Thursday 12 January 2012

Label says "organic" and "non genetically modified"? Buyer beware!


Like many people over the Christmas-New Year holiday season, I had occasion to hunt for items which met the dietary preferences of visitors. In this case a vegetable cheese made from non-genetically modified produce.

With limited time at my disposal I failed to practice what I preach (and actually do adhere to) for the rest of the year – I only read the front label and put the so-called organic non-GM soy cheese in my shopping basket.

Silly me. On arriving home and reading the back of the cheese packet this is what I found:

Omega 3 Soycheese
Product Specifications
Unit Weight: 200g
Pack Size: 70mm wide x 105mm long x 30mm deep
Ingredients
Water, Vegetable Oil (Canola 70%), Soy Extract (18%), Casein (Dairy Protein), Mineral Salts (339, 511), Salt, Food Acids (320,260), Flavour, Colour (Annatto Extract).

So what I had purchased was only 18 per cent soy ingredient, contained an unspecified amount of animal product and, possibly up to 17 per cent of GMO sourced, non-organic canola oil - because the labelling makes no claims at all about this oil.

Australian Eatwell Pty Ltd  (sometimes called DALICH PTY LTD) using the label Simply Better Foods should be ashamed of themselves for a front label that is misleading at best.

Eat well indeed! I won’t get caught like that again.

No comments: