Misleading Food Labels Melanie Fisher General Manager Food

Misleading Food Labels Melanie Fisher General Manager Food Standards Australia New Zealand October 2005 1 © FSANZ 2005

Types of communication • Truthful and not misleading • False • Truthful but misleading 2 © FSANZ 2005

Truthful but misleading • Omissions • Confusion based • Same attribute • Different attibute • Source based. 3 © FSANZ 2005

Ommission Failure to disclose relevant information • ‘Low in sugar’ - but high in fat (diabetics) 4 © FSANZ 2005

Confusion based Consumers mislead by use of language, symbols or images • ‘only 10% fat’ 5 © FSANZ 2005

Same Attribute Truthful statement about a product that may lead to incorrect inferences about the same attribute in that or similar products • ‘this oil is cholesterol free’ 6 © FSANZ 2005

Different attribute When consumers wrongly believe two attributes are related • ‘no cholesterol’ does not necessarily mean low fat 7 © FSANZ 2005

Source based Consumer trust in endorsements and third parties • Assuming a logo relates to an independant third party accreditation system 8 © FSANZ 2005

Impact on consumers • Environmental characteristics • Individual characteristics • Label characteristics 9 © FSANZ 2005

Australian case study • Food Standards and fair trading law • Current focus on health claims (and fortified foods) • Ensuring balance between consumer choice/industry innovation and consumer protection • Need for new skills and different evidence base to develop effective regulation standards 10 © FSANZ 2005

Health claims - concerns Consumers will be mislead and will distort their diets • confusion based – graphics, words, images • Same attribute – calcium in fish • Different attribute – calcium in juice vs milk 11 © FSANZ 2005

Response • Complex area and very dependant on consumer perceptions • Commissioned consumer research and literature reviews • Are proposing a range of regulatory responses – degree of intervention depends on degree of promise/risk 12 © FSANZ 2005

Regulatory approaches Prohibition Pre-market approvals Limits – eg fat, salt and sugar Disclosures Education No regulation 13 © FSANZ 2005

Conclusion • Truthful but misleading more difficult to define and regulate than false claims • Consumer responses and preceptions complex and varied – analysis required • Degree and type of intervention should be effective and appropriate to the degree of risk 14 © FSANZ 2005

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