The new nutrition warning labels of the Health Canada package front are beginning to appear in stores six months before the deadline of the food industry.
Announced for the first time in 2022, black and white labels alerts alert buyers if a product is rich in sugar, sodium and/or saturated fats, which the federal department, according to the Federal Department, can lead to a higher health risk such as stroke, obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and some types of cancers.
“I think this can be a great starting point for people looking to use labels as sources of nutrition
“… At this time, it will only function as a nutrition warning label, so you will give consumers the information when things are high in sodium, rich in saturated fat [and] High in sugar, but it really will not tell you more details than that. “
Brown said that turning the package will show details about daily value percentages. She said that the new label is automatically placed in foods that have 15 % or more of the daily value of sugar, saturated fats or sodium.
“If something only has 14 percent of the daily value of sodium, it will not trigger the nutritional warning, so it is a slightly lost opportunity.”
The intention behind the labels, according to Health Canada, is to help buyers to make “fast and informed decisions” when buying food and support health professionals to educate people about food.
Brown said other countries have been using the packaging of the label front for years. For example, some European countries use the nutritional score, which qualifies food between A and E. “A” food would be high nutritional quality, while “E” would be a lower nutritional quality.
Brown said that while Health Canada’s labels can be useful, they do not address certain complexities around food such as cost.
“We know that food security is a really great challenge that faces people. Therefore, even if I am looking at the grocery store and I see that something is high in sugar, but my dollar only comes so far, I will still have to choose that food potentially,” Brown said.
For example, Brown said that things like frozen dishes could end these labels, but for some who can be an individual or a family can afford.
“So I think there is a risk of making us feel a little more judged by some of the food we are eating, and we really have care to not put that to people.”
Liesel Carlsson, a professor of nutrition and diet at the University of Acade in Wolfville, NS, said he believes that buyers can be surprised when labels begin to appear in daily basic foods, such as cereal, breads and some dairy products, but could see that they change over time as companies adjust their recipes so that the label is not triggered.
“These labels do not look good in the packaging, so the real history here and part of the reason why the industry had a lot of time to take its labels to its packages is that many actors in the industry will reformulate their products,” said Carlsson.
But the most interesting thing, he said, is that these labels are likely to result in more products that are economical “that are still in this highly processed category but are less harmful to health.”
In terms of the labels themselves, Carlsson said that there is evidence that shows that they are effective.
“Even when consumers do not even seek nutritional information, this type of stop front will capture people’s eyes,” he said, but added that the appearance of Canada’s labels is “a bit disappointing”, especially compared to some South American countries, which use large black signs to communicate a similar message.
Although the food industry has until January 1, 2026, to put the labels on the front of the package in food, some products already have it.
The edible chain based in New Scotland Sobeys, for example, has the label in many of its store brand products, such as compliments and Big 8.
These included items in the frozen food and snack hall, such as microwave corn doves, frozen chicken wings, hamburgers and pop.
“We are committed to meet the Reight Requirements of Health Canada’s pack and to train customers with clear information that supports the options they take in our stores every day,” Sebeys said in an email to CBC News.
“We have made good progress to make the changes of labeling in our own variety of brands before the deadline when working proactively with our supplier partners.”
The labels are mandatory for pre -employed foods, but Health Canada points out that there are some exemptions.
Certain dairy products, such as smooth milk, simple yogurt and cheese, are exempt “because they are important sources of calcium that are needed to promote bone health and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.”
Health Canada said that meats and poultry raw in ingredient and without ingredients are exempt “to avoid giving the impression that they are nutritionally inferior to whole cuts that do not carry a nutritional label.”
Butter, sugar, salt and other products used for the same purpose are also exempt. Some products are also exempt for technical reasons, such as foods in very small packages.
