FSA does U-turn on traffic-light food labelling
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) launched a month-long consultation period this week on the development of a signposting system for food labels.
Research conducted last year showed that consumers favoured clear labelling on the front of food packets, with either a traffic-light colour coding or use of multiple traffic-light signals denoting a food's healthiness.
However, the FSA has also decided to consult on a third option, which states the contribution a food serving makes to the Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs) for key nutrients.
Rosemary Hignett, the FSA's head of nutrition, recognises that people want an easy to understand label on the front of packets: "We need to ensure that we create a scheme that provides people with information in a format that will make it quick and easy for them to make informed choices," she said.
The FSA will consult on these three options but admitted that it might consider a fourth option as well:
Simple traffic light - providing an overall (colour-coded) rating for the food.
Multiple traffic lights - with a separate high, medium or low rating for each of fat, saturated fat, salt and sugar.
GDA-based concept with colour coding - indicating the amount of fat, saturated fat, salt and sugar provided per serving, together with the guidelines for each nutrient.
The third option will also be accompanied by traffic-light colours to indicate whether the content of each nutrient in the food is high, medium or low.
by Emily Manson
Buy this week's Caterer magazine for more industry news and analysis
