Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of (a) new product labelling standards, including the proportion by weight of dominant food compounds such as salt and sugar and (b) developing new guidance to ensure that product descriptions, advertising and presentation on packaging give an accurate impression of ingredient balance on consumers.

Food labelling legislation requires that pre-packaged food and drinks include a nutrition declaration, which provides information on key nutrients, including salt and sugar. In addition, voluntary front-of-pack nutrition labelling, most commonly the multiple traffic light scheme, is widely used in the United Kingdom and provides clear, at-a-glance information on levels of energy, fat, saturates, sugar, and salt to support consumer understanding.

Ingredients must also be listed on the label in descending order by weight, giving consumers an indication of the relative proportion of ingredients in a product. There are currently no plans to introduce new labelling standards related to the proportion by weight of specific ingredients such as salt or sugar beyond existing requirements, but the Government keeps the evidence on how food labelling impacts the choices and consumption habits of consumers under review.

Legislation already requires that food labelling must not be misleading, particularly as to the nature, composition or characteristics of the food. This applies to product descriptions, advertising and presentation on packaging, and is intended to ensure consumers are not given an inaccurate impression of a product’s composition or ingredient balance. Separate legislation covers the use of nutrition and health claims, requiring that any such claims are substantiated, clear, and not misleading.

The Government has guidance in place to support compliance with food labelling requirements, including on nutrition and health claims, and keeps this under review.