Standardised food labelling system to help buyers pick healthier options

New system will end calorie confusion and help consumers to select healthier foods...

A standardised food labelling system will be used by all major supermarket chains (bar Iceland) as announced by the Department of Health on Wednesday. Health campaigners welcome the new system, which is backed by the government, as it aims to end confusion when it comes to counting calories.

Under the new system, food labels are expected to bear colours that will indicate the levels of fat, saturated fat, salt, and sugar as well as the percentage of daily recommended nutrients found in each product. 

It is understood that to make it more effective, the system will use the traffic light labels. Red will mean high in nutrients, while amber and green will represent medium and low levels of nutrients respectively. 

Anna Soubry, the Public Health Minister, is glad about the new system. She said, as quoted by The Independent: “The UK already has the largest number of products with front of pack labels in Europe but research has shown that consumers get confused by the wide variety of labels used.

“By having a consistent system we will all be able to see at a glance what is in our food. This will help us all choose healthier options and control our calorie intake.”