One in four ready-made supermarket foods for infants and toddlers fall short of the World Health Organization’s nutrient, labelling and marketing requirements, a study shows.
Research from Monash University’s Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food assessed 45 products for infants and toddlers and found that less than 23 per cent satisfied the WHO’s nutrient content requirements.
Moreover, 43 per cent exceeded the recommended sugar limits, but their marketing makes these products appealing to parents who think they are healthy foods for their kids.
None of the products assessed meet the WHO’s labelling or promotional guidelines, each with at least one promotional marketing claim the WHO does not permit.
“There is a distinct gap in the current regulation of commercial foods for infants and toddlers that allows manufacturers to influence children’s diets through the promotion of these products,” said Alexandra Chung, lead author of the study.
Chung noted that the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code does not regulate most of the claims made on infant and toddler foods.
“This includes claims that appeal to health and promote the product as ideal for young child feeding such as ‘natural’, ‘organic’, ‘no nasties’, ‘no preservatives’ and ‘for tiny hands’.”
Chung noted that one in two Australian children aged up to five years consume commercial infant and toddler foods one or more days per week.
Last year, commercial baby food sales in Australia generated over $370 million in revenue.
