Food labelling - understanding the jargon
Wednesday, September 1st, 2010
The labels are getting there (slowly) but to be honest I glazed over many products and thought that if I didn't do this job I do I wouldn't have a clue whether this product was good for me! I will therefore let you into a secret I tell all my clients - if you are trying to eat healthily and the product has got more than ten ingredients in it, put it back on the shelves. If you buy one ingredient at a time ie. broccoli, or frozen peas - you know there is only one ingredient in it. It's when you get to packaged food it starts to get complicated. If you are confused with low fat, low salt, free from, natural, good for you, fresh etc. I would look at the amount of ingredients on the back of the packaging instead. The highest amount of an ingredient will be listed first and the least last. This should give you some idea of the quality of the food. If you are prone to allergies or food intolerances, the number of ingredients plays more of an importance.
Take for example two popular packets of crisps.
One brand contains: Potatoes, sunflower oil, salt.
The other has: Potato starch, sunflower oil (30%), cheese flavour, whey powder (from milk), flavour enhancers (monosodium glutamate, disodium 5' -ribonucleotide), flavouring, milk powder, cheese powder, butter acids, soya protein, colour (paprika extract)], rice flour, soya flour, salt, yeast, onion powder (malt flour from barley), pepper, wheat flour, colour (annatto).
If you look at the above it's quite obvious which bag of crisps is healthier and less allergenic. If the ingredients are kept simple then the product will be healthier. Give label reading a go based on the amount of the ingredients on the packaging and let me know how you get on. This month, we start with a few extra tips on understanding some of the most common labelling on foods and what they actually mean.
Food labelling - understanding the jargon
Barn eggs
Barn hens stay inside, but have freedom of movement and access to feed, water nests and perches. This is a kind of halfway house between the free range and battery system.
Best before
This is an indication of quality rather than safety, often appearing on foods that can be kept for some time, such as tinned, frozen and dried products. The food is unlikely to be harmful, but might have lost texture or flavour. Eggs are an exception, they should not be eaten after their sell by date.
Fairtrade
The Fairtrade logo means the food has met international fair trade standards. This guarantees that farmers in developing countries get a fair price for the food they produce and that workers receive fair wages and decent working conditions. Additional premiums are also paid to farmers to be used to improve businesses or communities. For more information, see the Fairtrade Foundation website.
Farm fresh
This statement doesn't really tell you much in my opinion - it makes no claims about the conditions the hens are kept in and can be applied to eggs from caged to battery hens.
Free range eggs
These are laid by hens who have continuous daytime access to outdoor runs. Under EC regulations, there are three 'marketing terms' for free-range chickens in the UK. 'Free range', 'Traditional free range' and 'Free range - Total Freedom'.
Free Range - no more than 13 chickens can be together per square metre and no more than 27.5 kg per square metre. Half their lifetime has continuous access to open air runs mainly covered by vegetation.
Traditional Free Range - no more than 12 chickens can be together per square metre and no more than 25kg per square metre. They should also have continuous daylight access from the age of 6 weeks.
Total Freedom - chickens are the same as Traditional Free Range with the added extra for the chickens of continuous day-time access to open-air runs of unlimited area.
Fortified
This means that nutrients have been added to a product at the manufacturing or packaging stage. Margarine is fortified by law, with vitamins A and D; others voluntarily, such as breakfast cereals are fortified with vitamins and minerals.
Homogenised
This is a mechanical process used to distribute fat evenly, resulting in creamier and smoother milk. Milk is forced at high pressure through a tiny hole which breaks up fat globules and makes them an equal size. Single cream is often homogenised to stop it from separating during storage.
Hydrogenated fats and oil
These should be avoided if possible and are gradually being taken out of foods. Hydrogenated vegetable oils or fats are used in many processed foods. They're created by bubbling hydrogen through oils to turn the fat solid, which alters the texture of the food and also extends its shelf life. The process can create trans fats, which can raise cholesterol levels in the blood.
Light or lite
This applies to foods where nutrients have been reduced by at least 30%. This is often sugar and as many of my clients know I'm not a fan of lite foods as they often contain aspartame or saccharin.
Low calorie
Foods described as low calorie can't contain more than 40kcal (170kJ) per 100g or 20 kcal (80kJ) per 100ml.
Low fat
A food can only claim to be low fat if it has no more than 3g fat per 100g or 1.5g fat per 100ml (or 1.8g fat per 100ml in the case of semi-skimmed milk).
Low salt/sodium
A food can only claim to be low salt/sodium if it has no more than 0.3g salt/0.12g sodium per 100g or per ml.
Low sugar
Low sugar foods have no more than 5g sugar per 100g or 2.5g sugar per 100ml. Again look for the addition of aspartame and saccharin.
Organic
Organic food is produced without the use of artificial fertilisers or pesticides, the routine use of veterinary medicines such as antibiotics, or the use of genetic modification. EU-wide rules require organic foods to be approved by an organic certification body, which carries out regular inspections to ensure the food meets a strict set of detailed regulations relating to production methods and labelling. Organic farming also offers benefits for animal welfare, requiring animals to be kept in more natural, free-range conditions. Look for labels like The Soil Association.
Sell by
Used by some shops to help with stock control. The important dates for you to look at are the 'best before' and 'use by' dates, rather than the 'sell by' date.
Use by
Food shouldn't be eaten after this date - this is the key date in terms of food safety. Use by dates are put on food that goes off quickly, such as poultry, meat, fish and some dairy products.
Polyunsaturated fats, saturated fats and monounsaturated fats
There are 3 different types of fat: saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Too much saturated fat can increase the amount of cholesterol in the blood, increasing our chances of developing heart disease. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, on the other hand, have been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels and therefore help in reducing the risk of heart disease. Polyunsaturated fats are found in oily fish and some plant oil, including sunflower and soya oil, while monounsaturated fats are found in olive and rapeseed oil and avocados and some nuts.
Red Tractor logo
All foods displaying the Red Tractor logo have met certain production standards in areas such as food safety and hygiene, environmental protection, animal welfare and inspections. The scheme is industry-run and the standards have been developed by producers and retailers. The logo can be applied to intensive as well as free-range farming methods, and can be used on imported products, as long as they meet the standards.
Wholegrain
This is generally used as a marketing term to mean that all 3 parts of the grain have been used: the fibre-containing bran, the middle layer and the nutrient-rich inner layer. Wholegrain foods contain more fibre and other nutrients than white or refined starchy foods. They also take longer to digest, so they can help you feel full for longer
