Certain food and drink brands are "baffling people" with their marketing, says Which?

26th August 2010, 8:13am

A report conducted by Which? has found that certain food and drink brands are baffling people with the way they market products with words like 'pure', 'fresh', 'natural' and 'real'.

A third of people surveyed thought the phrase 'real fruit' meant fruit was the main ingredient of a product, and 43% of people believed that drinks labelled as 'juice drink' must contain at least a quarter fruit juice.

Rubicon Sparkling Passion Juice drink contains just 5% juice concentrate and actually has more sugar than concentrate.  Despite this, Rubicon as a 'juice drink', rather than 'juice' is legally free to include 'real fruit juice drink' on the bottle.

Which? chief executive Peter Vicary-Smith said:  "We support the Food Standards Agency's labelling guidance for food manufacturers, but our research shows that there is confusion about what some of the words used on food labels actually mean.  

"It's essential that Defra remains consumer-focused now that labelling issues fall under its remit, ensuring that the words used on food labels are clear so that consumers know what they're getting."

Which? has raised all of these issues with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Related Articles:

• 04 Aug 2010 - Kellogg cuts sugar levels in cereals
• 16 Nov 2009 - Which? reveals lunchbox 'baddies'
• 09 Oct 2009 - Label foods so we can buy British, say consumers
• 07 May 2009 - Reading behind the label
• 10 Feb 2009 - War on saturated fat begins

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