ArticleNutrition & dietetics : the journal of the Dietitians Association of Australia2026
Cluttered with claims: Composition, nutrition, health and marketing claims on commercial infant and toddler foods in New Zealand.
Article in Nutrition & dietetics : the journal of the Dietitians Association of Australia, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- An Unhealthy Start: The Nutritional Composition, Processing, and on-Pack Claims of Commercial Foods for Infants and Toddlers in Thailand.Maternal & child nutrition · 2026Article
- Cluttered with claims: Composition, nutrition, health and marketing claims on commercial infant and toddler foods in New Zealand.Nutrition & dietetics : the journal of the Dietitians Association of Australia · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aimThe World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe's Nutrient and Promotion Profile Model recommends that commercial infant and toddler foods do not carry compositional, nutrition, health, or marketing claims. Our objective was to identify on-pack claims displayed on commercial foods for infants and toddlers in New Zealand.
methodThe packaging of products intended for infants (aged up to 11 months) and toddlers (ages 12 months to <36 months) was analyzed for the presence of claims using a coding structure based on categories outlined by the World Health Organization Europe Nutrient and Promotion Profile Model. Descriptive statistics were conducted to analyze the frequency of types of claims. Relevant infant and toddler products available in New Zealand supermarkets were identified through a packaged food database of products collected in 2023.
resultsTwo hundred and ten products were identified: 167 infant and 43 toddler products. On average, there were 7.5 unique claims per product (range 3-15), with composition and nutrition claims being the most common (mean 4.0 per product), followed by marketing (3.3) and health claims (0.2). Composition and nutrition claims relating to the absence of ingredients generally perceived to be harmful (i.e. 'free from' claims) were prevalent on 97% of products and most commonly referred to flavors (on 72% of products) and colors (71%).
conclusionsAll New Zealand infant and toddler products carried multiple claims. Regulation is needed to align with international best practice and prevent caregivers from being potentially misled by these promotional messages when making purchasing decisions for young children.
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Registered trials
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