Warning over 'fat-free' food claims

2.45pm

Food manufacturers advertising their products with claims such as "93 per cent fat-free" have been warned they will run foul of new food standards laws that take effect in eight weeks.

"We are seeing a number of new food products being actively promoted as 93 per cent fat free or even 90 per cent fat free," Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) managing director Ian Lindenmayer said today.

"This in fact means that these products are 7 per cent or 10 per cent fat respectively, which is not a low fat product."

The code of practice on nutrient claims, administered by the food industry, only allows for 97 per cent and above fat free claims, which means the product must be no more than 3 per cent fat.

The new food standards, which will take effect on December 20, will overcome problems encountered previously in New Zealand over misleading advertising.

In 1997 Pacific Dunlop Holdings (NZ) Ltd was convicted of making misleading claims about Plumrose Light Deli Ham in a case which set the precedent for the new food standards by showing a factually correct statement could still be misleading and breach the Fair Trading Act.

The Commerce Commission prosecuted Pacific Dunlop in 1996, and when the company was convicted in Christchurch District Court in 1997, then commission chairman Alan Bollard said customers were being duped into buying a product that did not provide the benefits claimed for it and other food manufacturers which complied with the law were disadvantaged.

The canned Plumrose ham was labelled "90 per cent fat free", "light deli ham" and "healthier eating".

Dr Bollard said the overall impression created was that Plumrose deli ham was a lower fat product, when that was not true -- it had between twice as much and almost four times more fat than vacuum packaged ham. The commission laid a similar charge in relation to Plumrose Lean and Tasty Leg Ham, which was described as "95 per cent fat free", but a judge found the labelling of the leg ham fell short, by a narrow margin, of being misleading.

Today Mr Lindenmayer told the Australian Institute of Environmental Health in Sydney he was concerned that some food companies were breaking their own rules about percentage fat free claims.

In New Zealand, products which promote such claims include: Echinace Bar, Tegal Turkey leg steaks, Tegel Turkey Nibbles, Nicola's Organic Muesli, Kiwi Ice Cream parlour collection (all 96 per cent fat free), Heller Tasty beef sausage and frankfurters, Life Body Shaping food, Eta Free and Lite dressings (all 95 per cent fat free), Rice Shapes, Natra Schnitzels and Natra Nuggets, Dragon Rice Crackers (94 per cent) and the Unique Nibble Co Pacific Ltd's iiti (crct) Bread Sticks (93 per cent).

Mr Lindenmayer said that while many consumers checked the nutrition panel on labels which contained details of energy (kilojoules), protein, fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, sugar and salt in a product, consumers who did not might be misled into believing that a product labelled as "90 per cent fat free" was a low fat product.

"Used correctly, nutrition claims are a useful tool to enable shoppers to make informed choices but, if they are misused, consumers will no longer trust these claims," Mr Lindenmayer said.

"The few food businesses that do not use nutrition claims correctly also disadvantage the majority of companies that do the right thing". The December 20 changes will also require manufacturers to say how much meat is in a meat pie, and declare the presence of any allergens.

Incorrectly labelled foods made on or after December 20 will be illegal and major retailers had indicated they would not sell illegal foods, Mr Lindenmayer said.

"I urge any food manufacturer or importer who has not reviewed their labels to do so immediately to ensure they meet the deadline."

- NZPA

Further reading
nzherald.co.nz/health