Labelling on Food Packaging (anaphylaxis related)

[Jellypisher]

This is really starting to bug me to the point that I may start a Government petition regarding a new law for it...

I would like to see it mandatory for packaging to not only state the full ingredients of food but to also advertise when they have changed ingredients

Currently there is no requirement for them to advertise that they have changed any of the ingredients anywhere on the packaging - although they do list ingredients on the back.

This means that yet again, I've picked up a product that I have had numerous times before, started to eat it and come down in hives (not a bad reaction, but they have been very severe in the past).

Food shopping is a chore because each and every time I go to the supermarket I need to read every single ingredient listing again to check whether the product / ingredient has been changed and whether it is safe to eat.

Yes - YANBU Needs a petition
No - YABU and need to keep reading the ingredient listings each time

That's absolute crap.

They are quite happy to change it to "new improved recipe!" As and when needed.

This actually alerts me to check and nearly always means they have added or taken away a key allergens.

They also change packaging regularly to adjust competitions and the like.

So to suggest it's too costly is just no.

My response was to @bananapumpkin

They're only just now making it so that any food that's prepacked for direct sale (e.g. if you buy a prepacked sandwich that was made on iste from a local cafe, or something prepacked at a farmers market) has to have ingredient and allergen labelling on it. It applies from 1st October 2021 and is known as Natasha's Law. Prior to this, the producer just had to be able to provide allergen info on request.

Given that (since 2014) it's been a legal requirement for ingredient labels to emphasise each of the 14 statutory allergens, is it really that much hard work just to scan for the relevant allergens?

@DontBiteTheBoobThatFeedsYou Do tell me all about your extensive experience in the food industry. That should fill a lovely blank post.

Allergy update warnings have always been used for 12 weeks where I've worked, minimal artwork changes required as they're like a "new" flash, you just get 2 copies of the artwork with and without it.

Still had complaints from people who have bought the products after 12 weeks though. Adding in allergens is really bad practice too, I'd need an incredibly good reason to do that. I sympathise

And the amount of times since covid that I've been glared at for checking ingredients and then putting stuff back is unreal.

Some bloke ranted at me once for putting something back because "you've touched that and put it back". Jesus! I read him the riot act about how he could consider himself lucky that he doesn't have to scrutinise every packet!

[quote 0blio]@bananapumpkin stickers can be printed with a warning and sent with stock for retailers to affix to the product with the ingredient change. This is the case with items that don't have ingredients in English.[/quote]
The big supermarkets would 1) never accept their staff doing this 2) would not accept the responsp/liability.

And how long do they need to sticker for? What if someone only buys the product once every 6 months, or less?

@DeathByWalkies any ingredient can be an allergen though. For a lot of people it means reading through the entire list, and if you think about how many products you have in a supermarket trolley at the end of a shop, that's a lot of wasted time to be honest.

Highlighting a change would be enormously helpful - even if just with a sticker added to that product run.

I also wish they were required by law to state every ingredient. I'm allergic to chilli, and there are so many products that just say 'spices' in the ingredients list. Because chilli isn't on the list of allergens they're required to highlight, I've got no idea if I can have it or not, so I have to put it back. If it says 'paprika, ginger, cumin' I know I'm good to go, but the same product labelled 'spices' would be a no. So bloody frustrating!

Maybe just a sticker they can place on products going outside for so long.

Although I know that’s a ball ache bit like when we have to rebarcode things.

Really though it’s always going to be best to check regardless of packaging.

YANBU!

@CaptainCallisto very good point on listing every product.

I am allergic to sulphites - which are often used to clean out the glass bottles prior to them being filled; it's not listed as it's not an ingredient which means routinely checking with companies about whether they've changed their bottling process.

The big supermarkets would 1) never accept their staff doing this 2) would not accept the responsp/liability.

Agreed - imagine the furore when some uninterested shelf stacker can't be arsed to / can't find / doesn't know about the stickers, or what batch code they need to be applied to, or whatever. Chaos, and legal awfulness, would ensue.

And how long do they need to sticker for? What if someone only buys the product once every 6 months, or less?

There would be a big danger that adding these 'allergen update' stickers for a couple of months would cause a false sense of security - people with allergies never double checking the ingredients list because they assume it's a safe food - and not realising that there's been an allergen update they missed because they haven't bought it for 6 months.

@DeathByWalkies

They're only just now making it so that any food that's prepacked for direct sale (e.g. if you buy a prepacked sandwich that was made on iste from a local cafe, or something prepacked at a farmers market) has to have ingredient and allergen labelling on it. It applies from 1st October 2021 and is known as Natasha's Law. Prior to this, the producer just had to be able to provide allergen info on request.

Given that (since 2014) it's been a legal requirement for ingredient labels to emphasise each of the 14 statutory allergens, is it really that much hard work just to scan for the relevant allergens?

It's great if what you're allergic to is one of the 14. Half the time mine isn't listed, and when it is it isn't highlighted. It takes forever trawling through lists for it.

[quote bananapumpkin]@DontBiteTheBoobThatFeedsYou Do tell me all about your extensive experience in the food industry. That should fill a lovely blank post.[/quote]
So tell me I'm wrong?

Tell me that they don't put "new improved recipe" when a recipe has changed.

It's great if what you're allergic to is one of the 14. Half the time mine isn't listed, and when it is it isn't highlighted. It takes forever trawling through lists for it.

Even if the idea of a mandatory 'allergen update' sticker was introduced, I can only picture it applying to the 14 statutory allergens.

Given that almost any ingredient can be an allergen (there's always one person with a kiwi allergy or something a bit random!) it's not possible to highlight every possible allergen else the process would become meaningless.

@eathByWalkies in my mind it would be an "allergen update" - it would be an ingredient change notification - it isn't just about allergens as mentioned up thread.

[quote bananapumpkin]@0blio retailers don't put stickers on things, suppliers do. The English ingredients stickers are added by the importer/wholesaler. You're then back to predicting how many you will sell in the relevant timespan.[/quote]
Sorry for the misinformation, thank you @bananapumpkin - that makes it more difficult.

My son reads every label and checks the manufacturer's website for info from time to time as well. A hassle, but he eats quite a limited diet and rarely eats out due to his allergy.

@AnotherDayAnotherCake

The bottom one was vegan. The top one contains milk. I received the top one in my weekly shop. It was named the exact same product on my order that I usually purchased. So very easy to miss.

To be fair, it does say buttermilk in big writing on the front, so not actually very easy to miss, but I can see it would be annoying if you’d done an online shop and got sent this.

In the nicest possible way YABU. I wouldnt work. How long would the label need to be on the packaging for? How prominent? What if you only buy it occasionally and missed the warning? What if they reformulated a second time?

The only safe way is to read the ingredients each and every time.

[quote Jellypisher]@bananapumpkin for me it's no more risky than relying on people to print ingredient lists correctly and to highlight the common allergens in bold. I still have to rely on other people to do their job properly (as does everyone who is checking ingredients list).

Good shout about the anaphylaxis and allergy UK contacts - I am going to draft something and run it past them.[/quote]
Maybe there’s a market for an APP to be developed that notifies users either of specific ingredients you have to avoid, a change of ingredients or just if a product is suitable for a particular diet. Then you’d have a QR code on the products which you’d scan in-store to check. Much quicker than trying to read what can be a minuscule list of ingredients. It could also be used by the store shoppers who do the picking for click and collect / delivery shopping.

@Porcupineintherough those decisions would have to be decided by the consultation process prior to the legislation coming in.

The problem is that we don't buy every item every week. Using the flora example, I only buy every 2-3 months (I use butter day to day) when db is coming. As annoying as it is checking ingredients is the only answer

How long would you want the "new recipe" sticker to be on the packaging for, though?

A month? Two months? A year?

What if the recipe changes again while the packaging still has a "new recipe" sticker on it? How do you advertise that?

I do accept it's a real pain in the arse but I'm not sure how this would work (practically speaking).

You'd probably be surprised by how often the recipes change - Aldi in particular seems to change the recipes on some items as often as they change their underpants. I presume they just have a lot of different suppliers. They would have to have neverending 'ingredient update' stickers and then customers would start ignoring them.

From memory, I think McVities have milk listed as an allergen on some sizes of digestives (multipacks?) but not on others (normal packs?). Saw it on a vegan facebook group so not entirely sure. But I don't know how you'd account for that either.