Kellogg's yields under government traffic lights

Kellogg's will affix the "traffic light" label on most of its cereal wrappers sold in the UK from January, after previously refusing to do so.

The UK government's voluntary scheme, introduced in 2013, indicates the amount of salt, sugar or fatty foods that food contains.

Kellogg's said he made the change after "listening" to consumers, the government and retailers.

Consumer organization said it was a "positive move" but that it should apply to all cereals, not just to some.

The "traffic light" system labels foods in green, orange or red, to help consumers easily identify products containing low, medium or high levels of salt, fat and in sugar.

Kellogg's new labeling will start appearing on brands such as Coco Pops, Crunchy Nut, Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies, Frosties and Special K from January 2019. Deployment will be completed in early 2020.

"We are changing because the buyers of our food have told us that we should do it.After the announcement of the review of our cereals in the UK towards the end of last year, we decided to re-examine the labeling, "Kellogg said in a statement.

Kellogg's chief executive in the UK, Oli Morton, said the decision followed a survey of 2,000 Britons questioning them about their attitude towards labeling.

Mr. Morton said, "In simple terms, they said we should change and adopt a colorful solution because they want help in making healthy decisions, we have listened and we are acting now."

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However, the "traffic lights" labeling will not be used on Kellogg's multilingual boxes shared in several European countries, where the system is not well known, nor on single serving packages.

As a result, just under 80% of Kellogg's grain packages sold in the UK and Ireland will carry the new labels.

Until now, Kellogg's adherence to the so-called "Reference Integration" labeling system, displayed in monochrome colors on packaging. It indicates the maximum amount of calories and nutrients that people should eat during a day.

Now, however, he said, "Times have changed, the change of color-coded labels is a response to what consumers and government expect from us in the UK."

Many supermarkets have voluntarily adopted the "traffic light" system for their own brands, while the rival grain manufacturer, Nestle, has introduced the "traffic light" system for its cereal brands, including Shreddies and Cheerios, in 2017 Weetabix has been using it since 2016.

Earlier this year called on the government to resolve the "chaos" of food labeling standards when the UK leaves the EU.

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Under EU regulations, "traffic light" labeling is optional and some manufacturers do not use it.

Which? said that this should be mandatory.

Strategic Policy Advisor, Sue Davies, said the organization felt the "traffic light" nutrition system was helping people compare "in a blink of an eye" the amount of sugar and salt and fat that a product contained.

"Although this is a very positive move by Kellogg, it should apply to all of the brand's products sold in the UK and Ireland, not just 80%.

"The government should now use Brexit as an opportunity to introduce legislation mandating traffic light labeling as part of an approach based on high food standards and aimed at improving health and goodness." of the country, "added Davies.