your
MENU
Food labelling, ingredients and legislation
Helping you and your team to be compliant
1
The UFS Food Labelling Guide 2012 is published by: Unilever South Africa (Pty) Ltd. 15 Nollsworth Crescent, La Lucia Ridge La Lucia Ridge Office Estate La Lucia 4051 www.ufs.com
Copyright Š 2012 This work is the property of Unilever South Africa (Pty) Ltd. This work is protected under the Berne Convention. In terms of the Copyright Act 98 of 1998, no part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from Unilever South Africa (Pty) Ltd. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the information published in this work is accurate, Unilever South Africa (Pty) Ltd, the editors, publishers and printers take no responsibility for any loss or damage suffered by any person as a result of the reliance upon the information contained therein.
2
Nutrition table There are 1 billion overweight adults and a staggering 300 million cases of obesity worldwide. This figure is expected to rise to 1.5 billion by 2015 unless everyone, including the food service industry, takes action now. In South Africa, 68% of the population is overweight and 33% are considered obese. As chefs and operators, you can play a big part in trying to reverse this trend. For instance, the nutrition table explained in this chapter can help you compare products, so you can choose the best food choices for your guests.
86
Chapter 5 Nutrition table
The key nutrients of food are listed in the nutrition table on the pack. Nutrition tables are required on all pre-packed foods that make a nutritional claim. The nutrition table will help you compare these key nutrients and serving sizes, whilst some packs will also include information on percentage daily intake.
Serving size Nutrition information should be listed per 100g or 100ml product and by the recommended serving size. The serving size is the amount of product that is generally used per one serving. For example 50g of dry soup is used to make one serving.
Good to know Although the package might actually contain several servings, nutritional facts in tables are usually based on just one serving. Always look at the serving size of the product and how many servings you are actually consuming. For instance, if the serving size is 250ml but the pack contains 500ml of product, this means there are 2 servings per pack. Therefore the nutritional information on the label per serving will be 2 times more if the entire pack is consumed.
87
Percentage daily intake Some food products also list percentage daily intake information. This information is a guide to what percentage of the total recommended daily amount of key nutrients is in a serving, based on a predetermined kJ per day diet. It should be used as a guide to the total amount of energy and key nutrients that a typical healthy adult should eat in a day.
Energy This is the amount of energy that the food contains. Energy is written either in Kilojoules (kJ) or Calories (kcal). In South Africa, energy is written as KJ, however you may see labels with Kcal, to convert. 1 calorie = 4.12 kilojoules. The energy content of foods depends on the amount of carbohydrates, fats and proteins present in the food. One kcal from fat is the same as one from sugar. But 1g of fat delivers more energy per gram (9kcal/g) than alcohol (7kcal/g), protein (4kcal/g) and carbohydrates (4kcal/g).
Did you know? Fat free doesn’t mean Kilojoules or Calorie free. Lower fat items may have as many Kilojoules/Calories as full fat versions because these items may contain a high level of added sugar.
88
Chapter 5 Nutrition table
Protein Protein is expressed in grams, and is essential for growth and repair of body tissues.
Carbohydrate Carbohydrate is expressed in grams; this value is the total value of carbohydrates in the product. The body turns carbohydrate into fuel for the body.
Total sugar Total sugar is expressed in grams. This is the amount of carbohydrate in the product that is made up of sugar (mono – and disaccharides).
89
Total fat Total fat is expressed in grams. This is the total amount of all the different kinds of fat in the product. Fat has many important functions in the body. It is a source of energy, provides essential fatty acids and helps us absorb fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.
Saturated fat Saturated fat is expressed in grams. This is the amount of fat in the product that is made up of only saturated fats. Saturated fats are known as ‘bad fats’ because they increase the bad (LDL) cholesterol in your blood.
90
Chapter 5 Nutrition table
Good fat versus bad fat People tend to think of fat as bad, but that’s not entirely true. Some fats are good for you. Not only do they have important nutritional benefits, they also make your food taste good. Fats are a source of energy and some help keep your heart healthy, and provide essential building blocks for all the cells in your body. This means we need to be aware of how much and what kinds of fat we eat. Good fats: There are two kinds of unsaturated fats: polyunsaturated (found in oily fish, plant oils, margarine, mayonnaise) and mono-unsaturated (found in olive oil, nuts, avocado). Bad fats: Saturated fats and Trans fats. Too much ‘bad’ fat (found in butter, fatty meats, cheese, full cream dairy products) in your diet is one of the main causes of elevated cholesterol. Too much cholesterol in your blood can increase the risk of heart disease. 91
Sodium Total sodium is expressed in milligrams (mg). Sodium is a component of salt and adds flavour to foods. The body needs sodium to maintain water balance and for muscle and nerve activity. If you know the sodium content of a food, you can estimate its salt content: salt = sodium x 2.5.
Did you know? The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends no more than 5g of salt (2000mg of sodium) per day, whereas the average content of daily salt intake for South Africans is between 9 and 12 grams. Eating too much salt is one of the strongest risk factors in the development of raised blood pressure, and this risk increases with age. Worldwide, one in four adults (26%) has high blood pressure, and approximately 8 million deaths are attributed to it annually.
92
Chapter 5 Nutrition table
Dietary fibre Dietary fibre is expressed in grams. Dietary fibre or sometimes roughage (ruffage) is the indigestible portion of plant foods. Fibre helps to maintain a healthy bowel function and gut health and plays a role in satiety.
93
FAQs Below are some frequently asked questions from a chef’s perspective concerning nutrition tables found on pack
Why should I read the nutrition table? • Unilever Food Solutions first World Menu Report (WMR) ‘What’s in your food?’* showed that your guests want to know more about the food they are eating when out of home. They would like to know where the food was sourced from, how it was prepared, what the ingredients and food additives are, and the energy and nutrient content. The first World Menu Report also showed that guests would like chefs to be able to answer their questions on the food prepared for them. By knowing what is stated in the nutrition table you are well prepared to answer the questions of your guests, e.g. regarding energy content and/or fat. • According to the latest research, there are 1 billion overweight adults and a staggering 300 million cases of obesity worldwide. This figure is expected to rise to 1.5 billion by 2015 unless everyone, including the food service industry, takes action now. In South Africa, 68% of the population is overweight and 33% are considered obese. • As chefs and operators, you can play a big part in trying to reverse this trend. The nutrition information can guide you to make healthier choices for your guests and even enables you to make comparisons between products in order to make more informed decisions. *Visit www.ufs.com to view the Unilever Food Solutions World Menu Reports.
94
Chapter 5 Nutrition table
How do I know if the products I use are nutritious? There are various ways to check if a product is nutritious: • The nutrition information can guide you to make healthier choices when comparing the nutrition table between products. • Some food products also list percentage daily intake information. This information is a guide to what percentage of the total recommended daily amount of key nutrients is in a serving, based on a predetermined kJ per day diet. It should be used as a guide to the total amount of energy and key nutrients that a typical healthy adult should eat in a day. • There are also health logos which can be labelled on food products if certain nutrition criteria is fulfilled. In South Africa the Heart and Stroke Foundation (www.heartfoundation.co.za) gives food producers and manufacturers the opportunity to use, under licence, the Heart Mark for approved products.
Why is salt not mentioned in the nutrition table? • Labelling guidelines in South Africa stipulate that salt must be represented on pack in its pure Sodium value. • Salt consists chemically of the molecules sodium and chloride in a specific ratio. When you know the sodium value of a product you can estimate its salt content by using the formula below. 400mg Sodium = 1000mg (1 gram) of Salt i.e. Grams Sodium x 2.5 = Grams Salt
95
96
Chapter 5 Nutrition table
Do all products have to bear a nutrition table on pack? • In South Africa it is only mandatory to label the nutrition table on pack if a nutrition claim is made (eg. High in Calcium). If a nutrition table is included on pack it has to adhere to the design stipulated in the respective regulation. However, Unilever is pro-actively labelling nutrition information on the majority of its products. By doing this we provide all relevant nutrition information of our products in a transparent way.
What is the difference between nutrition data labelled per 100g and per serving? • All nutrition labelling needs to include information per 100g/ml of the product as it is sold on the shelf (i.e. not after preparation). Because all those foods bearing nutrition information stipulate values per 100g/ml it is easier to compare different products for their nutrition content. • Serving Size is the weight of product that would generally be used per serving. For example: 50g of dry soup is used to make one serving which is the amount in grams that would be used by a consumer for a single serving. Nutrition information per serving gives an indication of how much energy and key nutrients are consumed per one portion of the food.
I have seen ‘as prepared’ nutritional information on some packs. What is the meaning of nutrition values for the prepared product and how are they different from the values per 100g? • ‘As prepared’ nutrition information is labelled on the pack of some dehydrated products which need to be prepared before they can be consumed. The nutrition values per 100 g/ml prepared product reflect the nutritional value that the consumer would eat when consuming 100 g/ml. • Prepared product, in some cases, is just water added to dry product to rehydrate a dehydrated product, e.g. jus, soup, bouillon.
97
Data sources The Consumer Protection Act South African Government Online, 2012. What is the Consumer protection Act. [Online] http:// www.info.gov.za [Retrieved on 10 October 2012]
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ. do?uri=OJ:L:2008:354:0016:0033:en:PDF COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 1129/2011 of 11 November 2011 amending Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing
Eldin Food Consulting, 2012. Your Specialist in
a Union list of food additives http://eur-lex.
Food Safety and Labelling. [Online] http://www.
europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.
eldin.co.za [Retrieved on 10 October 2012]
do?uri=OJ:L:2011:295:0001:0177:En:PDF
A Guide to the Consumer Protection Act, PDF Online, 2012. What is the Consumer Protection Act? [Online PDF] http://www.restaurant.org.za/
Dietary requirements
pdf/A_Guide_To_The_Consumer_Protection_Act.
Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, 2012.
pdf [Retrieved 10 October 2012]
Common Food Allergens. [Online] http://www. foodallergy.org [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
Understanding food labels South African Department of Health, 2012. Food Control – Legislation [Online] http://www.doh. gov.za/ [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
European Food Information Council, 2012. Focus on Food Allergens. [Online] http://www.eufic.org [Retrieved 4th December 2012] The Food Allergy Initiative, 2012. Food Allergies Overview. [Online] http://www.faiusa.org [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
Food ingredients & additives
National Health Service, 2012. Living With Allergy. [Online] http://www.nhs.uk [Retrieved
The Multilingual Food Information Site, 2012.
4th December 2012]
Food Additives. [Online] http://www.food-info. net [Retrieved 20 August 2012]
Canadian Food Inspection Agency, 2012. FoodConsumer Centre – Food Allergies. [Online]
European Food Information Council, 2012. Focus
http://www.inspection.gc.ca [Retrieved 4th
on Food Additives. [Online] http://www.eufic.org
December 2012]
[Retrieved 20 August 2012] Allergy Society of South Africa, 2012. Page for US Food and Drug Administration, 2012. Food
Patients. [Online] http://www.allergysa.org
Additives. [Online] http://www.fda.gov [Retrieved
[Retrieved 4th December 2012]
20 August 2012] The Anaphylaxis Campaign, 2012. Food and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Catering. [Online] http://www.anaphylaxis.org.
States, 2012. [Online PDF] http://www.fao.org/
uk [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
food/food-safety-quality/scientific-advice/jecfa/ jecfa-additives/en [Retrieved 20 August 2012]
The British Allergy Foundation, 2012. Types of Allergies. [Online] http://www.allergyuk.org
L. K. Mahan; S. Escott-Stump. Krause’s Food,
[Retrieved 4th December 2012]
Nutrition and Diet Therapy. Elsevier. 11th edition. 2004
Statistics South Africa. Census 2001. 10th October 2001. http://www.statssa.gov.za/
E. Whitney; S. Rady Rolfes. Understanding
census01/html/default.asp [Retrieved 30th
Nutrition. Wadsworth Publishing. 11th
October 2011]
edition. 2007 Statistics South Africa. Mid-year population REGULATION (EC) No 1333/2008 OF THE
estimates 2010. http://www.statssa.gov.za/
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
publications/P0302/P03022010.pdf [Retrieved
of 16 December 2008 on food additives
23rd July 2010]
242
The Vegetarian Society, 2012. Food – Help for
Fairtrade. [Online] http://www.fairtradelabel.org.
Caterers. [Online] http://www.vegsoc.org/page.
za [Retrieved 15 November 2012]
aspx?pid=506 [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
Proudly South African, 2012. What is Proudly
The British Diabetic Foundation, 2012. Caring
South African? [Online] http://www.proudlysa.
for People with Diabetes. [Online] http://www.
co.za [Retrieved 15 November 2012]
diabetes.org.uk [Retrieved 4th December 2012] The American Heart Association, 2012. Getting Healthy – Nutrition Centre. [Online] http://www. heart.org [Retrieved 4th December 2012] Nutrition Education Services – Oregon Dairy Council, 2012. Dash Diet Eating Plan. [Online] http://www.dashdietoregon.org [Retrieved 4th December 2012] Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America, 2012. Food Service Kit. [Online] http://www. ifanca.org [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
Storage Colorado State University-Extension, 2012.Food Storage for Safety and Quality. [Online] http:// www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09310.htm [Retrieved 04 December 2012] Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service and Oregonian Food Day, 2012. Food Storage Chart - Food Storage Guidelines – Shelf Life of Food - Refrigerator & Freezer Storage Chart. [Online] http://whatscookingamerica.net/
KIR Kosher Food Certification, 2012. What
Information/FreezerChart.htm [Retrieved
Does Kosher Mean? [Online] http://www.
04 December 2012]
koshercertification.org.uk/whatdoe.html [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
Help With Series, 2012. Guide to home refrigeration and the correct storage of cooked and fresh food items.[Online] http://
Nutrition table The World Health Organisation, 2012. Health Topics – Nutrition. [Online] http://www.who.int [Retrieved 4th December 2012]
www.helpwithcooking.com/food-storage/ refrigeration-tips.html [Retrieved 04 December 2012] Center for Foodservice Learning, 2010 – 2011. Storing Food Safely - Home Storage Practices.
World Health Organization. Diet, nutrition and
[Online] http://www.food-safety-and-you.com/
the prevention of chronic diseases. Report of a
StoringFoodSafety.html [Retrieved 04
Joint WHO/FAO Expert Consultation. Geneva,
December 2012]
WorldHealth Organization. 2003 (WHO Technical Report Series, No. 916)
When in Doubt – Throw it Out!, Fight Bac Campaign, USDA. Refrigerator and Freezer Safety. [Online] http://www.wvu.edu/~exten/ infores/pubs/fypubs/136.wlg.pdf [Retrieved
Symbols and logos
04 December 2012]
Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa,
Help With Series, 2012. How to test an egg’s
2012. Healthy Heart. [Online] http://www.
freshness, see if your egg’s are fresh, 2001-2012.
heartfoundation.co.za [Retrieved 15
[Online] http://www.helpwithcooking.com/
November 2012]
egg-guide/fresh-egg-test.html [Retrieved 04
SASSI – The Southern African Sustainable
December 2012]
Seafood Initiative, 2012. [Online] http://www. wwfsassi.co.za [Retrieved 15 November 2012] Marine Stewardship Council, Certified Sustainable Seafood, 2012. [Online] http:// www.msc.org [Retrieved 15 November 2012] Fairtrade Label South Africa, 2012. What is
243
Storage continued... Answers Corporation, 2012. Is it safe to eat expired canned food? [Online] http://wiki.answers.com/Q/ Is_it_safe_to_eat_expired_canned_food [Retrieved 04 December 2012] University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2012. Refrigerated and Freezer Storage. [Online] http://food.unl.edu/ web/safety/refrigerator-freezer. [Retrieved 04 December 2012] State Government of Victoria, 2012. Food safety – storage. [Online] http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/ bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Food_safety_storage. [Retrieved 04 December 2012] Still Tasty, 2012 . Three ways to defrost food safely. [Online] http://www.stilltasty.com/articles/view/9. [Retrieved 05 December 2012] Favorite Freezer Foods, 2008-2011. Can you refreeze food that thawed? [Online] http://www. favoritefreezerfoods.com/refreeze-food.html [Retrieved 05 December 2012] State Government of Victoria, 2012. Food safety when cooking. [Online]. http://www.betterhealth. vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Food_safety_ when_cooking. [Retrieved 05 December 2012] CBS Interactive, 2012. How long does fresh fish keep in the fridge? [Online] http://chowhound. chow.com/topics/276180 [Retrieved 05 December 2012]
244