Food welfare is one of the topics that has been discussed most in recent years. The health of consumers has become essential, but we ourselves guarantee a long life. The easiest way to do that is to learn how to read the labels of the products we buy.
The food label as the identity card of the product: the items that should not be missing.
With globalization and consumerism, the well-being of the world's citizens is slowly changing. The exacerbation of simplified procedures for the purchase of products, especially food products - such as the intensification of shopping centers or discounts - could put at serious risk the health of consumers, also because we are increasingly focused on savings rather than on quality.
In order to safeguard our health, it is important - first of all - to observe and read carefully the identity card of a product, that is, the label. European Regulation 1169/2011 has obliged primary producers to make numerous changes in the area of food safety, which must be adhered to for the fair distribution of healthy and qualitatively better food. One of the most important provisions is the one concerning food labels: a very useful element in the hands of the consumer as long as it gives the right clarity on what to eat. According to this European regulation, the labels must contain:
- The name of the food; that is, the name of the product, the qualification that allows us to understand the nature and legitimacy of the product.
- List of ingredients; it is one of the most important items even if it remains one of the least observed. The list of ingredients is a real "X-ray" of the food we have in our hands, as it makes explicit the very composition of the article we want to buy.
- Allergens; for the protection of people with food allergies or, more simply, intolerances, the allergen - the substance that can trigger allergic reactions - is usually included in the list of ingredients but with a different character: in bold, underlined or italic; the important thing is that it is distinguishable.
- Quantity of ingredients; i.e. the percentage of all substances of which a given food is composed. Although it may seem obvious, the percentage of ingredients used is essential because it allows us to understand if the product we want to buy is actually composed of the substances outlined in the packaging.
- Net quantity of food; in grams or litres, we can see if the net weight of the product we want to buy is actually reported when, just after the words "gr" or "lt" there is the letter "℮" which indicates, in fact, the net quantity.
- Expiry date; this item travels hand in hand with the storage conditions of a food product. The expiry date is defined by specific analyses - shelf life - by the producer and indicates the period in which the article is marketable, i.e. that it maintains optimal chemical/microbiological and organoleptic characteristics.
- Lot; is an alphanumeric number indicated by the letter "L" or the name "Lot" - usually inserted in the same section of the expiry date - and indicates the day (and in some cases also the time) on which the food in question was produced. It is very important for traceability issues, in fact it informs us about the history and life of the food.
- Storage and/or use conditions; on the label, each product must have indicated the storage conditions: temperature, environment of maintenance of the food and the methods of use. If these conditions are not met by the consumer and, above all, by the distributor/dealer, the characteristics of the product may vary and, consequently, the expiry date will no longer be exact.
- The producer name; indicates the establishment/company in which a food item has been produced.
- Country of origin; under the new regulations, the origin of the product must be indicated.
- Instructions for use; it seems obvious but, when talking about food, to better enjoy a product is essential to refer to the instructions, which indicate the optimal conditions for consumption.
- Nutritional declarations; they must be reported both per 100 gr or ml and per portion and are usually included in a table that includes: energy in kcal (kilocalories) and kJ (kilo Joule), fat of which saturated, carbohydrates of which sugars, proteins, salt, etc.. Often you can also find the reference intake percentage of nutritional values, although it is not mandatory.
Useful tips for buying
In general, however, each category of food must have specifications that we may not find in others. Having said that, in addition to being able to read the food label, we must also consider other factors that can direct us towards an excellent purchase. In particular, it is always a good habit to check the packaging of the product we intend to buy, how the product is presented to our eyes and, above all, the way in which it has been stored on the shelf of the supermarket or in the appropriate compartments (for example, in the case where a pack of water has been exposed to sunlight for a long time, the plastic may have released substances harmful to the body).
In general, if - as the German philosopher Feuerbach has said - "we are what we eat", we need to be aware in purchasing and, above all, try in every way to prevent risks to our health: one of the most effective methods is precisely the correct diet.