What’s so healthy about seafood?
Section 3
Guidelines for communication about seafood nutrition
This section summarises what can and cannot be said about the health benefits of seafood. If you are involved in marketing seafood, you should read this section carefully.
The two main influences on what seafood marketers can say about their product are:
- what the law specifies they can say; and
- within those constraints, what is in the interests of ‘good practice’ for their customers, themselves, and the seafood industry.
This section of the book provides information under these two headings. The information was prepared in September 2001. It is important for seafood marketers to keep up with developments: contact the Australia New Zealand Food Authority through its website (http://www.anzfa.gov.au) or telephone (02 6271 2222).
Legal restraints on what you can say
In Australia the Food Standards Code, prepared by the Australia New Zealand Food Authority (ANZFA) and approved by the Council of Health Ministers with input from agriculture and fisheries ministers, is the primary source of information on food regulation. ANZFA is an independent, bi-national statutory authority.
The ANZFA Act lists three objectives of food regulation. In order of priority they are:
- protection of public health and safety,
- provision of adequate information relating to food to enable consumers to make informed choices, and
- prevention of misleading or deceptive conduct.
This last objective is also the cornerstone of the Trade Practices Act 1974, administered by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). As this Act has a much wider charter than food, ANZFA generally defers to the Trade Practices Act. For example, the terms ‘Product of Australia’ or ‘Made in Australia’ are defined by the Trade Practices Act.
The Food Standards Code is the primary source of reference on what can and cannot be said when promoting the health and nutrition benefits of seafood.
Over a number of years, ANZFA developed a new Food Standards Code to harmonise food standards between Australia and New Zealand. It was intended to be less prescriptive, thus allowing greater innovation, but at the same time require more consumer information on labels.
The new Joint Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code was gazetted in December 2000. A transitional standard allows food producers the choice of preparing any particular food to meet the requirements of Volume 1 (the old code) or Volume 2 (the Joint Code) during the transitional period up to December 2002. At the time of writing (September 2001), a seafood processor could, for example, pack raw product to Volume 2 requirements and cooked product to Volume 1 requirements – but not to a combination of the two codes.
It is expected that the Joint Code will eventually be the sole code. Accordingly, to minimise confusion, the following comments on particular elements of the Code refer to the requirements of Volume 2 (the new Joint Code). They only refer to Volume 1 where the requirements differ.
Nutrition information in relation to food marketing falls into the following three categories:
- Health claims: suggestions that food or nutrient is good for health or can prevent, treat or cure a disease.
- Nutrition claims: declaration of amounts of nutrients – for example, ‘low fat’ and ‘cholesterol free’.
- Nutrition labelling: inclusion of nutrient composition on a label.
Important: In the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code ‘fish’ means any of the cold-blooded aquatic vertebrates and aquatic invertebrates including shellfish, but does not include amphibians and reptiles.
In Australia it is illegal to make health claims in relation to food.
Health claims
Standard 1.1.3 of the Food Standards Code includes the requirement that any label on a package containing food, or any advertisement for food, is not to:
- include a claim for therapeutic or prophylactic action or a claim described by words of similar import;
- include the word ‘health’ or any word or words of similar import as a part of or in conjunction with the name of the food;
- contain any word, statement, claim, express or implied, or design that directly or by implication could be interpreted as advice of a medical nature from any person; or
- contain the name of, or a reference to, any disease or physiological condition.
The regulation is based on the fact that no single food can markedly influence health; it is the total diet that matters. ‘Stop heart attacks – eat fish!’ is an example of the claims that ANZFA wish to prevent.
However, the regulation does not prevent information on the Omega-3 content of seafood being made available to the public, or pamphlets containing information on the factual health benefits of Omega-3 fats in the diet.
The consumer may make the connection between the health benefit of Omega-3 and consuming seafood, but the proprietor cannot make that connection for them.
ANZFA is considering a proposal to allow health claims in food labels and advertisements under certain conditions. A pilot system for the management of health claims has been introduced by allowing claims for the benefits of folate supplementation of certain foods. At the time of writing (September 2001), the Food Regulations Standing Committee (comprising senior officials from the Commonwealth, New Zealand and Australian states and territories) is developing policy for health and nutrition claims.
Regulations do not prevent information on the Omega-3 content of seafood being made available to the public, or pamphlets containing information on the factual health benefits of Omega-3 fats in the diet. The consumer may make the connection between the health benefit of Omega-3 and consuming seafood, but the proprietor cannot make that connection for them.
Nutrition claims
Standard 1.2.8, Nutrition Information Requirements, covers:
- nutrition information that must be provided on food labels, and
- the specific conditions for making certain nutrition claims.
In the old code (Volume 1), nutrition information on labels was only required if a nutrition claim was made. In the new code (Volume 2) most packaged foods must now display a nutrition information panel. Exemptions are unpackaged food and "fish that comprise a single ingredient or category of ingredients".
Thus, unpackaged seafood at the deli does not need nutrition information. Packaged salmon fillets do not need a nutrition information panel, but packaged smoked salmon and packaged crumbed finfish will need one because finfish is not the sole ingredient.
A nutrition information panel must provide information on energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate and sodium in a format prescribed by the standard. For detailed requirements, refer to Standard 1.2.8.
Once a ‘nutrition claim’ is made, the exemptions do not apply. A nutrition claim relates to the function, presence or absence of a nutrient in a food. A statement that ‘Atlantic salmon is a good source of Omega-3 fatty acids’ is considered a nutrition claim. A claim that ‘canned sardines are a good source of calcium’ or a label declaring ‘reduced salt’ canned tuna are also nutrition claims.
Some nutrition claims are specifically regulated in Standard 1.2.8. Other claims – for example, ‘low fat’ – are prescribed in the industry-developed Code of Practice on Nutrient Claims in Food Labels and in Advertisements. Although this Code of Practice is not itself legally enforceable, any false or misleading claims could be subject to action under the Trade Practices Act. ANZFA is currently reviewing nutrient claims, particularly the advantages and disadvantages of regulation versus codes of practice.
Standard 1.2.8 and the Code of Practice should be reviewed for details of the nutrition claims that are possible.
Omega-3 source claims
Recognising the intrinsic presence of Omega-3 fatty acids in seafood, ANZFA allows certain ‘Omega-3 source’ claims to be made under specific conditions, as follows.
Claiming ‘a natural source of Omega-3 fatty acids’
A ‘natural source of Omega-3 fatty acids’ claim may be made for seafood products with no added fat, such as fresh finfish fillets.
The claim can be made on a packaged or unpackaged seafood product without requiring a nutrition information panel or a specific minimum content of Omega-3 fatty acid.
Claiming ‘a good source of Omega-3 fatty acids’
Three sets of conditions apply to ‘good source’ claims:
- Unprocessed product. A ‘good source of Omega-3 fatty acids’ claim may be made on fish or fish products with no added saturated fatty acids, such as a fresh finfish fillet, when the total level of EPA and DHA exceeds 60 mg per serve. Atlantic salmon, for example, has a total EPA and DHA level of more than 500 mg per 100 grams and less than 1% of saturated fat. Even one-eighth of a normal serve would therefore contain more than the 60mg of EPA and DHA necessary to justify a ‘good source’ claim.
- Packaged product. If a ‘good source’ claim is made on a packaged product, the packaging must include a nutrition information panel and the panel must state the source of Omega-3 fatty acids, namely docosahexaenoic and eicosapentaenoic acids.
- Unpackaged over the counter. If the product is sold unpackaged at the deli counter, but with a notice or tag making a ‘good source’ claim, the nutrition information panel must be displayed near the food or ‘provided to the purchaser on request’. Leaflets containing the information would satisfy this requirement.
A nutrition claim relates to the function, presence or absence of a nutrient in a food.
Extra conditions for claims on multi-component product
To make either a ‘natural’ or ‘good’ source claim for a multi-component seafood product, such as crumbed finfish, the food must contain not less than:
- 200 mg of alpha-linolenic acid per serving, or
- 30 mg of total eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acid per serving.
(Sources of information on fatty acid content are Seafood the good food, the Australian Seafood Users Manual and the Australian Seafood Handbook. Most seafood has a low total fat content, and generally the EPA and DHA levels far exceed 30mg per serve.)
In addition, the food must contain less than:
- 28% of the total fatty acids as saturated and trans fatty acids, or
- less than 5 grams total of saturated and trans fatty acids per 100 grams of food.
To make a ‘good source’ claim on a multi-component seafood product, the product must meet these requirements plus the requirements for ‘good source’ claims outlined above. A ‘good source’ claim on a multi-component product that requires packaging must also meet the packaging and information requirements relating to ‘good source’ claims.
If a ‘natural’ or ‘good’ source claim is made for a multi-component food, a nutrition information panel is required on the package or, for an unpackaged product, must be available on request.
‘Good practice’ communication
The seafood industry generally enjoys a good reputation as a reliable source of information about the products it sells. Professionals involved in seafood promotions know they must maintain credibility with the general public and the scientific community. They know only too well that inaccurate claims about food may generate short-term sales, public interest and attention – but in the longer term the distrust generated in the community will take a great deal of time and money to win back. For an industry that is highly focused on its ‘clean and green’ image and invests heavily in food safety and other quality initiatives, following good practice about nutritional claims is extremely important.
Seafood marketers can enhance credibility, consumer welfare and the reputation of the seafood industry by:
- studying nutritional information very carefully so that they understand it thoroughly;
- not distorting it when passing it on to consumers;
- presenting information in a clear and easily understood way;
- linking nutritional messages to current consumer preferences;
- avoiding alarmist overtones;
- ensuring that staff are well-trained to provide information appropriate to their individual roles, and that they refer more complex inquiries to the right person; and
- using the recommended marketing names for seafood in accordance with the Australian Seafood Handbook.
The Food Standards Code’s constraints on information about the potential health benefits in labelling and direct advertising apply to all types of food, and represent the Australian community’s expectations in this area. At the same time, there is an increasing demand for factual nutrition information in the community. By basing information about seafood nutrition on this book and on other reputable sources, seafood marketers will be meeting some of that demand in a responsible way, to the benefit of consumers and the seafood industry.
Further information
For further information on the Food Standards Code contact:
- ANZFA Food Standards Hotline: 1300 652 166 or
- E-mail: advice@anzfa.gov.au
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