Understanding Food Labels

Confused at the Supermarket?

Information on food packets can help us make decisions about what are the best foods for us to eat.  Understanding how to read food labels will assist you in making the best food choices for you and your family.

So what is on a food label?

• Health Claims
• Nutrition Information Panels
• Ingredients List and Percentage Labelling
• % Daily Intake Labelling
• Food additives and Allergens
• Date marking

‘Light’ or ‘Lite’… this does not always mean that the food is low in fat or kilojoules.

‘Baked Not Fried’… these products can contain as much fat as the fried varieties.

‘Diet’ or ‘Low Joule’… these products are lower in kilojoules and usually contain artificial sweeteners rather than sugar.

‘Low in Fat’… these products must not contain more than 3g of fat per 100g of food.  But, remember that other added ingredients (like sugar) can mean that the food is still high in kilojoules.

Ingredients List and Percentage Labelling

Ingredients are listed in order with the main ingredient listed first.  Try not to choose products where fat, sugar or salt are near the start of the list.  The label must show the percentage of the key ingredients.

 What the labels don’t explain….

Avoiding fats, sugars or salt requires careful checking. The ingredient list will specify the contents of a product. However, if you are trying to avoid fat, sugar or salt, they may be added in many forms and scattered all over the ingredients list. Here are some of the common names for sugar, fat and salt used in the ingredients list:

SUGAR	FAT	SALT
Sucrose	Butter/Margarine	Baking Powder
Fructose	Vegetable Oil	Baking Soda
Xylitol	Coconut Oil	Meat/Yeast Extracts
Corn Syrup	Cream	Rock/Sea/Vegetable Salt
Raw/Brown Sugar	Palm Oil	Stock Cubes
Dextrose	Milk Solids	Sodium
Honey	Monoglycerides	Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)
Lactose	Shortening	Hydrolysed Vegetable/Meat

 

Information about specific nutrients both per serve and per 100g.

The key nutrients on the “Nutrition Information Panel” includes: energy (kilojoules, kj), total and saturated fat, total carbohydrate and sugars and Glycaemic Index (GI), dietary fibre (only needs to be listed when claims are made), and sodium.

Energy

Being overweight is related to many chronic diseases and eating fewer kilojoules will reduce weight. Therefore, look at the amount of kilojoules on the nutrition panel, and where possible, choose the product with the lower amount.

Fat – total

High fat foods tend to be high in kilojoules. The lower the fat content, the healthier the food is. Choose:

• Breakfast Cereals – less than 5g per 100g
• Biscuits – less than 10g per 100g
• Milk and Yoghurt – less than 2g per 100g
• Ice Cream – less than 2.5g per 100g
• Other Foods – less than 10g per 100g

Fat – saturated

Diets high in saturated fats cause LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels to rise, clogging the blood vessels and increasing the risk of heart disease. Choose the food item with the least amount of saturated fat on the nutrition panel.

Carbohydrate – total and GI

Carbohydrate foods are the best energy source for your body. When they are digested they break down to form glucose in the blood stream, but they do so at different rates – some slow and some fast. The Glycaemic Index or GI describes the way the carbohydrate affects your blood glucose levels. Foods with a low GI raise blood glucose more slowly (compared to foods with a high GI) and are recommended for weight control. As some foods with a low GI also contain a high amount of fat, only those foods that follow the Australian Dietary Guidelines (low in saturated fat, low in sodium and high in dietary fibre) can carry the GI symbol.

Carbohydrates – sugars

Sugars in the nutrition panel includes, naturally occurring sugar in fruits and milk and added sugars. For weight control, it is best to choose foods with less sugar.

Dietary Fibre

High fibre foods help fill you up and get the bowels moving. You should aim for at least 30g of dietary fibre per day or products that contain at least 3g of dietary fibre per 100g.

Sodium

Sodium or salt can occur in large amounts in some foods including cheese, canned foods, processed meats and some cereals. Wherever possible, look for salt free or salt reduced products. Look for foods with less than 400mg of sodium per 100g.

Gluten

If a product makes a claim such as low in fat or gluten free for example, information must be given about that nutrient in the nutrition information panel. In this case, because a “Gluten Free” claim is made, gluten must be listed in the panel.

The following are large amounts per 100g:

• 30g of sugars
• 20g of fat
• 3g of fibre
• 600mg of sodium.

The following are small amounts per 100g:

• 2g of sugars
• 3g of fat
• 0.5g of fibre
• 20mg sodium.

% Daily Intake – these figures are designed to help you make informed choices about the food you eat based on your recommended daily intake of energy and nutrients.  Your daily intake is based on your gender, age, weight and how much physical activity you do.

Food Additives  - can play an important role in the taste and shelf life of foods (e.g. sweeteners and preservatives).  Some people may be more sensitive to additives than others.

Food Allergens  -  can cause severe allergic reactions and must be listed (usually in bold), no matter how small the amount.

Date Marking

‘Use by date’ – the term used on foods that should NOT be consumed after the specified date for health reasons.

‘Best Before’ date – food products with this statement usually have a longer shelf life than those food items with ‘use by’ dates.  The specified date refers to the date that the food will maintain its quality, if it is stored in correct conditions.

Nutrition Facts

Common nutrients, such as total fat, cholesterol, and sodium, are required fields. Other nutrients, such as potassium and Vitamin K, are optional and not required to be listed. Each package must identify the quantities of specified nutrients and food constituents for one serving. It is important to note the following:

• 1 g of fat = 9 kcal
• 1 g of protein = 4 kcal
• 1 g of carbohydrate = 4 kcal
• 1 g of alcohol = 7 kcal

Serving Size

Serving sizes are standardized to make for easier comparison among similar food items. They are expressed in both common household and metric measures. It is always important to pay attention to a serving size. For instance, a serving of chocolate chip cookies is typically 2 pieces. Hence, if you eat 4 pieces, you will need to double the amount of nutrition content listed on the label.

Food shopping can be a challenging task if you don’t know what to look out for! 

What do you need to know?  Still confused???

Did this article arm you with enough information to make the right choices when shopping?  Let us know.  Any questions please don’t hesitate to ask.  We can help you navigate the supermarket maze.