Campaign on food-labelling system unveiled

Macha

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/1008/breaking62.htm

A campaign that aims to promote consumers’ understanding of nutritional information on food labels was unveiled today.

The industry-funded, nationwide information campaign aims to help people understand more about the new Guideline Daily Amount (GDA) food labelling system.

GDA labels are a guide to how much energy (calories) and key nutrients (sugars, fat, saturates and salt) the average healthy person requires for a balanced diet.

According to the Irish Business and Employers’ Confederation, over half of all branded packaged food and drink products and almost all participating supermarket own-label branded products now displaying the system front of pack.

This latest phase of the information campaign will take place in the top 25 Tesco stores across the country this weekend.

Welcoming the initiative at the launch in Dublin today, the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith, said the increased use of GDAs will provide invaluable information to consumers.

Dr Louise Sullivan, a senior executive with Food and Drink Industry Ireland (FDII) said the new product labels gave consumers the information to make better food choices. The FDII’s member companies funded the campaign.

A consumer website has been developed (www.gdaguide.ie) to support the campaign, along with an information booklet that can be ordered on www.fdii.ie.

Dermott Jewell of the Consumers’ Association of Ireland has in the past said nutritional information on packs, either using the GDA or the UK’s Traffic Light system, should be mandatory.

Quite possibly this was brought forward by the recent news item on children's breakfast cereals..I haven't had a good look but the website & booklet might be handy.

Edit: Just had a quick look and they're not comparing like with like!!
http://www.gdaguide.ie/Comparingscrummyfoods.aspx If you look, each cereal has a different amount in grams.

jimmycrackcorm

The GDA's don't go far enough. If you examine the GDA on CocoPops then you'd think they are good for you instead of being the sugary treat that they are.

Really they also should have a rating system not unlike the energy ratings that fridges etc have. I.e. Porridge would have an 'A' rating and CocoPops would down there with 'X'.

rubadub

taconnol wrote: »

Edit: Just had a quick look and they're not comparing like with like!!
http://www.gdaguide.ie/Comparingscrummyfoods.aspx If you look, each cereal has a different amount in grams.

Yep, terrible, looking at that I bet the average person would think cornflakes are the "best" choice out of them. Lower in fat & calories.

eclectichoney

Not to mention the 'create a menu for one of these people' game thing. For breakfast they give a choice of Special K or toast and jam for one of the people. :eek::eek:

aare

Now, I am going to strain myself and be a really good sport here, because I was hoping against hope this thread was about a step closer to widespread CLEAR (if I wanted to wear my reading glasses in Tesco I wouldn't have bothered losing the weight at all) labelling for food sensitivities, and I am pretty disappointed.

It would be so easy, and so nice to see gluten, eggs, soy, dairy et al incorporated into the "GDA" labelling...without which I certainly cannot sort out a balanced diet for myself.

But sorry, I have to play Devil's advocate, the site clearly explains:

***
The GDAs on your labels are appropriate for most adults who are of a healthy weight and enjoy an average level of activity. However, some people may need to adjust these figures (perhaps you want to lose weight or are particularly physically active).
***

...and, as such they serve a good purpose for most people.

I appreciate your focus here is on fitness and healthy eating, and that is good for you, but the focus of the site, and GDAs is on the AVERAGE, which largelyt consists of a polyglot of other people doing what works best for them, as you do what works best for you.

These days I have no real option but examine every darn thing I eat, and how it affects my whacked out digestive system and metabolism, because I am celiac (among other things - don't get me started)...but most of my life I have been on the opposite side of the fence.

I have always loved my food, (You can all jump on me if you must, but I happen to believe that "holistic" dietry health involves a certain amount of eating for fun, like "cocoa pops".) whenever I stopped to think about it, but mostly ate whatever was handy to keep me going.

I suspect that is very similar to the way average person prefers to live, and they aren't going to change, and as long as they remain "of a healthy weight and healthy level of activity" it shouldn't have to change (remember we are all entitled to have different focus and priorities).

I think the GDA system, as it stands, is a really good tool to help that average person keep it within reasonable limits and stay average. Make it any more complicated or negative and less people will use it...

But it really does need to incorporate those food sensitivities too...