Fruit versus flavour
New Zealand Listener|November 18-24 2023
That plump, juicy-looking image displayed on the front of labels could be leading you astray if the product is, in fact, fruitless.
JENNIFER BOWDEN
Fruit versus flavour

QUESTION: I was shocked to read in the "ingredients" list for a fruit-flavoured yoghurt powder that it contained no actual fruit, or even real fruit extract, despite the lovely fruit pictures on the front of the packages. How legal is this and how much other food packaging is blatantly wrong?

ANSWER: Was a consumer, you have every right to expect food labels to display accurate information. The Hansells boysenberry yoghurt powder mix you bought has hether a yoghurt contains real fruit or simply fruit flavouring is a valid question because, the product name "boysenberry yoghurt" in large letters on the front label above a picture of boysenberries when it does not contain any real boysenberries. A number of other food manufacturers use a similar approach in their labelling.

The Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code sets out legal requirements for labelling, composition, safety, handling and food production and processing in New Zealand and Australia. Standard 1.2.2 provides specific information requirements for food labels. Among these, the product name or description should be "sufficient to indicate the true nature of the food".

Food Standards Australia New Zealand produces posters that provide further details on food labels, and these posters include the example of a fruit yoghurt, noting, for instance, that "If the yoghurt contained strawberry flavouring rather than real fruit, then the name would need to indicate that it is strawberry-flavoured yoghurt."

Another FSANZ poster elaborates on the same fruit yoghurt example: "Fair trading laws and food laws in Australia and New Zealand require that labels do not misinform through false, misleading or deceptive representations. For example, a food with a picture of strawberries on the label must contain strawberries." 

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM NEW ZEALAND LISTENERView all
First-world problem
New Zealand Listener

First-world problem

Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Applying intelligence to AI
New Zealand Listener

Applying intelligence to AI

I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Nazism rears its head
New Zealand Listener

Nazism rears its head

Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Staying ahead of the game
New Zealand Listener

Staying ahead of the game

Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Grasping the nettle
New Zealand Listener

Grasping the nettle

Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Hangry? Eat breakfast
New Zealand Listener

Hangry? Eat breakfast

People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.

time-read
3 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Chemical reaction
New Zealand Listener

Chemical reaction

Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Me and my guitar
New Zealand Listener

Me and my guitar

Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.

time-read
2 mins  |
September 9, 2024
Time is on my side
New Zealand Listener

Time is on my side

Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?

time-read
7 mins  |
September 9, 2024
The kids are not alright
New Zealand Listener

The kids are not alright

Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.

time-read
4 mins  |
September 9, 2024