Despite their claims of being nutritious, packaged snack foods for babies and toddlers are often not as healthy as they seem, according to CHOICE.
The consumer advocacy group looked at more than 80 products marketed at babies and toddlers and asked accredited practising dieticians Laura Ryan and Joan Breakey, and nutritionist Dr Rosemary Stanton if they believed the products were good snack choices.
The three experts found that the products tended to contain excessive sugar, were generally highly processed, tended to contain little of the fruit and vegetables they used to claim they were healthy, and often used terms like ‘organic’ as proof of their nutritional value.
“Whether it’s in the product name or a claim on the label, the majority of the snacks we looked at reference fruit, vegetables, yoghurt and organic ingredients, creating a ‘health halo’ around products that more often than not don’t deserve it,” CHOICE spokesman Tom Godfrey told the SMH.
Product made by Rafferty’s Garden were included in the review. According to a Rafferty’s Garden spokesperson, the products should only be eaten as occasional snacks and as such they can be part of a healthy diet.
“It is important to note that one serve of our Rafferty’s Garden snack range has approximately half the sugar of a tablespoon of sultanas, a food that is also rich in natural sugars and one that most parents would not consider restricting in their children’s diet,” she said.