Are you someone who regularly checks the labels to see how many calories are in your favourite foods?
Well, calorie content on some of your favourite snacks can actually refer to what many would claim are unrealistically small portions.
A probe by the Daily Mirror revealed that some values listed on products were based on tiny portion sizes that were just a small percentage of the full packet.
Legally, all prepackaged food must display nutritional information about the calories, fat, carbohydrates, protein and salt it contains.
The Mirror found that a 50g bag of flatbread thin bites at Aldi was one of the most misleading food items.
The pack reads: “What a treat – just 13 calories per serving.”
But this is per crisp rather than the whole bag, which contains 260 calories, 20 times more than one crisp.
Campaigners are calling on retailers to print clearer information on food labels.
Martyn James, of the consumer website Resolver, said: “Misleading people about the health benefits of their food isn’t just a betrayal of trust, it’s potentially damaging their health.”
The British Retail Consortium said: “Retailers use front of pack labelling to ensure consumers can make informed decisions.”
So what products might be considered by some to be misleading?
Mr Porky Crackles
Pack size: 70g
Number of recommended servings: 3
Calories per serving:143
Calories per pack:429
- Mr Porky claims that the pack contains three servings, so total calories shoot up to 429 calories and 11.4g of saturated fat for the lot.
Innocent orange juice with bits
Pack size: 330ml
Number of recommended servings: 2.2
Calories per serving: 59
Calories per pack: 129
- This small bottle contains over two servings and a total of 26.4g of sugar.
Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles
Pack size: 52.5g
Number of recommended servings: 2 (7 sweets per serving)
Calories per serving: 84
Calories per pack:188
- Nestle says this pack contains two servings, sugar goes from 14.9g per serving to 29.8g per pack.
Asda pesto and sun-dried tomato pasta salad
Pack size: 250g
Number of recommended servings: 2
Calories per serving: 293
Calories per pack: 586
- The front of the pack says it has 293 calories per portion, but eating the whole box accounts for nearly all of your lunchtime calories. The fat content goes from 18g to 36g with the full box.
Chicago Town stuffed crust sticky sweet cola bbq stuffed crust
Pack size: 650g
Number of recommended servings: 4
Calories per serving: 426
Calories per pack: 1704
- The label only gives details for a quarter of the pizza. Eating it all would exceed a woman’s daily calorie intake.
Six of Wales Online's best food-related stories
* No amount of bacon, sausage or alcohol is safe to eat - according to a new cancer report
* An 82-year-old who couldn't recognise her own son due to dementia got her memory back after changing her diet
* How an overweight bullied teen totally transformed their life
* A woman lost 10 stone she she could get a double knee op on the NHS
* Here are five tasty vegan recipes to kick-start your healthy diet
* A woman tried to lose weight by following the Greggs diet and this is what happened.
Flatbread Thin bites, cheddar and black pepper
Pack size: 50g
Number of recommended servings: 20
Calories per serving: 13
Calories per pack: 260
- The Aldi pack reads: “What a treat – just 13 calories per serving”. But this is per crisp, not the full bag, which contains 260 calories.
The Foodie Market Tropical Blend
Pack size: 70g
Number of recommended servings: 3
Calories per serving: 83
Calories per pack: 249
- A small portion size from Aldi.
Twix
Pack size: 50g
Number of recommended servings: 2
Calories per serving: 123
Calories per pack: 246
- Displayed on the front of the gold packaging is a box stating 123 calories.
If you turn over to read the small print you will realise that it is for just one finger.
Kellogg’s Bran Flakes
Pack size: 750g
Number of recommended
servings: 25
Calories per serving: 108
Calories per average 100g serving: 359
Waitrose 1 Milk chocolate bar
Pack size: 30g
Number of recommended servings: 6
Calories per serving: 31
Calories per pack: 186
- The “pack contains six servings”, so one portion is a single square, which has 1.7g of sugar. The full bar has 10.2g of sugar.
Asda Fizzy cherry cola flavour bottles
Pack size: 45g
Number of recommended servings: 2
Calories per serving: 78
Calories per pack: 156
- The information on the front of the pack is for a small portion.
Marmite oven baked cashews
Pack size: 90g
Number of recommended servings: 3
Calories per serving: 172
Calories per pack: 516
- The whole pack has more saturated fat than a Big Mac – 11.5g – or 2.3g per portion.
Smarties
Pack size: 38g
Number of recommended servings: 2 (17 sweets)
Calories per serving: 96
Calories per pack: 192
- The full tube contains 25.8g of sugar.
Heinz cream of tomato soup
Pack size: 400g
Number of recommended servings: 2
Calories per serving: 102
Calories per pack: 204
Asda chocolate jumbo Swiss roll
Pack size: 400g
Number of recommended servings: 12
Calories per serving: 135
Calories per pack: 1620
Walkers sharing pack, Paprika crisps
Pack size: 150g
Number of recommended servings: 6
Calories per serving: 159
Calories per pack: 954
Here's what the stores had to say:
Waitrose said its chocolate bar was a single serve item (as opposed to the larger 85g version which was more of a sharing product) therefore 'it looks like the 6 servings point on the back of the pack is an error'.
A spokeswoman for the company said: "We're really sorry for the error. This is a single serve item and will be amended on pack."
Asda said it did a lot of work on ensuring it offered the healthiest options for customers.
A spokesman for the supermarket said: “We are committed to offering healthy choices across a range of products with labels, such as our new Petal Icon, that helps customers make informed decisions.”
Aldi has been asked to comment.