Global beverage giant PepsiCo has announced that it will no longer be labelling its Naked Juice range as “all natural” after the products were found to contain artificial ingredients.
A lawsuit was launched against the against company amidst allegations that synthetic ingredients were added to the Naked Juice range and labelled as an ‘added boost of vitamins,’ as reported by Sustainable Brands.
PespiCo did not confirm or deny that the juices contained synthetic ingredients, but have decided to drop the use of the term ‘natural’ until more transparent regulatory guidelines are available, and settle the lawsuit by paying US$9 m.
The American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) currently does not have a clear definition of the term ‘natural’ as it claims that it's difficult to define a product as natural since it has most likely been processed and therefore no longer represent a “product of the earth.”
The FDA states that is does not object to the word ‘natural’ being used as long as the product is free from ‘added colour, artificial flavours or synthetic substances.”
Accurate labelling is proving to be a very topical issue in the Australian food industry with GM labelling, free range eggs and country of origin claims at the height of the debate.
A recent government initiative, the Health Food Star rating system has received criticism from members of the food manufacturing industry who believe that the system will cost in excess of $200m to implement as well as lead to potential job losses.
The star rating system is designed to provide a more transparent method for consumers to identify a healthy food choices and will be required to be displayed 'front of pack' on food products.