A trip to the supermarket could become an education lesson for shoppers once new amendments to the Food Act are adopted.

Bermuda is in the process of changing legislation in the Food Act so that all food prepared and produced in Bermuda will state the name of the product, the name, address and contact number of the manufacturer/distributor, list the ingredients in descending order of quantity including natural or artificial additives and also display the net quantity of the food.

Products shipped into Bermuda already provide this information since US law requires proper labelling on foods except for those that provide few nutrients.

Government nutritionist Cymone Hollis said reading a product's ingredient list will help locals learn more about the foods they eat.

"It defines the food, additives, preservatives and colouring added to the product,'' she explained. "Ingredients are listed from highest to lowest according to weight amount.'' But despite the pending legislation, Ms Hollis said that consumers still have to do their homework so they could make sense of what is written on the labels and be able to evaluate a product's content carefully.

"Ingredient lists sometimes use unfamiliar names for fibre, fat, salt and sugar,'' she pointed out. "Persons following modified diets need to be aware of these hidden sources.'' According to Ms Hollis some of the names are as follows: Fibre: Oats, oat bran, wheat, wheat bran, whole wheat flour, cracked wheat, corn, rye, buckwheat, barley and bulgur wheat; Fats: Note: butter, cream, lard, coconut oil, palm oil, bacon fat, all animal fats, cocoa butter and hydrogenated vegetable oils are all very high in saturated fat. other fats often used in products are olive oil, sesame seed oil and vegetable oils; Sodium: Salt, flavoured salts (onion, celery and garlic), monosodium glutamate, baking soda, baking powder, bouillon, meat tenderiser or anything with sodium in the name; and Sugar: Honey, brown sugar, molasses, sorbitol, lactose, mannitol, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, sucrose, fructose, glucose and dextrose.

"To increase fibre intake in the diet select foods that list one or more of these fibre sources as its first ingredient,'' recommended Ms Hollis. "To decrease the amount of fat, sodium and sugar in the diet avoid or limit foods that list the above sources as its first ingredients at the beginning.'' Nutrition facts on the products will also help consumers make better nutritional choices when picking snacks and drinks.

Ms Hollis said a comparison of the ingredient lists highlight the difference between products that are often confused as containing the same nutritional benefits, like fruit juice and `fruit drink'.

Fruit juice with 100 percent unmodified fruit juice with pulp, water and no added sugar, preservatives or colouring obtains its sweetness from sugars occurring naturally in fruits.

Ms Hollis said that products like these, especially those with fortified or naturally occurring vitamins and minerals, can be counted as a fruit serving.

But she said `fruit drinks', which often contain refined sugar, additives, preservatives and colouring in their ingredient list, usually contain an insignificant amount of fruit juice.

"The added additives, preservatives and colouring are used to alter colour, taste and aroma and may cause problems for persona with food sensitivities,'' she noted.

She said `fruit drinks' could not be counted as a serving of fruit.

"All juice and drink products contain water and sugar as part of its ingredients whether it occurs naturally or added it will be processed by the body the same. The difference depends on the amount of sugars added and its nutrient value. Added sugars in fruit drinks increase the amount of calories per serving.'' The new regulations will also help individuals with food allergies avoid potentially life threatening situations resulting from accidentally ingesting a forbidden food.

"A person who is allergic to wheat can read the label to assess hidden forms of wheat in a product that are not obvious to the consumer,'' Ms Hollis explained. "Other names of hidden wheat are modified food starch, semolina or gluten.

"A person that has an allergy should know all forms of the allergen found on ingredient lists to avoid eating the food allergen that can cause a fatal reaction.'' Other popular food ingredients that cause allergic reactions are milk, nuts, eggs, shell fish soy foods and beans and peas.

And Ms Hollis said the proposed new guidelines will help consumers from being mislead by label claims, fat free, on the front of packages.

"The main aim of claims is to encourage the consumer to purchase the product,'' she pointed out. "All label claims placed on products must meet recommended guidelines of the Food and Drug Administration before its placed on a product.

"Label claims can be misleading if interpreting incorrectly,'' she added.

"When a product states it is low in fat, it may fail to remind the consumer that the product is not calorie free.'' It make things clearer, Ms Hollis outlined what is meant by the following common nutrient claims: Calorie Free - should contain less than five calories per serving; Low calorie - should contain 40 calories or less per serving; Fat free or sugar free -should contain less than 1 gram of fat or sugar per serving; Low cholesterol - should contain 20 milligrams or less and no more than two grams or less of saturated fat per serving; Reduced - describes a product that is 25 percent less of a specifies nutrient or calories in an original product; Good Source - the product must provide 10 to 19 percent or more of the daily value of the vitamins or minerals per serving; High - the product must provide 20 percent or more of the daily value of a specific nutrient; Light - food that have 1 fewer calories or 1 the fat of the original product; and Healthy - a food is healthy if it is low in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and has 480 milligrams or less of sodium per serving. the food must also provide at least 10 percent of the daily value of vitamins A and C, iron, protein, calcium and fibre.

Ms Hollis also recommended shoppers check out the serving size before they buy a product, since the size will have different implications for individuals.

"Reading serving size and servings per container is important,'' she said.

"Diabetic diets establish serving sizes according to the amount of grams of carbohydrates.

"Although reading labels may be time consuming they will help you compare nutrient contents of similar foods and allow you to make appropriate choices so that all the foods fit into a diet that provides overall variety, balance and moderation.'' Read the label: By reading the labels carefully (left), consumers will be able to see the ingredient and nutritional differences between similar products such as fruit juices and fruit drinks. The main aim of label claims (right), is to encourage shoppers to buy a product. Shoppers should read the small print and nutrition list on the back of a product to avoid misinterpreting the claim.