Definitions of Terms for Nutrient Claims
and examples

reduced light and lite free low very low less high very high more diet source good source of Reference foods Reduced fat/lower fat/less fat - must contain at least 25% less fat than the regular product Low fat/low in fat - the food has no more than 3g of fat per 100g of solid food or 1.5g per 100g of liquid food. Fat free - must contain less than 0.15g fat per 100g food % fat free - must indicate actual fat content in close proximity to claim Low saturated fat - must also be low in total fat and contain less than 1.5g saturated fat per 100g Reduced/low cholesterol - contains less than 20mg cholesterol per 100g and food must also be low in fat OR contain less than 20g saturated fat per 100g and more than 40g per 100g of polyunsaturated fats Foods naturally or intrinsically high or low in a nutrient e.g bread

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Audio Transcripts

'Nutrient claims' which make comparisons with other foods e.g reduced, increased, lower, must be accompanied by a statement on the label which compares the food with a reference food. The reference food must appear in close proximity to the claim; comparisons must be made with the 'weighted average' food of that type based on an industry norm for the particular type of food e.g reduced fat tasty cheese compared with regular tasty cheese. If the composition of the 'normal' foods of that type varies over a wide range then a comparison statement cannot be made.

Foods naturally or intrinsically high or low in a nutrient
Labels on such foods must be expressed in terms that make it clear that the claim refers to the whole class of similar foods and not only to a particular brand of food on which the claim appears. For example a low fat claim made for a food such as bread must be expressed in terms such as: bread - a low fat food OR bread is low in fat. A statement such as 'low fat bread' is likely to imply to some consumers that the particular bread is low in fat compared with other breads.

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