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Food Labels, Nutrition & Health Claims
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Need to know more?Take advantage of our free, confidential,
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how else can we help?getting started?
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IMPORTANT: Advice provided on compliance matters is for the exclusive use of Cogito clients. The information is based on the Australia NZ Food Standards Code, NZ Food (Supplemented Food) Standard 2013 and the guidelines compiled by FSANZ and MPI. Cogito is not engaged in providing legal advice.
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I have a new product. How do I make sure that my food label complies with the relevant regulations?
When you prepare your food or beverage product label, you need to make sure that it conveys your brand positioning messages, whilst also complying with applicable food and other regulations. At Cogito, we have developed a system to help you understand how the food regulations apply and, at the same time, to help you think through how you want to communicate with your customers.
We start this process by offering you our Confidentiality Agreement. Then we will gather specific information from you about your product, ingredients, packaging and the claims that you wish to make on your label. We'll summarise the label requirements for you in a checklist format, which covers all areas of the food labelling regulations. Where the label complies, it gets a tick. Where it doesn't, it gets a cross with a note as to why it doesn't comply and what you need to change. Sometimes there are "grey areas", which may be open to interpretation. Where we come across these, we'll identify them for you so that you can decide whether you want to take further advice.
We start this process by offering you our Confidentiality Agreement. Then we will gather specific information from you about your product, ingredients, packaging and the claims that you wish to make on your label. We'll summarise the label requirements for you in a checklist format, which covers all areas of the food labelling regulations. Where the label complies, it gets a tick. Where it doesn't, it gets a cross with a note as to why it doesn't comply and what you need to change. Sometimes there are "grey areas", which may be open to interpretation. Where we come across these, we'll identify them for you so that you can decide whether you want to take further advice.
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How do I get nutrition information for my food or beverage product label?
There are several ways to generate this information depending on the type of product. In many cases, nutrition information can be prepared by calculation, using data from your suppliers and from recognised databases. Alternatively, where the exact composition of a product can't be determined from the ingredients (e.g. where there are losses or gains due to processing), nutrition information will have to be determined by analysis. If you want to make claims on your label (e.g. low cholesterol) additional analyses may be required. Contact us to discuss your product and we'll talk you through the approach that we recommend for your particular situation.
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I want to tell consumers about why my product is good for them. What am I allowed to say?
Chances are, what you have in mind is classed as a nutrition-content or health claim. You may be surprised at the kinds of statements that get caught within this definition! The ANZ Food Standards Code sets out specific criteria that voluntary statements made by food businesses on labels and in advertising about a food need to comply with. On top of that, other legislation may also apply, such as the Fair Trading Act. We've summarised some of the key points in an article about nutrition and health claims.
We suggest that you start by reading this article and then contact us for a free, confidential, no-obligation consultation about your product.
We suggest that you start by reading this article and then contact us for a free, confidential, no-obligation consultation about your product.
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