Nutritional Panels FAQ

What is a Nutritional Panel?

An example of a nutrition panel can be seen below (Figure 1). It shows the amount of calories, Kilo joules in a serving of the product or dish (this means how much energy), and the amount of protein, total and saturated fat, total carbohydrate and sugar, and sodium that is present in a serving as well as per 100g of a product or dish.

Nutrition Information Serving Size: 1 main meal
	Average QTY per serving	Average QTY per 100mg
Energy	1344KJ (320 calories)	488KJ (106.6 calories)
Protein	20.5g	10.2g
Fat - total	20.2g	10.1g
Carbohydrates - Total - Sugar	45g 2.0g	15g 0.5g
Sodium	250mg	100mg

Figure 1

Lets explore each individual nutrient a little more.

1.	Kilo joules, Calories is the amount of energy available in the particular product or dish, per serve of that product/dish and per 100g. We need energy to function.
2.	Protein - This is a nutrient which is important for maintaining strong muscles and is found predominantly in animal foods e.g. meats.
3.	Total fat - This is a nutrient that is very high in energy and in small amounts is important for our bodies to function. Excess can contribute to weight gain. Saturated fat - is a type of fat that is found in animal foods also, therefore avocado which come from a plant food group would contain no saturated fat.
4.	Carbohydrate - This nutrient comes from plant based foods such as breads, cereals, fruits and vegetables. It is an important nutrient for energy, and is released into the body for this purpose. Included in this value is the amount of added or natural sugar which is also a carbohydrate. Sugar - This value excludes all the large carbohydrates e.g. breads, and cereal carbohydrates and provides a value for the amount of only sugar found in this product. Small amounts are important for energy.
5.	Sodium - This is salt, which is found naturally in food and can be added. It is essential for our bodies to function and to help our bodies to transport other important nutrients around.

Why should I Have My Nutritional Panels Developed?

In today's more health aware market the customer wants to know what they are eating, how much fat, protein, carbohydrate, sugar and sodium. It gives the consumer more confidence in a product or dish if they know what the nutritional content is. They are more likely to purchase product or order a dish if they know the nutritional composition. This demand is proven by the fact that 5 years ago only a select few products in the supermarket had the nutritional panels developed and now most products have them, even a stay crisp lettuce has a panel!

Provide your customers with this knowledge and you will be achieving more customer satisfaction.

Eventually everyone will have followed the trend and you will have to do it. You might as well do it now before your friendly competitor does and gain a bit of an edge!

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Who Can Have Their Panels Developed?
Hospitality Industry
Restaurant and cafe owners, coffee and juice bars, ice cream parlours, noodle stores, etc.!
Anyone can have this done. You may own a restaurant and want to have all your dishes analysed so your customers can see what the fat, sugar and carbohydrate content of your meals are. You may wish to select a few dishes off your menu, those dishes that I would class as low fat and put them together as a selection on healthier choice dishes. You may wish to put then on your website or in a brochure or flyer, wherever you like!
Catering- Industry, and Producers e.g. chocolates, cakes, drinks, sauces
If you produce certain food products that you distribute to others you may want to provide those who purchase your products with the nutritional composition of your dishes/products. For example I assisted a catering company to develop panels for their garlic and herb breads, lasagne, pasta sauces and cake products. They simply provided me with their recipes, ingredients amounts, weights of final products and I developed their panels.

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What Can I Expect From Your Service?

Initial Meeting
An initial COMPLIMENTARY meeting will be arranged to determine what your company wants to achieve and the required steps that need to be taken.
I will put together a time line and step-by-step report of what needs to be done to achieve the desired outcome.

Data Collection
Once you have decided to have your panels developed then it is a matter of us working out which products or dishes you wish to have analysed. You may want to do all of your products or dishes on your menu analysed or just a selection.
Once this is decided then I assist you to organise all of the required recipe/ingredient information that I need to analyses your dishes or products so I can develop your panels.

Once you have provided me with this I then set about developing your panels.

Report
Once this is completed I then compile all your panels into a report and present this to you with further explanation.
I will also endeavor to assists you with ideas of how you can use your panels e.g. brochure, website, menu etc. I will even show you what I have done in the past that has worked well so you can get some good ideas to use.

Marketing & Product Development
I can further assist people to develop low fat dishes or products, assist with the development of healthier choice menus or even with marketing strategies you can use to promote the healthy aspects about your products or dishes. This will also be included in your report.

Special Product or Menu Development
If your clientele have special needs I can develop recipes for you that will meet these needs e.g. coeliac disease, allergies, diabetes, wheat free, dairy free, egg free etc..

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Can I Make Nutrition Health Claims About My Products e.g. 97% Fat Free?

There are certain health statements that can be made, but specific claims about the fat, sugar, carbohydrate or protein will require additional analysis through a laboratory which will be organised for you.

It is best if you want to save to have them analysed with my system and I will give you smart ways to promote your products, at a third of the cost.

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Can The Dietitian Endorse My Products/Menus?

I am happy to assist any company or restaurant with the endorsement of their products and/or menus as along as they fit within the dietitetics standards and is considered ethical. I am
happy for you to use my name as a dietitian to market your products if agreed to.

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Can I Organise A Meeting To Discuss This Further?

Yes you can by provide the following details and pressing the send button. I will then contact you to arrange a meeting.
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