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GDA Labels: Know what's going inside you

Most foods are not eaten in 100g servings. That's why GDA labels tell consumers what percentage of their Guideline Daily Amount for calories, sugars, fat, saturates and salt, each portion of a product contains.

We believe this allows consumers to understand what they are actually eating in the context of their whole diet. And it helps them to compare foods realistically in amounts they are likely to eat.

As food is consumed in portions that are significantly different to a 100g baseline, we fear that providing frontof- pack information on that basis may actually mislead consumers and does nothing to improve their food literacy.

Presenting information on a 100g basis also creates difficulties for consumers seeking to make an informed choice between products. For instance: a small wafer biscuit weighing 7.5g can contain just 38 calories, while a chocolate biscuit weighing 12.5g can contain 60 calories. But providing information on a 100g basis would show the wafer containing more calories than the chocolate biscuit (510 versus 480).

Not surprisingly, research suggests that consumers prefer to have factual information presented on a per portion basis. Indeed, the UK Food Standards Agency's proposed principles for front-of-pack labelling support the provision of nutrition information as grams in a specified portion, with the size of that portion described in an easily identifiable way (such as half a pie or one biscuit).

Within categories, there is already a great deal of consistency in the way that GDA adopters currently provide portion information – thus allowing consumers to check, compare and choose between different products, particularly those sold in multi-serve packs. Full comparability is in any case always guaranteed because the 100g information will be available on the back of the pack in the nutrition panel.

Take a product such as margarine. A generous 10g serving, which is enough to spread on one or two slices of bread, may provide 72 calories; 4% of an average adult's GDA – this is what the consumer will typically eat. But how does the consumer interpret a label that says 100g of that margarine (enough to put on 20 slices of bread) provides 720 calories or 36% of the GDA?

Further confusion is created around products that are eaten in portions bigger than 100g. Take a small lasagne ready meal, which provides 125 calories per 100g; but the portion is the pack, which provides 370 calories (280g). On the 100g basis, a smoked fish pie looks healthier at 116 calories – but it actually weighs in at 466 calories per pack (which is what the consumer eats).

More information

• For more information visit GDA Label website
• Leading the debate on nutrition labelling
• A brief history of GDA labelling
• Does front-of-pack nutrition labelling work?
• Why not colour code?

Download the full PDF report: GDA Labels: Improving the food literacy of consumers - pdf | 375kb