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, current as at mid-2004.

It is important for seafood marketers to keep up with developments, including by obtaining the latest information from Food Standards Australia New Zealand through its website (www. foodstandards.gov.au) or telephone (02 6271 2222).

Legal restraints on what you can say

The primary source of information on food regulation in Australia and New Zealand is the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, which was developed by Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), an independent, bi-national statutory authority. It is given legal force via Australian federal, state and territory food legislation and New Zealand food legislation.

The Code came into force in 2002 to harmonise food standards between Australia and New Zealand. It was intended to be less prescriptive than the Trade Practices Act 1974, thus allowing greater innovation, but at the same time to require more consumer information on labels. The Code is also the primary source of reference on what can and cannot be said when promoting the health and nutrition benefits of seafood.

The Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 (Commonwealth of Australia) lists three objectives of FSANZ in developing or reviewing food regulatory measures and variations of food regulatory measures:

• 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, administered by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). As this Act has a much wider charter than food, FSANZ 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.

Health claims

Health claims are the claims on food labels or advertising material that refer to the potential for a food or component of a food to assist in reducing the risk of, or improving, a serious disease or condition.  Health claims are currently prohibited in Australia and New Zealand.[3]

Standard 1.1A.2 of the Code includes the requirement that any label on a package containing food, or any advertisement for food, is not to:

• contain a claim or statement that the food is a slimming food or has intrinsic weight-reducing properties;
• 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 Standard 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.

Recently, the Australia and New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council agreed to a new framework for nutrition, health and related claims.  The framework will guide FSANZ in developing a new Standard for inclusion in the Code.  The claims classification framework sets out criteria for two levels of claims:

• general-level claims, which do not make reference to a serious disease and will not be subject to pre-market approval by FSANZ; and
• high-level claims, which make reference to a serious disease and which will be pre-approved by FSANZ, with approved claims being listed in the Standard.

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.

Standard 1.2.8 requires most packaged foods to display a nutrition information panel. Exemptions include unpackaged food, food that is packaged in the presence of the purchaser and foods such as fish that comprise a single ingredient or category of ingredients.

Thus, seafood that is purchased at the deli and subsequently packaged does not need a nutrition information panel. Packaged salmon fillets do not need a nutrition information panel if there are no added ingredients, but packaged smoked salmon and packaged crumbed finfish will need one because they do not comprise a single ingredient.

A nutrition information panel must provide information on energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate sugars and sodium in the 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. Nutrition claims are currently being reviewed during development of the new standard on nutrition, health and related claims.

Standard 1.2.8 and the Code of Practice should be reviewed for details of the nutrition claims that are possible.

Omega-3 claims

Fish or fish products with no added saturated fat

To make an omega-3 fatty acid claim for fish or fish products with no added saturated fat, such as fresh finfish fillets, the food must contain no less than:

• 200 milligrams of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) per serving, or
• 30 milligrams of total eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acid per serving.

To make a ‘good source’ of omega-3 fatty acids claim for fish or fish products with no added saturated fat, such as fresh finfish fillets, the food must contain no less than 60 milligrams total EPA and DHA per serving. Some consequences of this requirement are as follows:

• Atlantic salmon, for example, has a total EPA and DHA level of more than 500 milligrams per 100 grams and less than 1% of saturated fat. Even one-eighth of a normal serve would therefore contain more than the 60 milligrams or more of EPA and DHA necessary to justify a ‘good source’ claim.
• If an omega-3 fatty acid claim  is made on a packaged product, the label must include a nutrition information panel and the panel must state the source of omega-3 fatty acids, namely alpha-linolenic acid, docosahexaenoic and/or eicosapentaenoic acids.
• If the product is sold unpackaged or is packaged in the presence of the purchaser at the deli counter, with a notice or tag making an omega-3 fatty acid claim, the nutrition information panel must be displayed on — or in connection with — the food or be provided to the purchaser on request. Leaflets containing the information would satisfy this requirement.

Fish or fish products with added saturated fat or other components

To make an omega-3 fatty acid claim for fish or fish products with added saturated fat or other components, the food must contain:

• less than 28% of the total fatty acids as saturated and trans fatty acids; or
• 5 grams or less of saturated and trans fatty acids per 100 grams of food; and
• no less than 200 milligrams of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) per serving; or
• no less than 30 milligrams 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 (two separate editions, for domestic and imported species respectively). Most seafood has a low total fat content, and generally the EPA and DHA levels far exceed 30 milligrams per serve.)

To make a ‘good source’ claim for fish or fish products with added saturated fat or other components, the product must contain:

• less than 28% of the total fatty acids as saturated and trans fatty acids; or
• 5 grams or less of saturated and trans fatty acids per 100 grams of food; and
• no less than 60 milligrams total EPA-plus-DHA per serving.

If an  ‘omega-3’ claim is made for fish or fish products with added saturated fat or other components, a nutrition information panel is required on the label, which must indicate the type of omega-3 fatty acid — e.g., ALA, DHA and/or EPA.  If the product is not required to bear a label, the nutrition information panel must be displayed on — or in connection with — the food or provided to the purchaser on request.

Omega-3 fatty acid claims must comply strictly with the Food Standards Code.

‘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:

• the Food Standards Code advice line — 1300 652 166
• e‑mail: advice@foodstandards.gov.au

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