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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

The think that baby food jars

16 replies

catherinea1971 · 08/08/2011 08:31

Should have EVERY ingredient listed???
DD2 (18mo) has a diagnosed allergy to garlic, which is an absolute nightmare to manage. The stuff is in everything, even some baked beans brands. To make matters worse she is a very poor eater, has been from birth so to make life easier at times I use jars of baby food.
Gave her one the other evening, she had 2 spoonfuls (this is about usual).

Went into her room to check on her before I went to bed to find her cot and herself absolutely covered in vomit!!! She was fast asleep bless her....
I was unsure if it was reflux rearing it's head again or that she had somehow had some garlic. Check the jar, no mention of garlic (I did check before giving it to her) decided to email the baby food company and ask them, 4 days later I receive an email saying that yes there is actually garlic in the food I gave her, that it came under 'herbs'......no apology in the email....
Is it unreasonable to believe that food made specifically for babies lists ALL ingredients??? Btw, the food was for babies of 10+months.....

OP posts:

Meglet · 08/08/2011 08:38

Yanbu. It never occured to me that some foods could be 'hidden' like that.

Original poster

catherinea1971 · 08/08/2011 08:43

Me neither, I had the same problem with another baby food brand, the garlic wasn't listed on the tin but after she was ill and I checked the ingredients on the website it was listed on there.

Whist I appreciate that a garlic allergy is rare, surely it can't take much to list it??? Ds has a nut allergy as do I, it is so easy nowadays to check for nut in food. I really thought that they had to list ALL the ingredients on all food nowadays.......

OP posts:

5inthebed · 08/08/2011 08:50

I can see your point re listing the ingredients. You should perhaps take it further. I have a friend with a garlic allergy, hard to eat out.

Would it not be easier though to make her foo yourself so that you know what is in the food? 18 months is quite an old age to still be on jars.

Original poster

catherinea1971 · 08/08/2011 08:55

Hi, generally I do make her food, although even this is a minefield, garlic is in so many things I really didn't realise!!! Eating out is a problem, a big one and we end up on the rare occasions we go out just getting her chips!!

I know that 18 months is fairly old to still be having jars, but sometimes it makes life a little easier,, especially when eating out for example....I struggled the other day to find a tin of kidney beans that didn't have garlic listed ffs!!! It is in everything!!!

OP posts:

Original poster

catherinea1971 · 08/08/2011 08:57

I was thinking about taking it further, but I'm unsure about the laws governing baby food ingredients, it was a little odd though that it took them 4 days to respond, maybe seeking legal advice?? But no apology from them had me seething!!

OP posts:

MmeLindor. · 08/08/2011 09:02

That is odd. I would have though that they would have to list all ingredients.

Maybe it would be easier to email them and ask for a list of their products that definitely does not contain garlic.

As an aside, the reason that garlic is in many foodstuffs undeclared is that it is often added to the herb mixture - they don't mix the herbs themselves, there are companies who deliver the mixture to many of the food producers. My friend used to work for one.

bruffin · 08/08/2011 09:04

Report it to the anaphylaxis campaign - they are very good about listing things like this on their site and sometimes get involved in getting labels rewritten.
I found a packet of rice crackers/nuts in Waitrose that hadn't listed seseme seed on the packet, even though half the nuts were coated in them. Reported it to AC and they listed it on their site and spoke to waitrose.

5inthebed · 08/08/2011 09:06

Ah yes, sorry, sped read your first post. Apologies.

Original poster

catherinea1971 · 08/08/2011 09:10

Is garlic not classed as a vegetable though, not a herb??
I hadn't heard of the anaphylaxis campaign, will go google them, thanks:)

OP posts:

ObviouslyOblivious · 08/08/2011 09:11

Garlic is not an allergen that is required to be listed by law unfortunately. Baby food (non cereal/formula based) must comply with the same labelling requirements as all other food. The generic term 'herbs' can be used if they make up less than 2% of the food.

If you contact your local EHO they may be able to offer you further advice.

MmeLindor. · 08/08/2011 09:12

Not sure. Would ask friend but she works in Germany so may be very different.

If you look at packets of herb seasonings (the ready mixed ones) they often contain garlic.

Original poster

catherinea1971 · 08/08/2011 09:19

Thanks Obviously, who do you mean when you say EHO?
The 2% explains their email saying that there was less than 1%, enough to make dd vomit 5 or 6 times though, bless her.

OP posts:

reastie · 08/08/2011 09:19

from memory food manufacturers have to state on packaging the common allergens in food (eg gluten/celery/nuts etc). I think there are about 12 of these common allergens but I guess garlic isn't one of them. You're right it would make alot of sense to expand what herbs and spices were and wouldn't be that hard surely . Definately worth looking at pursuing further. Have you looked on food standards agency web site? Might be something there

ObviouslyOblivious · 08/08/2011 09:24

Sorry environmental health officers at your local authority

altinkum · 08/08/2011 09:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

candr · 08/08/2011 16:04

I feel for you as am allergic to a couple of 'herbs' myself and they are often not listed on adult food either. I have written to a couple of the makers of things like pasta sauces and asked them to send me a list of products that do not contain the herbs I cannot have as I still wish to use their products. They were quite helpful with this and wrote to tell me when there was anew one on the market that I could add to list of 'sauces that won't kill me' so may be worth a try for baby jars, also get into the habit of checking with the chef if you eat out as could save some epipen incidents. I would prob resort to making my own baby food but your child will have to learn to cope with this too as they get older so will learn from seeing and hearing you ask about ingredients.

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