A move away from ‘traffic light’ to ‘colour coded’ nutrition labels leaves behind the danger of a “stop and go interpretation” of foods, according to the British Heart Foundation.
Austerity bites in to consumers ability to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables
Austerity and rising food prices have hit healthy eating habits hard in the UK, with one in four Brits revealing they have not bought any fresh fruit or vegetables in the last week.
Consumers are more likely to buy low-fat products when they have traffic light labels, but organic foods could suffer from the system, according to research.
People perceive foods that are hard to have fewer calories than soft equivalents, according to new research published in the Journal of Consumer Research.
What is the future of food? Simple communication of complex advances will be crucial, as well as picking up the pace amid a global population boom to feed the world nutritiously and sustainably, according to FoodNavigator and NutraIngredients senior editors.
Consumers don’t really want more nutritional information, they want an easy life, according to a behavioural economist talking at a conference in Brussels.
Pea protein may be moving in from the food and beverage fringes, however formulating with the fast-growing ingredient is 'no picnic' according to functional confectionery firm Carmit.
A review of more than 72 clinical studies has raised further questions over current guidelines relating to fat intake - which generally restrict the consumption of saturated fats and encourage consumption of polyunsaturated fats to prevent heart disease.
Utilising eye-tracking technologies to assess how health conscious consumers perceive food products could help manufacturers improve label designs and better promote healthy products, say researchers.
The question of how to define and label nano-scale ingredients will return to the drawing board, after the European Parliament rejected the Commission’s proposed regulation on Wednesday.
Restricting marketing to children and continuing to cut salt, fats and added sugar in processed foods are among initiatives put forward in a plan to tackle childhood obesity, agreed by EU member states in Greece last week.
The European Commission has said it will investigate the impact of the UK’s voluntary traffic light nutrition labelling scheme, after several EU member states led by the Italian delegation complained that it could harm EU trading.
Replacing vegetable oils with an esterified vegetable oil in infant formulas will not soften infant stools, and a choline form will not boost vision, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has found.
Small European food companies could be pushed out of the UK market if ‘hybrid’ traffic light labels are implemented, says UEAPME, the European Association of Craft, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises.
Arla’s lactose-free TV advert is not misleading, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has concluded after receiving complaints from dairy-allergic consumers.
As researchers uncover more about the way our mood impacts dietary choices, one research group has found that thinking about the future can help us to make better food choices.
Consumers in Scotland will receive far clearer information about the origins of their food, the Scottish government has pledged, after launching a new partnership yesterday (February 11) to deliver that promise.
UK adults drastically underestimated sugar levels in fruit juices and smoothies by 48% on average and significantly overestimated content in energy drinks and CSDs says a hard-hitting comment in The Lancet.
Trading Standards (TS) don’t have the resources to check for the potentially dangerous unapproved novel foods illegally on sale on the UK market, it has emerged.
A group of researchers has published a definition of ‘whole grain’ stemming from the HealthGrain EU project, in an effort to harmonise labelling and nutrition guidelines across Europe.
The coming year will see a more sceptical consumer who demands greater traceability, sustainability and honesty on pack, according to a Leatherhead analyst.
Certification by German-government backed 'Ohne Gentechnik' labelling scheme will help British supplier Ulrick & Short to a competitive advantage in the GM-sensitive German market, says the firm.
From the newest developments in sweeteners, fats and oils and flavours, to the latest trends in gluten-free formulation and plant-based diets, FoodNavigator's special editions calendar for 2014 spans the hottest topics for the European food and drink...
With 2013 fast drawing to a close and 2014 just around the corner, we took the chance to catch up with analysts and experts at Mintel to ask them what their highlights from this year have been ... and a few predictions for what might be in store in the...
Passing EU-wide regulations on the food industry for reducing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is not a question of 'whether' but 'how', according to a new report published as part of the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies...
Campden BRI, food and drink research and services, has seen a surge in companies looking for advice on the European Union’s Food Information to Consumers (FIC) Regulation and how to comply with the impending deadline.
The UK’s traffic light nutrition labelling system is unfair on Italian foods and could harm EU trade in traditional goods, according to the Italian delegation at the EU Council of Ministers.
The Food Information for Consumers regulation (FIC) is set to come into effect this time next year. FoodNavigator spoke with Campden BRI’s principal food law advisor David Leeks to find out what changes to expect.
The Spanish advertising authority, Autocontrol, has accused Unilever of misleading advertisement of its Flora pro-activ spread by failing to include a statement stipulating target audience and conditions of consumption of the cholesterol-lowering product...
Incomplete or selective reporting, high drop-out rates and unplanned post-hoc analyses are some of the common health claim submission failures, EFSA’s claims panel chief professor Ambroise Martin, PhD, told a congress last week.
One year on from its acquisition of Swedish beta-glucan brand OatWell, DSM talks about entering into new markets and capitalizing on European health claims.
An ageing population, new EFSA health claims, protein perceptions and a focus on sugar as opposed to fat are some key considerations that are or should be driving the dairy industry, according to an analyst.
Pizza has a poor nutritional image – but it could be reformulated to meet dietary guidelines without losing its taste appeal, according to a team of Scottish researchers.
Bunge has developed a patented trans-free bakery shortening without the hydrogenation process in reaction to consumer concern over ‘hydrogenated’ oils on the label, its innovation director says.
Country of origin labelling is among the top concerns for the European fats and oils industry, according to FEDIOL, the federation representing the European vegetable oil and proteinmeal industry.
European guidance on portion sizing is out of date and does not reflect how portion sizes have changed over time, claims a new report from the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
The EU recently approved a health claim for fructose – but the EFSA opinion also included a health warning. So could the positive health claim lead to negative health outcomes?
A ‘traffic light’ labelling system improves consumer awareness of health and healthy choices at the point of purchase, according to an American study which adds further research to an issue which has proved prickly in Europe of late.
New Nordic dietary recommendations focus on whole diet quality, rather than individual nutrients, with some key changes that could make a difference to how foods qualify for healthy choice logos.
Simply reducing portion sizes is not an easy solution to reducing energy intakes as results from laboratory based experiments do not necessarily reflect what happens in the real world, according to a new review.
The European Commission has passed a law meaning generic descriptors for food and beverage products which could be construed as health claims will only be allowed if they have been in use for more than 20 years.
