Airline meal meets all 222 EC-approved health claims

The European Commission (EC) wanted to ensure that claims made on food labelling and advertising regarding nutrition and health are meaningful and accurate. It started this process by asking its Member States to suggest ‘health claims’ and they did – over 44,000 of them!

Of these, 4637 were sent to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which finalised the evaluation of the ‘general function’ health claims prioritised by the commission.

‘General function’ claims under Article 13.1 of the EC Regulation on nutrition and health claims refer to the role of a nutrient or substance in growth, development and body functions; psychological and behavioural functions; slimming and weight control, satiety or reduction of available energy from the diet. These claims do not include those related to child development or health or disease risk reduction.

On 16 May, the EC approved 222 Article 13.1 health claims and after 16 December this year any claims that are not authorised (and not on hold/under consideration) will be prohibited. (The full list can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/nuhclaims/resources/docs/euregister.pdf.)

Leatherhead Food Research CEO Dr Paul Berryman challenged his team of scientific, regulatory and marketing experts to devise a meal that could make ALL 222 claims. “It was great fun. I thought of the airline meal concept when flying back from Vitafoods in Geneva. I had spent three days talking about health claims and at a roundtable event I suggested that Leatherhead could make a product with all 222 claims, no problem! It wasn’t that simple, but we did it within one week!”

Leatherhead’s ‘mega-healthy’ airline meal satisfies all 222 Article 13.1 health claims. The meal is specially designed for long-haul flights and is packed with minerals, vitamins and everything else that EFSA currently thinks is healthy. It even includes charcoal tablets to reduce excessive flatulence (useful in the enclosed airplane cabin) and some sugar-free chewing gum to chew after the meal to freshen breath and neutralise plaque acids. The chewing also helps relieve pressure in the ears - but this isn’t an official health claim.

And the Leatherhead Airline Meal Formula 222 consists of:

• Fresh and smoked salmon terrine - with ALA and DHA for brain and heart function
• Mixed leaf side salad with extra virgin olive oil dressing - for cholesterol claims
• High-fibre multigrain bread roll - for 17 claims around fibre, folate and arabinoxylan
• Chicken casserole with lentils and vegetables - for iron absorption, vitamins and minerals
• Live yoghurt blancmange topped with walnuts and sugar-free, caramel-flavoured sauce - for cholesterol, gut health and blood glucose control
• Cranberry, raspberry and elderflower sports drink - for energy, vitamins and electrolytes
• Walnut snack pack - for improvement in the elasticity of blood vessels
• Pure spring water - to offset dehydration

For those flyers watching their waistline, the pack includes mixed berry meal replacement shakes, while jet lag sufferers can sip on a melatonin-containing hot chocolate drink to relieve their symptoms.

Leatherhead Food Research
www.leatherheadfood.com