1. There are so many products in the supermarkets and all sorts of claims that are made on labels to entice the consumer. Making sense of the labels can be confusing.
Today we are going to discuss:
Making sense of nutrition and health related claims on labels
How to make a healthier choice when comparing two products in the supermarket
Being able to identify allergy advice on a label.
We are only going to discuss some of the most common claims on labels today, but I hope it will make you more aware of some of the things to look out for when trying to make good choices in the supermarket.

2. Health claims
Ask participants – “What sort of claims have you seen on labels?”
Claims made on labels can be very confusing – how do we know which ones to trust?
No added sugar: Often seen on sweet foods and drinks such as fruit juice, fizzy drinks, sports drinks, yoghurt, toppings, jam etc. This claim is aimed at people watching their weight or parents who are concerned about the amount of sugar their children are eating:
The Nutrition Information Panel (NIP) only lists sugar – it does not tell you where the sugar comes from. So for milk-based products such as yoghurt and milk drinks, even though a claim for no added sugar is made - sugar will still be listed on the NIP; however the sugar will be from naturally occurring sugars (fructose in fruit or lactose in milk)
A 100% fruit juice with no added sugar may have similar kilojoules (energy) and sugar listed on the NIP as a fruit drink (which has added sugar).
100% fruit juice is a healthier choice – but limit it to ½ cup a day – it’s easy to drink kilojoules and a glass of orange juice can contain as many kilojoules as four oranges - eat the whole fruit and get the extra fibre!
The food may be sweetened with fruit juice concentrate (fructose). You can see this on 100% spreadable fruit.
Even though this is a healthier option – it should still be limited to small serves
If sugar isn’t listed, the sweetness may come from intense (artificial) sweeteners
These type of sweeteners will appear on the ingredients list starting with the number ‘9’, or they may be listed by name. Some labels include the name and the number
Intense sweeteners approved in Australia include; alitame (956), acesulfame potassium (Ace K )(950), aspartame (951), cyclamate (952), neotame (961), saccharin (954), sucralose (955) , steviol glycosides (960) and thaumatin (957) these sweeteners are 100’s of times sweeter than sugar, so only small amounts are needed, giving the sweetness of sugar without the kilojoules.

3. Health claims
‘Energy’: This term is generally used to describe foods targeted at children and teenagers
Energy means either kilojoules (usually in the form of sugar) or
A stimulant like caffeine or guarana (caffeine from a South American plant) has been added. Caffeine and guarana are now being added to a range of soft drinks, not just cola flavoured drinks.
Drinks with added caffeine or guarana are not suitable for children
Cholesterol free: This claim is often seen on vegetable oil or a product made with vegetable oil and is aimed at people who are concerned about high blood cholesterol:
This claim does not mean low or no fat – it means the product is made from plants
Cholesterol is only found in animal products. Oils and spreads made exclusively from seeds, plants or nuts do not contain cholesterol
Vegetable oil has the same amount of kilojoules as any other oil – only use small amounts.
% fat free: This claim is seen on a wide range of foods
A 96% fat free yoghurt or milk is the same as saying full-fat milk or yoghurt
A product that is 80% fat free, still contains 20% fat – which is too much
75% less saturated fat – this only tells you about one type of fat (saturated fat) the product may still be very high in overall fat
Fat –free is sometimes used on foods that contain other negative nutrients (like salt or sugar) to make the product sound healthier and draw you attention away from the high sugar or high salt.

4. Health claims
Look for products that use the words ‘low-fat’. This means they must meet the guidelines for a low-fat food (i.e. that it contains no more than 3% fat).
No added salt/reduced salt: This claim usually appears on canned vegetables or tomato based products such as tomato paste, tomato sauce and baked beans in tomato sauce and appears on the label as sodium:
• Salt reduced means 25% less salt than the original product. So if the original product is very salty – the salt reduced product can still be very high in salt – like soy sauce or potato crisps.
• Some similar products may be low in salt – but choose not to advertise it. For example ‘home brand’ tomato pastes are usually low in salt, but don’t advertise it on the packaging – so always check the label. Aim for as close to 120 mg of sodium per 100 grams as possible.
Light/lite: This claim appears on a wide variety of foods such as cheese, yoghurt, milk, cereals, icecream, canned fruit, crisps, olive oil, alcohol etc. and is one of the most confusing for consumers:
• The claim can refer to energy (kilojoules), fat, alcohol, sugar, colour (e.g. soy sauce, olive oil) or the amount of salt.
No artificial additives, colours, flavours: These claims are generally found on products marketed to children, such as confectionery, crisps and ready-to-eat cereals:
• Salt, fat and sugar are natural products – so these products can still be high in one or all of these things
This claim doesn’t not make the food or drink healthier in terms of fat, sugar or sodium.

5. Highlighted nutrients
Highlighted nutrients on the Nutrition Information Panel: The makers of food products want to highlight the nutrients they think will make their product more appealing. Some examples include:
• Soy milk products will often highlight saturated fat and calcium
This product does not contain saturated fat - because it is not an animal product – and they want to draw your attention to that fact
Full-fat soy milk is still high in fat – choose the reduced fat soy milk (note: reduced-fat milks are not suitable for children under 2 years of age)
Soy milk does not contain calcium naturally, so the calcium must be added. It important to make sure cow’s milk alternatives have at least 100mg of calcium per 100 grams to get the same calcium benefit as drinking a glass of cow’s milk
• Cereal 1 is targeted at children – or more importantly the person who buys cereal for children!
Iron – because this is an important nutrient for growing bodies
Vitamin C – because this vitamin helps your body to absorb iron from non-animal sources
• Cereal 2 is targeted at weight conscious women
Protein – along with fibre keeps you full for longer
Calcium – an important nutrient for women to maintain bone health

6. Reliable symbols Reliable symbols
Products that display The Heart Foundation Tick and the Glycemic Index (GI) symbol have met strict criteria set by these two organisations. Companies pay so they can display the symbols and this money is used for research into heart disease and diabetes.
• Other types of ticks and GI symbols may still be healthy options; however they are not endorsed by these two organisations and may not meet the same criteria
• This does not mean that other products in the supermarket are less healthy than those displaying one of these symbols (the Heart Foundation Tick and the GI symbol); however it’s a simple way to pick a healthy choice if you don’t want to read labels.
The Halal symbol is not a guarantee that a product is healthy in terms of fat, added sugar and salt.

7. Labels
Cereal 1
Cereal 2
Having looked at some of the claims that are made on labels – the next question you may be asking is “How do I tell which is the healthier food?”
Go through the two examples as a group:
First example- Cereals
Look at the 100 g column
Compare energy, saturated fat, sugar and sodium
Place a tick next to the nutrients with the lowest amount
The product with the greatest number of ticks is generally the healthier choice
If a product has the same amount of ticks – choose the product with the lowest energy.
The cereals are virtually the same – except one has more sugar and one has more sodium. They are both reasonable choices, however plain wheat biscuits or oats are the best choices as they are high in fibre and low in added sugar and sodium.
These cereals have the same amount of kilojoules per serve and the same amount of fat. They contain different amounts of protein, sugar and carbohydrates – which contain roughly the same amount of kilojoules per gram as each other.

8. Labels Soy Milk 1 Soy Milk 2 Second example- Soy milk
Look at the 100 g column
Compare energy, saturated fat, sugar and sodium
Place a tick next to the nutrients with the lowest amount
The product with the greatest number of ticks is generally the healthier choice
If a product has the same amount of ticks – choose the product with the lowest energy.
The milks are virtually the same – except one has more energy than the other.
The extra energy is coming from the higher fat content – but because this is a non-animal product, the saturated fat content is the same.
Emphasise that this tool will only tell you which is the healthier choice when you are comparing two products – it doesn’t tell you if the products you are comparing are overall healthy choices (for example if you compare two brands of potato chips – no matter which one you choose, it is a food that should only be eaten occasionally)

9. Distribute ‘Which food is the healthier choice?’ activity sheet
Explain the activity to participants:
Look at the 100g column
Compare food A and food B for energy, saturated fat, sugar and sodium
Place a tick next to the nutrient with the lowest amount
The product with the greatest number of ticks is generally the healthier choice
Remember it is double sided

10. A B         similar similar same same similar similar similar
Click and answers will appear one by one (yoghurt comparison- grey tables):
Click
Food A has less energy than food B
It has less saturated fat than food B
Food A only has slightly more sugar and salt than Food B
Therefore food A is the healthier choice.
Click and answers will appear one by one (tomato paste comparison- red tables):
Food A and B are similar in energy
Food A and B have the same amount of saturated fat
Food A and B have similar amount of sugar
Food B has significantly less salt than Food B. A B  
similar
similar  
same
same
similar
similar
similar
similar    

11. Allergy advice Allergy advice
You may have noticed some products have warnings on them. These warnings are there to protect people who have a diagnosed food allergy or intolerance; they do not mean the food is unsafe to eat for everyone else.
Common food allergies include:
Peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, finned fish, milk, eggs, sesame, wheat and soybeans.
If a person suspects they have a food allergy, they should seek advice from their doctor or a registered dietitian.
Some schools have a policy regarding nuts and foods containing nuts. Parents should check with their school.
Allergy advice can appear on a label in a variety of ways, usually close to the ingredients list: The ingredient can appear in bold type in the ingredients list:
There may be a statement on the label separate to the ingredients list such as:
Allergy Advice – contains wheat and milk
Contains wheat and milk as indicated in bold type (wheat and milk will be bolded in the ingredients list)
Other statements that may appear on labels include:
may contain traces of nuts, egg or milk, or
made on equipment that also processes products containing nuts, egg or milk
These warnings are on labels because the manufacturer is concerned the food may have been contaminated with a potential allergen unintentionally while the food has been stored or during processing.
Some manufacturers choose to highlight what a food does not contain (e.g. gluten free or does not contain lactose)
labels also include a phone number for consumers to ring with questions. If a person has an allergy and is concerned about how the product is processed, they should call the number listed for more information.

12. Allergens Distribute the food labels with allergy advice on them
Ask participants if they can identify any food allergy advice or statements on the labels provided.
Ask questions to test the participant’s understanding of the labels e.g. if a participant finds a label with milk in bold – ask “If you were allergic to cow’s milk – could you drink that?
Distribute food labels with allergy advice on them.
Recap the main points of the session
Words on labels can be misleading – always compare labels and limit saturated fat, added sugar and salt
There are some symbols you can trust – like the Heart Foundation Tick Symbol and the GI symbol – however this does not mean products displaying these labels are the only healthy choices in the supermarket
Allergy advice and warnings on labels are there to protect people with diagnosed allergies. If you think you have an allergy consult your doctor or a dietitian.
Eating more fresh food and less packaged foods is an easy way to make your diet healthy.

13. What did you think of today’s session?
What do you remember most from today?
Do you think you know more about label reading now?
What are you going to do differently?
Group discussion – these questions may need to be asked differently depending on your participants
What will you take away from the session?
Do you feel more confident about the reading a food label, than you did before the session?
What changes, if any, do you plan to make as a result of todays’ session?

14. Developed by HELPP,
Funded by SA Health, and managed by
Nutrition & Dietetics, Flinders University
Contact: Food Safety and Nutrition Branch, SA Health Tel:
or Nutrition & Dietetics, Flinders University Tel