CLEAN LABELS A RETAIL PERSPECTIVE

Andrea Martinez-InchaustiBritish Retail Consortium

The British Retail Consortium

• BRC membership brings together in one single united voice, retailers of every size, type and location.

• Membership includes the major multiples, a range of small and medium size retailers plus various sector specific trade associations and suppliers of services to the industry.

Our Mission StatementThe BRC exists to make life easier for our members by:• Campaigning to promote and protect retailers’

interests• Advising retailers on threats to and opportunities for

their businesses• Offering members a range of competitive,

professional services which add value to their businesses

• Improving the general perception of the retail industry in the UK and Brussels.

Own Brand• Estimated own brand sales in UK is above

50% • Some members, e.g. M&S – 99 -100%• The levels of own brand not evenly

distributed in all commodities – e.g. very high for sandwiches and ready meals but lower numbers for soft drinks.

Confectionery

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Confectionery chocolate chewing gum sugar confec

own brand brand

Bakery

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bakery cakes biscuits crackers morninggoods

Own brand brand

Clean labels – what triggered it?

1. Feedback from consumers2. Figures – overconsumption of certain

nutrients 3. Responsibility to provide quality food4. Government Campaigns 5. Media (speeded up the process)

1. Customer feedback

Queries through customer lines, feedback from questionnaires and analysis for purchasing behaviour showed that: – They wanted cleaner labels – Go back to original – traditional recipes– Use cupboard ingredients – They do not want to ingredients the names of which

they cannot recognise

1. Consumer feedback - FSA research

• Quarterly public tracker - September 2008

2. Figures

11% of food energy13% of food energySaturated fat

6g 9.5g Salt

<1% total energy intake (WHO)

2000/1 National Diet & Nutrition Survey found the current average

intake of trans fats in the UK is 1.2%of energy intake (~4-6g).

Some individuals may consume as much as 48g per day on a diet high

in processed foods.

Trans fats

Optimum level Starting level Substance

Influencing products – Reformulation

4. Government Campaigns

• March 2006 – Salt Targets• Phase 3 Salt Campaign 2007• Review of progress – self

reporting framework• Review of targets 2008• No more than 6g

by 2010

5. Media

5. Media

Retailers’ policies• Based on consumer feedback several years

ago retailers started developing internal policies:

- limiting the use of certain ingredients- reformulating - clearer/cleaner labels - providing consumer information

ADDITIVES/FLAVOURINGS • Policies limiting the use of certain additives started

in 1995 and have developed since• 2007 – Publication of Southampton study • Retailers are not querying the safety of the

substances. • They are not challenging the approval process or

competence of those involved in the process.• Retailers are responding to customer feedback.• Each retail has its own policy – since it is not a

safety issue we do not have a BRC position.

Retailers 1 - progress2005 - Limit use of 22 colours

Early 2007 - Several colours were banned from their own brand linesIncluding 6 Southampton colours

2007 – working to reduce the use of benzoates + artificial flavourings

End of 2007 – create the ‘only use with permission’ list

During 2008 – considering limitation on use of certain sweeteners

Retailer 2 – confectionery• Overall company criteria was set limiting the use of certain additives in

2006 (14 colours and 38 flavourings)

Position April ‘07• Total products in confectionery: 320 own brand products• All children's milk chocolate was produced according to new recipe• Autumn ’06: all children’s bagged sweets launched with new recipe

and rebranded to reflect the change• April ’07: 28 bagged sweet lines reformulated • September ’07: Jelly Beans re-launched• Target; by end March 2008 all products to be produced according to

new recipe and all non reformulated packaging out of store end 2008

Confectionery Challenges• Large supply base across the world• Medium size retailer - small % volume in factories• Large brands producing confectionery for many

companies • Reluctance to development of bespoke recipes• Scale –chocolate tank farms, flushing • Vanillin –flavour commonly used in chocolate• Commercial implications

Confectionery Challenges

• Traditional / retro flavour profiles and appearances –customer expectations. Historically achieved artificially.

• Shelf Life – up to 1 year• Kitchen trial vs factory trial • Assorted products - every individual component

treated as one product.• Large number of processes: boiling, gum, panning,

enrobing, filling, aeration, paste• Confectionery suppliers reluctance to move e.g.

biscuits, transfers

Confectionery Learning's• Senior management buy in• Joint tastings with Suppliers• Do not look at products in a mix in isolation• Buying contracts –seasonality e.g. spinach• Independent view –Campden • Timescales –Flushing chocolate tanks,

shelf life of product on shelf• Resource – many internal departments

involved

Case Study- Turkish Delight• Contained 1 Artificial Colour (E129 Allura Red)

and 1 Nature Identical Rose Flavour • Challenge: Colour faded due to high

temperatures– Colour added to slurry before it is heated to (~120°C)– Natural red colours e.g. Beetroot Red have a low

heat stability• Solution: Worked closely with colour houses,

developing a cocktail of fruit and vegetable concentrates

• Approximately 20 trials carried out

SALT cakes & biscuits

• Members have found the 2010 targets challenging but have worked towards achieving them – some retailers have met the targets for these categories

• In some products, e.g. some cakes, added salt has been reduced or removed; however this has been a challenge in other products, e.g. salted crackers

• Salted butter has been replaced by unsalted butter

SALT – cakes & biscuits• Biggest problem is lack of alternative for sodium

bicarbonate: • technologically potassium bicarbonate cannot always be used• sodium bicarbonate is recognised by consumers as a

cupboard ingredient they would used when baking a cake

• Concerned about 2012 targets • Retailers believe that cakes and biscuits when

eaten as part of a healthy diet are not high salt contributors

HVO - Commitment Details• To completely remove hydrogenated

vegetable oils (industrially produced trans fats) as an ingredient from own-label lines by the end of 2007.

• Supported by 8 major UK retailers.

HVO - Commitment Details• On completion of the reformulation work

almost 7000 own-brand food lines had hydrogenated vegetable oils removed.

• Reformulation is such that there is no impact on the quality of the food & there is no resultant increase in price for the consumer.

Completed04004009,000168Waitrose

6,853

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718

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Foods initially

with HVOs

11115391,000660Iceland

Completed011007,5001,780Tesco

Completed010004,500450M&S

Completed05123,1721,800Coop

181867358850Boots

Completed013007,000727Sainsbury’s

79

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Removal of HVOs(forecasts end 2007)

79

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Foods still containing

HVOs(April 07)

6,77439,5306, 698Total

1,6507,000263ASDA

Removal of HVOs

(April 07)

Food lines

Shops in UK

BRC Member

HVO - Progress end of 2007

Difficulties Encountered• Product areas that presented particular

problems included:– Bakery & confectionary– Icings & coatings

• Issues also arose around sustainable sourcing of appropriate replacement oils.

HVO - ExampleTesco

“Reformulation of products to remove HVO was extremely tricky in some cases. The HVO actually contributed to the technology ofthe food as well as the mouth feel. In dried desserts such as Angel Delight equivalents the HVO was hard to replace without increasing the saturated fat content and reducing the products susceptibility to oxidation and off flavours. In this case we worked with Leeds University who carried out accelerated testing on a range of substitute fats to find out which would be the best performers in terms of oxidation with the minimum increase in saturation of the fat. These fats were then trialed on production levels by our supplier to ensure the fats would perform just as well in a factory environment. The resulting finished product were then retested by Leeds University to ensure that the flavour profile had not been altered by the factory process”

SATURATED FAT• All BRC members are fully supportive of the

Agency’s objective to reduce levels of saturated fat consumption.

• Since 2000 saturated fat has been one of the key nutrients that food retailers have taken into account when devising new recipes and when reformulating existing products.

• FSA saturated fat strategy – We support an achievement table that is regularly updated

Saturated fat – BRC position

Change of cooking oil to create a more favourable ratio of unsaturated to saturated fats, e.g. rapeseed oil

Sept 200775% reduction in saturated

fat

Fish cakes Waitrose

This has been achieved by reducing the use of margarines with high levels of saturated fat

2008110 tonnes of saturated fat have been removed

CakesTesco

Changes to the proportions of base, cream and soft cheese has resulted in products with better eating quality and reduced in saturated fat

Reformulation began 2007,

products launched 2008.

12% reduction Chilled Cheesecakes

Co-op

Additional information TimeframeActivityProductCompany

Other Changes

• Use of ingredients recognised by consumers e.g. powdered skimmed milk was changed to milk spices are more widely used instead of flavourings

Other Changes

• Move away from declaring additives by E number• Disclosing ingredients of compound ingredients

after general ingredients list:– consumers can more clearly identify the ingredients in

a product– Consumers see that the products is made in the same

manner as if they would have made it at home– Very positive consumer feedback

Thank you