Aussie producers praise food labelling plan

A European labelling proposal has been welcomed by the peak body of Australian food producers, the Australian Food and Grocery Council. This labelling includes placing nutritional information on the front of packs to give consumers clearer information to help them with their dietary choices.

The company’s chief executive, Dick Wells, said that they were pleased to see that the European Commission adopted this proposal — similar to the Daily Intake Guide Labelling approach adopted by the food industry in Australia.

“Under the European Union’s proposal, pre-packaged food will have the amount of energy, fat, saturated fat, carbohydrates and salt in the product displayed on the front of the package and the labels will also need to show how these elements relate to reference intakes. For example, Recommended Daily Allowance.”

“Our company launched a similar scheme just over a year ago to make it easier for consumers to access information about what is in the food that they are buying so they can better plan their diets.”

“The Daily Intake Guide is now appearing on an increasing range of food and beverage products in Australia and our research indicates that consumers find it easy to use,” he said.

Like the company’s scheme, the EU’s proposal aims to make information more accessible to consumers to guide healthier food choices. It has set out requirements to ensure a consistent approach across the 27 EU member states, although there will be some latitude for additional schemes provided they fit in with the EU scheme.

For further information visit AFGC.