Strengthening Food Labelling Regulations Consumer Perspective 17August, New Delhi

Food Safety & Standards(Labelling & Display) Regulations, 2018 Proposed: April, 2018 Prescribes: Labelling Requirements of Pre-packaged Foods: Name, Ingredients, nutritional information, Declaration of Veg/Non-Veg, Food Additives etc. Labelling Requirements of Non-Retailer Container, edible oils & Fats. Display essential information on premises where food is manufactured, processed, served and store. Covers all important topics in detailed manner.

Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2018 Consumer Perspective

Chapter 2: Regulation 4.2: Labelling Requirements Section 3: Nutritional Information Saturated fat & amount of transfat should be added to the labels Warning labels should be made for products containing any artificial trans- fat. The ideal standard is to limit the amount of trans-fats to comprise less than 2% of all fats and oils, but warning labels for all products with trans-fats is a good accompaniment.

Instead of using serving sizes, best international practice is to base food on kcal or grams of fat, etc., per 100 grams or ml of the food/beverage product. In case of a compound ingredient, having less than 5% in the food, some times can have detrimental effects on consumer health, therefore, needs to be declared. Regulation 4.2: Labelling Requirements, Section 3(b(iv)) Regulation 4.2(2(f)): Food items where compound ingredients constitutes less than 5% of food, need not to be declared

Regulation 5: Principal Display Panel Section 4 Section 4(d): FOP labels are colored red when a food items meets HFSS While the proposed FOP label design and paradigm does incorporate some important and actionable information and evidence-based color-coded elements, the absence of a clear warning label feature may represent a missed opportunity. FSSAI’s proposed stipulation is a strength and will optimize efficacy.

Regulation 5(6): Principal Display Panel States Food Authority may introduce a colour coding system in addition to the marking of foods as “red” within the specific thresholds from time to time. Section 9: States that HFSS food products shall not be advertised to children in any form. Please clarify further what this entails. Concern: Adding of green and yellow colours later on, resulting in the traffic light system which has proven problematic. How are “advertised”, “in any form”, and “children” being defined here?

The proposed FOP label design is predicated on a calculation of per serving contribution to GDA/RDA which is not an ideal metric. Recommended to remove GDAs/RDAs as part of FOPL proposal. It should be as limited as possible and should reflect only feasibility challenges or other applicability factors in order to maximize the number of food items that are ultimately labeled. Regulation 2: Definitions(17) & All other mention of RDA Schedule II: Exempted Food Categories

Regulation 7: Exemption from certain Labelling Requirements It states that in premises where food with a red mark is served, a message on healthy eating shall be displayed. Point 7(1): Provides for an exemption from certain labelling requirements including the nutritional information when the surface area of the package is not more than 100 sq. cm but these requirements should be fulfilled in case of a multiunit package. Clarify what the details of this proposal would be. Since many of these packaged foods are sold in stores, and not “served”, when would this scenario occur? There should be some requirements which should be mandatorily fulfilled like nutritional information which should not be compromised due to area of the package.

Point 7(4): In case of prepared food served for immediate consumption such as in hotels or by food service vendors or caterers……. Regulation 9 : Labelling of package food additives for Retail Sale Section (2) (b) (ii): In the case of mixtures of flavorings, the name of each flavoring present in the mixture need not be given but a common or generic expression “flavour” or “flavoring” may be used, together with a true indication of the nature of the flavour. Some more information related to Trans Fats in the fat or oil used in the served food shall also be mentioned. In the case of mixtures of flavorings, the name of each flavoring present in the mixture, the ratio of the “natural”, nature- identical”, or “artificial” combination must be displayed.

Key Recommedations

Saturated Fats & Trans-Fat on Nutrition Panel Warning Labels Simple, interpretive labels that incorporate uncomplicated formats, warning labels, and icons best facilitate consumer comprehension and discrimination between healthy and less healthy products. Proposed FOP label design and paradigm does incorporate some important and actionable information and evidence-based color-coded elements. The absence of a clear warning label feature may represent a missed opportunity. Saturated Fats & Trans-Fat on Nutrition Panel Saturated fat should be added to the panel, in addition to amount of trans- fats. This would bring the nutrition facts panel up to meet the current understanding of the critical components of fat that impact our health most severely. Zero Artificial Trans- fat Warning labels should be required for products containing any level of artificial trans-fats. The threshold for a warning label indicating trans-fat should be the presence of any artificial trans-fat. Ideal Standard: Limit the amount of trans-fats <2% to all fats and oils in the product. But warning labels for all products with trans-fats is a good accompaniment.

Discontinued Use of Serving Size Arbitrary and do not contribute to standardization that cultivates nutritional fluency among consumers. Can be overly permissive and difficult to regulate. Recommend: To base food on kcal or grams of fat, etc., per 100 grams or ml of the food/beverage product. Discontinue GDAs and RDAs Use of the RDAs or GDAs should not be part of this proposal. GDAs/RDAs perform poorly in a number of dimensions compared with other existing FOP labeling systems Difficult to interpret & creates Confusion in evaluating the nutritional profile of food and beverage items Test Chosen Approach Rigorous testing of labels and the various design features of the FOP component of the proposal before finalization. The front-of-package design, the colors selected, and the content are all important. These elements should be tested through focus groups and other market research to ensure the labelling is effective.

Limited Exempted Products Clarify the Details Limit exempted items. Labeling paradigm should apply broadly to all food items that contribute materially to sodium (and other nutrients of concern) consumption. Inconsistently applied labeling paradigms can lead to misperceptions about the healthfulness of products. The use of multiple different types of logos and labels can increase confusion and decrease the labels’ usefulness. Clarify the Details In designation of some foods with red labels, other colors (yellow and green) should not be added. Avoid “traffic light”. In case where packaged foods are sold in stores, and not “served”, will the message on healthy eating be displayed? How are “advertised”, “in any form”, and “children” being defined for purposes of this regulation?

Credits CUTS Team & Global Experts

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