Importance of Health and Nutrition Information Printed on Food Packaging

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Importance of health and nutrition information printed on food packaging Student Name Institutional Affiliation February 15, 2015 Importance of health and nutrition information printed on food packaging Health and nutrition information is the type of information that is found on the labels of prepackaged foods (Janssen & Hamm, 2012). Such information often comprises of the list of ingredients used in preparation of the food, a table of Nutritional Facts, and some optional claims related to nutrition. These details are useful to the consumer because they give details on the nutritional value of the food when it comes to making healthy food choices for general good health. Food labels in packaged foods contain indispensable information for the consumer; they tell consumers the type(s) of additives present in the food and helps them in deciding whether the food will be safe for them or not. The table on Nutritional Facts often includes details such as the basic nutrients, amount of calories in the food (energy amounts in kilojoules) and the percentage daily value (%DV) of nutrients (Svederberg, 2002). All the details in this section are based on the quantity of food which is always mentioned at the top of the Nutrition Facts table. In most countries, Health and Nutrition labeling is compulsory for all prepackaged foods. For instance, in Canada, food labeling became compulsory in 2007. In Australia, packaged foods must have a nutrition information panel (NIP) which informs the consumer of the amount of different nutrients per serving in the food or for every 100g, country of origin, etc. (Watson et al., 2012). This implies that all food manufacturers must have a nutrition label on their prepackaged foods. Food labels must also mention warnings of allergic reactions to certain foods. This is very useful for consumers with allergic reactions (especially

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