Question Sheets: Normal way in – worksheets to print – packaging and labelling

LABELLING AND PACKAGING

What is packaging used for? Helps to transport foods, store it and contain some foods such as liquids. Packaging preserves food and prolongs its shelf life by protecting it from bacterial damage, moisture and insect attack. Some packaging preserves food for a very long time, such as tins. Packaging also prevents tampering, provides information and attracts customers

List the different types of packaging used to commonly store food YOU HAVE 2 MINUTES.. List the different types of packaging used to commonly store food

PACKAGING 4 MAIN GROUPS: Metal, Glass, Card/Paper board and Plastic. Metals - tinplate and aluminium Commonly used for: tinned fruits, beans, soups, sauces, custard. Advantages: Strong, can be easily moulded, lightweight, impermeable to contamination, can be recycled, preserves food, can be heat treated. Disadvantages: Can react with some foods so cans need non-metallic linings. Glass Commonly used for: drinks, jars e.g. jams, coffee, salt and pepper and other seasonings. Advantages: Easily moulded, ridged, transparent, can be recycled, resistant to high temperatures, impermeable to contamination. Disadvantages: Fragile and Heavy. Card and Paperboard Commonly used for: cereals, gravy, fast food drinks and dry products, e.g. quiche Advantages: Printed on easily, made in varies thicknesses, moulded/folded easily, laminated or coated, light weight, cheap, recyclable, biodegradable. Disadvantages: squashed easily resulting in contents damage, non water resistant. Plastics Commonly used for: a large range, each with own qualities!! Advantages: Can be moulded easily, lightweight, impermeable to contamination, cheap, easily printed on, water resistant, can be ridged and flexible. Disadvantages: Can’t always be recycled, not very strong.

‘Recycle, the possibilities are endless’ Concerns about packaging; It can’t always be recycled Not always biodegradable Uses up worlds natural resources e.g. oil, metal and trees During production of packaging air, land and water pollution occurs 90% of rubbish is put into a landfill. BIODEGRADABLE FOOD PACKAGES: Potato pack: potato starch is used to produce a range of packaging e.g. bags, plates and bowls. What can manufacturers do about this? Use recyclable and bio-degradable packaging wherever possible Ensure consumers know which packaging is recyclable by using labels STOP POINTLESS PACKAGING E.G. CUCUMBERS AND YOGHURT Make packaging thinner What can consumers do about it? Only choose products that come in recycled or biodegradable packaging Ensure they recycle as much packaging as possible!! (70% could be recycled but we only do 30%!!) Buy a single larger size rather than individual portions e.g. yoghurt Use own shopping bags, 4p for a plastic carrier bag is expensive every shopping trip!

TRAFFIC LIGHT LABELLING A growing number of supermarkets and food manufacturers are using traffic light colours on the labels of some products to help you make your choice. So, if you see a red light on the front of the pack, you know the food is high in something we should be trying to cut down on. It's fine to have the food occasionally, or as a treat, but try to keep an eye on how often you choose these foods, or try eating them in smaller amounts. If you see amber, you know the food isn't high or low in the nutrient, so this is an OK choice most of the time, but you might want to go for green for that nutrient some of the time. Green means the food is low in that nutrient. The more green lights, the healthier the choice. The traffic light colours will make it easier for you to compare products at-a-glance. The label also tells you how much of each nutrient is in a portion, so if two labels have similar colours you can compare these figures, and choose the one that is lower to make a healthier choice.

Legal requirements… Food product name List of ingredients It is a legal requirement to inform consumers about the food products they are buying. The food labelling regulations of 1996 state the type of information that must be displayed on the food product label. Food product name List of ingredients Weight/Volume Instructions for use Storage instructions Use by date/cell by date Name and address of manufacturer Place of origin Allergic information