a substance (whether a food, food component, or dietary ingredient) and (2) a disease or health-related condition. A statement lacking either one of these components does not meet the regulatory definition of a health claim”.
Let’s focus first on the nutritional labeling and what needs to be adhered to in order to make sure the product is legal and compliant. For those complying to EU regulations, the Food Information to Consumers requires that the declaration should be presented on tabular display, unless the package is too small, then linear format is acceptable. It should consist of the Energy value – displayed in order of kj/kcal, Fats, Saturates, Carbohydrates, Sugars, Protein and Salt – all to be displayed in g and must be given per 100g/ml of food.
This can then also be broken down to Monounsaturates, Polyunsaturates, Polyols, Starch, Fiber and any vitamins and minerals that are permitted by law.
Once you have the mandatory nutritional labeling declared on the pack it is possible to repeat these nutrient values, for example, on the front of the pack. This is voluntary but if you do decide to do this then there are some things you need to follow. Only the Energy by itself or the Energy along with fat, saturates, sugar and salt can be displayed, and it has to be declared either as Per 100g/ml only, Per 100g/ml and per portion or on a per portion basis only.
To calculate this nutritional information, there are various methods, but it must be based on the analysis of the food, a calculation from the known or actual average of the ingredients used or a calculation from established and accepted data.
Like the EU the FDA requires the information to be table format, however there are slight differences in the requirements. FDA require Calories, Total Fat, Saturated Fat, Trans Fat, Cholesterol, Sodium, Total Carbohydrate, Dietary Fiber, Total Sugars, Includes Added Sugars, Protein, Vitamin D, Calcium, Iron and Potassium to be displayed on the label. There are other nutrients that can be declared if the company desires, however anything extra should still be in line with FDA’s regulations, so always make sure to check out what can be included, and this can be viewed easily by accessing regulation 21 CFR 101.9(c).
This has changed as there has been the removal of Vitamins A and C and the addition of Vitamin D and Potassium due to information that was gathered during food consumption surveys which showed a lack of Vitamin D and Potassium consumption in the USA; however, Vitamin A and C can still be listed voluntarily.
The new final rules published by the FDA in 2016 have provided a timeframe in which companies need to comply and this ranges from January 1st, 2020 to July 1st, 2021 depending on the size and annual sales of the business, also taking into account the type of product.
Safefood 360° offers monitoring modules that allow you to perform checks, ensuring that labels align with the proper specifications. Additionally, you can discover a variety of modules tailored for various food production applications.
On the other hand, we then have Health Claims, we frequently see claims on food products such as “Reduction of heart disease”, “Can help with Children’s development and health”, “Source of Calcium, needed for maintenance of normal bones” and the list goes on so it is essential due to the ever growing consumer needs that food business owners need to keep up with the demands and be aware of what health claims mean for them and their product.
Health claims are an important source of information for consumers and can be a contributing factor as to why consumers choose one product over another. Also it is important to make sure that what is stated on the label is in fact legitimate and correct. These health claims should be backed up by scientific evidence to provide confidence in the relationship between the nutrient/substance and the health/diseases.
According to the FSAI food businesses should keep the health claim wording as close as possible to the authorized wording listed in the EU register. We need to remember that the smallest error in the wording can provide the consumer with incorrect information and lead to a misunderstanding.
FSAI states the example: “Claims such as ‘Calcium contributes to normal muscle function’ should not be reworded to remove the word normal so it would be “Calcium contributes to muscle function” as this changes the meaning”.
To make sure companies are compliant, the EU has a register on health claims which outlines the claim type, the nutrient/food, the claim itself, conditions of use and the health relationship and whether it is an authorized claim.
The FDA also has a list of Approved health claims that they publish on their website. Before a health claim becomes approved, they must be reviewed by the FDA and this is done through a petition process, this will include considering the scientific evidence provided to support the claim. The FDA states that: “The FDA approves by regulation authorized health claims for use in food labeling only if the substance/disease relationship described by the health claim meets the “significant scientific agreement standard”. This is to help make sure that consumers are not faced with any misleading information.
Overall, reliable, and accurate nutritional and health claim information is essential not only to keep companies legal and compliant but to aid in the helping of guiding consumers in making healthier lifestyle choices. It is important in relation to issues such as obesity, diabetes or high cholesterol. These labels contribute to helping the population of consumers to try and reduce diseases that are linked with poor nutrition or diet and to provide them with a better insight to what products they are consuming.
Not only are food business owners a business, they are consumers themselves. Therefore, we at Safefood 360° believe that it is easy for anyone to put themselves in the shoes of those purchasing the product and think about what they want to see on the labels to make the most informed choice for their health.
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