Unilever and Smith’s have each been fined $10,800 by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for misleading healthy food representations.
The ACCC said in a statement both companies made false or misleading representation on the packaging of products that the products had been approved or were suitable as healthy options for school canteens.
Unilver’s Paddle Pop Rainbow (10 pack) packaging included a logo on the front, back and one side of the packaging with the words “School Canteen Approved” and a tick symbol.
Smith’s Sakata Paws Pizza Supreme Rice Snacks included a logo with the words “Meets School Canteen Guidelines” and an image of a sandwich and apple.
Both products’ packaging included a disclaimer that the product met the ‘Amber’ criteria of the National Healthy School Canteens Guidelines, however they were in a small font size and on a different side to the logos. The ACCC did not consider these disclaimers were sufficiently prominent to correct the misleading representations created by the logos.
“The ACCC believes both companies were using logos to claim that these products were a healthy option for school canteens to supply to children, when they were not,” ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court said.
Dr Kieron Rooney, a nutrition expert at the University of Sydney describes the practice of making unhealthy products appear healthy then they are as a “health wash”.
While he welcomed the fines imposed by the ACCC, he told the SMH that other food manufacturers, such as such as Goodman Fielder’s with its White Wings and Paradise with its Uglies Choc Chip Bickies, are also involved in the practice.
Unilever and Smith’s have informed the ACCC they will both stop using the logos on their product packaging.