Food labelling

Nestlé implements Nutri-Score labelling scheme in Southern Europe

12-Jun-2020 By Flora Southey

By rolling out the labelling scheme in Spain and Portugal, Nestlé takes its Nutri-Score country tally to eight.

Brexit and food labelling part 2: Challenges, deadlines, and potential future divergences

03-Jun-2020 By Flora Southey

Seven months out until the end of the transition period, the uncertainty of timing and potential short timescales are a concern for many UK and EU businesses, as they prepare to update food and beverage labelling for Brexit.

Brexit and food labelling part 1: What manufacturers need to know to avoid becoming unstuck…

02-Jun-2020 By Flora Southey

Whether it be country of origin labelling, use of EU logos, or specifications around a food business operator’s name and address, Brexit is shaking up how manufacturers label their food and beverage products.

Demands for government intervention on obesity to help cut 'increased but preventable' COVID-19 death risk

29-May-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Public health campaigner Action on Sugar and Action on Salt has fleshed out the details on the interventionist measures it wants adopted in the UK to combat obesity and improve the nation’s health.

Consumer experience of online grocery must improve, says app start-up

28-May-2020 By Oliver Morrison

A new app hopes to re-imagine grocery shopping by putting the consumer – not the shopping – at the centre.

Animal welfare: New food label proposed to 'guarantee transparency’ in pig breeding

27-May-2020 By Flora Southey

A new animal welfare label has been developed in Italy to boost ‘clarity’ in pig husbandry for meat products.

Iceland cuts food waste 23% in two years as it commits to a 50% cut by 2030

27-May-2020 By Oliver Morrison

A year after the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in the UK called on businesses to ‘step up to the plate’ and drive forward plans to cut food waste, the supermarket Iceland has announced food waste reductions of almost 2,500 tonnes,...

Palm Done Right pushes #SayItOnTheWrapper campaign: ‘Stop hiding palm oil use behind unclear ingredient names’

25-May-2020 By Flora Southey

The sustainable palm oil advocate’s latest campaign aims to encourage manufacturers and retailers to be open about their palm oil use. Unless more shoppers are aware of sustainable palm oil, brands will be hesitant to highlight sustainable palm oil logos,...

CBD industry body looks to lay foundation for standardised testing

14-May-2020 By Oliver Morrison

The Association for the Cannabinoid Industry (ACI), which aims to create a safe, legal and well-regulated CBD market in the UK, says it is in high-level discussions with the Laboratory of Government Chemists (LGC) to develop more precise methods for testing...

Beef fraud: Counterfeit products the biggest threat to supply chain

12-May-2020 By Flora Southey

In a 20-year analysis of reported food fraud in the beef supply chain, researchers have found counterfeiting to be the most common type of fraud. “By better understanding the fraud which is taking place, we can target fraud prevention, detection, and...

Marketing claims for infant formula should be banned, say British medics

11-May-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Health and nutrition claims for infant formula are poorly substantiated and potentially harmful, reckon experts in The British Medical Journal.

Ingredion launches polyol sweetener to tap health-conscious trend

04-May-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Ingredion EMEA has launched its first polyol sweetener -- ERYSTA Erythritol – to enable manufacturers to reduce or replace sugar to achieve nutrition-related claims, such as ‘no added sugar’ or ‘calorie-reduced’, in multiple applications.

Nestlé and Danone back bid to enforce Nutri-Score across Europe

28-Apr-2020 By Flora Southey

Food manufacturers Nestlé and Danone, among others, are rallying for EU-wide adoption of the Nutri-Score front-of-pack labelling scheme.

How chocolate ‘fingerprints’ could help prove sustainability claims

27-Apr-2020 By Flora Southey

Scientists are analysing cocoa’s chemical ‘fingerprint’ to determine in which country it was produced. In the future, the technology could have the potential to confirm chocolate label claims, say researchers.

Geographical Indications worth a mouth-watering €75 billion: study

22-Apr-2020 By Flora Southey

Sales of Kalamata olives from Greece, Parmigiano Reggiano from Italy and Champagne from France have contributed to a total sales value of €74.76bn for Geographical Indications, according to a recent study.

Coronavirus: Company results reveal shift to indulgence among consumers

21-Apr-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Trading updates from Premier Foods and Danone illustrate how the Covid-19 crisis has shifted consumer demand towards familiar foods and pantry staples.

UK trade associations call for a rejection of protectionism

16-Apr-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Trade associations from across the UK food and drink supply chain have urged global governments to continue trading through open markets to protect the industry during the coronavirus crisis.

PHE salt targets: What needs to still be done

02-Apr-2020 By Oliver Morrison

With the UK government engaging with industry on new salt reduction targets for 2023, lobby group Action on Salt says it wants more ambitious targets.

Plastic packaging: Hero or villain in the coronavirus era?

01-Apr-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Coronavirus has provoked the food packaging debate, with some using the crisis to hammer home the message that plastic is vital for protecting food from germs and extending its shelf life, while others stress that the pandemic highlights the fact that...

‘We are working to ensure packaging doesn’t become waste’: Coca-Cola, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever hit back after damning plastics report

31-Mar-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Coca-Cola, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever have reiterated their commitments to a creating a circular economy after a report said their plastic waste was contributing to climate change and harming the health of the world’s poorest people.

UK plastics tax a ‘real boost’ for circular economy

19-Mar-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Is the plastic pollution the responsibility of the food and beverage industry, or the recycling industry? Sustainability experts at Bureau Veritas weigh in.

Pea protein trend sparks allergy warning

16-Mar-2020 By Oliver Morrison

The increased use of concentrated pea protein in plant-based products could be a factor in rising reports of allergy to peas, warn campaigners.

Could coronavirus hasten high times for CBD?

13-Mar-2020 By Oliver Morrison

We've seen a run on toilet rolls, hand sanitizer and pasta. What about other foods and ingredients? Which might be set to be boosted by coronavirus?

Industry ‘disappointed’ after UK ‘penalising’ plastics tax confirmed

12-Mar-2020 By Oliver Morrison

The Food and Drink Federation has complained that the UK’s newly announced plastic tax will penalise food and beverage producers and called for efforts to instead improve the country’s recycling infrastructure.

Nutri-Score debate peaks in F2F countdown: ‘The proliferation of FOP labelling schemes is fragmenting the single market’

11-Mar-2020 By Flora Southey

Nutri-Score is attracting increased attention – both good and bad – from MEPs in the lead up to the Commission’s decision on an EU-wide mandatory labelling scheme.

Animal welfare labels: Without an EU-wide scheme, how can consumers vote with their wallets?

10-Mar-2020 By Flora Southey

As concern builds for farm animal welfare, we look at whether an EU-wide scheme is on the cards, what such a labelling matrix might look like, and ultimately, whether high welfare labels make a difference.

Naturex introduces red colouring for meat substitutes

03-Mar-2020 By Oliver Morrison

A new beetroot-based colouring foodstuff from the French botanicals company promises to give plant-based analogues a “real meat” experience.

Industry must act to banish the ‘curse’ of plastic sachets, say campaigners

27-Feb-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Food companies are coming under pressure to take responsibility for the problem of plastic sachet pollution.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Nutrition labels overlooking the blind: ‘I am massively disadvantaged when it comes to food choices’

19-Feb-2020 By Flora Southey

Conventional food labels require consumers to interpret visible information. Could and should they be modified to help the visually impaired make more informed food choices?

Was the failure of Nestlé’s Milkybar Wowsomes down to poor demand or poor marketing?

13-Feb-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Nestlé has pulled its reduced sugar Milkybar Wowsomes product after poor demand. But others believe big brands are scared to push their lower sugar products for fear of failure.

Danone to ‘rethink communication’ on Alpro soy product following accusations it misleads consumers

05-Feb-2020 By Flora Southey

Danone says it will ‘rethink’ the marketing of its Alpro Cuisine Soya Whippable product, after the plant-based ‘cream’ was voted ‘food bluff of the year’ by Swedish consumers.

Iceland launches trial to reduce plastic packaging on fresh produce by over 90%

05-Feb-2020 By Oliver Morrison

The UK supermarket shelved a similar scheme on bananas last year after food waste growth.

Food label fight: Italy’s NutrInform ‘confusing and counter-intuitive’, claim consumers groups

31-Jan-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Italian consumer organisation Altroconsumo is unimpressed by the ‘battery’ nutrition labelling system NutrInform which has been officially proposed to the European Commission by the Italian Ministry of Economic Development as the country’s preferred nutrition...

Vegetable oil sector says Nutri-Score revamp could promote healthy fats to ‘B’ or ‘C’

29-Jan-2020 By Flora Southey

EU trade association FEDIOL is proposing ‘concrete’ suggestions to align Nutri-Score with nutrition and health claims, Director-General Nathalie Lecocq tells FoodNavigator.

UK post-Brexit advisory groups warns against divergence from existing EU food standards

28-Jan-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Three advisory groups have warned the UK government that moving away from European food standards post-Brexit risks diminishing choice and value for consumers.

Israel: ‘New opportunities’ for reformulation as gov’t imposes HFSS warnings front-of-pack

27-Jan-2020 By Flora Southey

The Israeli government has introduced mandatory ‘red labels’ for products high in saturated fat, sugar or salt. Could this legislation bring ‘new opportunities’ for reformulation?

When the UK leaves the EU, will ‘meaty’ names leave plant-based labels?

27-Jan-2020 By Flora Southey

The future is uncertain for ‘meaty’ descriptions of plant-based foods in the UK. If we ban the terms ‘burger’ and ‘sausage’ for plant-based offerings, what does that mean for ‘beef tomato’ and ‘veggie fingers’? questions the Vegan Society.

‘Netflix-style’ discovery platform developed for retail: ‘Why has this not happened in food?’

20-Jan-2020 By Flora Southey

An AI-powered food search and discovery platform has been developed for supermarket retail, offering a ‘Netflix-style curation for food’, tech start-up founder Markus Stripf tells FoodNavigator.

‘Palatinose is perfect for video gamers’: Beneo discusses the potential mega-trends of 2020

15-Jan-2020 By Oliver Morrison

German-based ingredients provider Beneo says there's a growing desire for its low-glycaemic sweetener Palatinose among the video gaming community, who are keen to use the product’s slow energy release to stay focused.

Meat-free, convenience, and traceability: EHL Ingredients reveals 2020 food trends

15-Jan-2020 By Flora Southey

UK ingredients supplier EHL has released its 2020 ‘top trends’, covering plant-based innovations, mindful eating, traceability and allergen awareness.

Meat alternatives warning: ‘More evidence is needed on health and sustainability claims’

08-Jan-2020 By Oliver Morrison

Many alternative meat products are highly processed, have high salt levels and contain the same amount of calories and saturated fat as beef burgers, according the Nuffield Council on Bioethics.

Tackling ‘pester power’: Lidl to erase cartoon characters from cereal packaging

06-Jan-2020 By Flora Southey

Lidl GB has pledged to remove cartoon characters from its own brand cereal boxes, prompting campaigners to ask: ‘If they can do it, why can’t everyone else?’

Obesity and undernutrition ‘paradox’ fuelled by poor quality food, say experts

16-Dec-2019 By Flora Southey

More than one in three low- and middle-income countries are facing both extreme obesity and malnutrition, according to a new report published the The Lancet.

Brussels Bulletin: Brexit certainty as UK election landslide boosts Boris

13-Dec-2019 By Oliver Morrison

Our latest news and views from Brussels takes in the UK’s general election result, a ban on chlorpyrifos and the EU’s food waste and sustainability plans.

Labels showing the exercise needed to burn off the calories can help curb obesity: study

11-Dec-2019 By Oliver Morrison

Labelling food with the amount of exercise needed to burn off the calories could help consumers to eat more healthily, according to a UK study.

From allergies to climate change to food fraud – the business resilience issues facing the food sector in 2020

06-Dec-2019 By Oliver Morrison

A host of factors have the potential to damage the reputation of food brands next year, warns an expert.

Artisan bakers bitter about rise of ‘sourfaux’ bread

03-Dec-2019 By Oliver Morrison

The UK-based Real Bread Campaign has criticised mainstream brands for attempting to make fake sourdough recipes and creating a ‘sourfaux free-for-all’.

Greenpeace plastic report urges innovation in packaging-free and reusable packaging alternatives

28-Nov-2019 By Oliver Morrison

Little tangible progress has been made in the past year by the UK’s largest supermarkets towards reducing their use of throwaway plastics, says a report which calls for a focus on innovative solutions.

Nestlé to roll out Nutri-score in Europe

26-Nov-2019 By Oliver Morrison

More than 5,000 products in five countries will feature the much-debated nutrition labelling system from next year.

RSPO chief on palm oil boycotts, brand responsibility, and the need to ‘rethink’ retail

14-Nov-2019 By Flora Southey

Retailers, brands, and their marketeers are ‘not doing enough’ to promote sustainably driven purchasing decisions in-store, RSPO CEO Datuk Darrel Webber tells FoodNavigator: “Sustainable products have to be front-and-centre to help consumers loosen their...