March 26, 2008: 12:00 AM EST
The Choices program is reviewing its criteria for allowing foods to carry the Choices Symbol. The program was set up in the Netherlands in 2006, and its founding members (Campina, Freisland Foods and Unilever) set up the Choices International Foundation the following year, to take the scheme to the international market. Most of the products currently using the symbol are in The Netherlands, although the scheme is also being used in Belgium, Brazil, and Chile, and in the US by Unilever. Food companies in Poland, Germany, Portugal and South Africa are expected to start using the stamp in the next few months. By the end of this year, Choices aims to have local foundations and partners in around 10 countries. The criteria currently used by the scheme were developed by two independent scientific committees in The Netherlands and Belgium, and are based on WHO guidelines for saturated fat, trans fatty acids, sodium and added sugar. National dietary guidelines from 21 different countries were also compared when developing the criteria. The program's new International Scientific Committee was set up this year in order to "broaden the scientific basis and strengthen the scientific argument."
Lorraine Heller, "Choices Healthy Food Symbol Set for Scientific Review", Food Quality News, March 26, 2008, © Decision News Media
|
Domains
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Food & Nutrition
Other Food & Nutrition
Geographies
Worldwide
North America
EMEA
Latin America
United States of America
Europe
Brazil
United Kingdom
Germany
Netherlands
Belgium
Poland
Portugal
|