In direct response to the public's request for clearer nutritional information, a new easy-to-read nutritional counter will appear on all Kellogg's packs in the U.K. from the end of this month. It will display information based on Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) to help people in their daily struggle to achieve a healthy, balanced lifestyle. The company is the first to include GDA on-pack, and the Kellogg's GDA Counter is unique.

This simple nutritional counter will be displayed prominently in a bar chart along the top of all Kellogg's U.K. products. It shows total amounts of calories, fat, saturated fat, salt, calcium & iron, total sugars and fiber in a format that allows the consumer to see exactly what is in a portion of cereal, and how this compares to guideline levels of different nutrients for the entire day. The public should be familiar with Recommended Daily Amounts (RDA), which appear on a wide range of food packaging, but these are only a guide to vitamins and minerals, whereas GDA are broader and include calories, fat, salt, sugars, etc.

There is also a side panel explaining the GDA counter and its benefits, so it can be clearly understood and used properly. Kellogg's is also devoting one third of the space on the back of the pack to encouraging a healthy lifestyle.

Alyson Greenhalgh-Ball, Health & Wellbeing manager for Kellogg's, explains, "We have conducted extensive consumer research on various types of nutritional information. The GDA nutrition counter we've adopted proved engaging as well as the clearest and most accurate way of providing consumers with the information they want. The GDA Counter enables consumers to make an informed choice on balancing their diet, by identifying the official recommended guideline levels for key nutrients and calories they consume each day."

Penny Hunking, freelance dietician and nutritionist, adds, "Guideline Daily Amounts provide a guide to the nutrients needed each day from the whole diet. There is a call for manufacturers to offer simple, more informative labeling on product packaging, and the GDA counter provides a step toward helping people to compare brands and understand how much of the product they eat contributes to their daily food and drink intake."

Martin Paterson, deputy director general of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), said, "FDF members are committed, through The Food and Health Manifesto launched last year, to working constructively with government to ensure the availability of clearer nutritional information. We are encouraging members to provide three things on pack where practicable -- Guideline Daily Amounts, full nutritional information and salt equivalence as well as sodium. The Kellogg's initiative is concrete evidence of manufacturers putting those commitments into practice."

He concludes, "As GDA based information is rolled out, it will be increasingly easy for consumers to see how each food consumed contributes to their overall diet."