Unpalatable food truths made public

New labelling requirements on processed foods reveal distasteful truths about our daily fat and sugar intake.

From next Friday, packaged foods and non-alcoholic drinks must reveal their fat and sugar content alongside nutritional information, and list any common allergens and the percentage of the main identifying ingredient.

Green Party health spokeswoman Sue Kedgley said she was stunned to learn, when the party surveyed children's food this week, that a 355ml can of Fanta contained 12 teaspoons of sugar.

A can of Coca-Cola contained 38g, or 9.5 teaspoons of sugar.

Popular brands of potato crisps contained up to 38g of fat per 100g serving, half the recommended daily allowance.

The tougher laws follow concern about rising obesity and are intended to make it easier for consumers to choose healthy items.

Until now, only products making nutritional claims, such as breakfast cereals, have had to display the information.

But Ms Kedgley said shoppers would need to carry calculators with them to work out how much they should eat or drink, because manufacturers did not have to state recommended daily intakes on the labels.

She was surprised that many foods did not have to reveal the percentage of their identifying ingredient, for instance, the amount of potato in a potato crisp.

Food Standards Australia New Zealand said percentage labelling was limited to goods where the ingredient might govern the consumer's choice, such as the amount of strawberry in a strawberry yoghurt.


Herald feature: Health