little freddie

Little Freddie is listed across mainstream grocers such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Ocado and Co-op

Little Freddie babyfood pouches designed for weaning babies have been found to contain higher levels of sugar than stated on pack labelling, with some products having almost double the amount of sugar listed in the nutritional information.

A series of test results seen by The Grocer revealed that nine out of 12 Little Freddie’s stage one fruit pouches for babies aged six months and upwards contained more sugar than the declared value on the label.

Tests conducted by Eurofins Scientific, which has a worldwide network of more than 900 labs, found the Little Freddie stage one products tested were on average 40% higher than the declared sugar value and 11% higher than the upper tolerance limit provided by food labelling regulations.

In a letter published in full by The Grocer, Little Freddie has said the results of the investigation are “concerning”, and “do not reflect” its own findings. 

The investigation found that sugar levels in four of the SKUs – Banana & Raspberry Coconut Yoghurt; Peaches & Raspberries; Pink Lady Apple Yoghurt; and Coconut & Summer Berries – were almost twice as high as stated on packs.

The four products offer industry-leading low levels of sugar, with the Banana & Raspberry Coconut Yoghurt pouch stated to have 6.4g per 100g. Peaches & Raspberries is 5.6g per 100g, Pink Lady Apple Yoghurt is 5.3g per 100g, and Coconut & Summer Berries is 6.9g per 100g.

However, the laboratory tests found the packs actually contained 10.2g, 10.4g, 9.7g, and 10.3g per 100g respectively.

Peaches & Raspberries, Pink Lady Apple Yoghurt and Coconut & Summer Berries were also tested again using different batches bought on different dates, and showed similarly high results.

 
 

Rival products from category leader Ella’s Kitchen and challenger brand Piccolo typically contain higher levels of sugar per 100g than stated on the Little Freddie pouches.

Alongside the Little Freddie products tested, five Ella’s and five Piccolo stage one packs were also sent to the lab. All 10 were found to be in line with the labelling.

Food labelling rules are covered in the UK by EU Regulation No 1169/2011, which states information on pack must be accurate, easy to see and understand, not misleading, and indelible.

The regulation recognises it is not always possible for foods to contain exact nutrient levels labelled given natural variations from production and storage.

However, it adds the nutrient content “should not deviate substantially from labelled values to the extent that such deviations could lead to consumers being misled”.

Sugars tolerance measures state foods with 10g or less per 100g have a measurement uncertainty of +2g, meaning a product with 8g of sugar has up to 10g before being outside the upper limits of the regulations.

Of the 12 Little Freddie products tested, only three (Prune Yoghurt with Oats; Prunes & Apples; and Pink Lady Apples) were found to be compliant with the regulation. One was higher than listed on pack but within the upper tolerance limit. The other eight were higher than the upper limit.

“The whole babyfood category is built on trust,” an industry source told The Grocer. “A product that claims to contain even close to 5g of sugar per 100g should raise eyebrows.

“It is just not possible to produce a fruit pouch with such a low level. Questions should have been raised at the production stage.”

Action on Sugar nutritionist Zoe Davies described the findings as “deeply concerning”, calling for manufacturers to be “more transparent and accountable” and urging the government to release the long-awaited Commercial Baby Food and Drink Guidelines.

“Accurate and clear labelling is a vital tool for parents who rely on nutritional information to make informed choices for their children’s health,” she said.

“High levels of hidden sugars, particularly in products marketed for weaning infants, can contribute to poor dietary habits early in life, setting a troubling precedent for future health.”

Babyfood has fallen increasingly under the spotlight in recent years. Public Health England called for a ban on halo health claims in the category in 2019, while in 2022 a report by Action on Sugar warned parents that pouches for weaning babies contained up to four teaspoons of sugar, naming Ella’s Kitchen as one offending brand.

The NHS advises that babies do not need sugar. And last month a report, published in the journal Science, found that cutting sugar in the first 1,000 days of a baby’s life protected them against diabetes and high blood pressure in adulthood.

Demand for babyfood pouches has grown rapidly in the past decade. In the UK, volumes in the overall babyfood category increased another 2.6% to 142.6 million packs, according to the latest report in The Grocer [Kantar 52 w/e 12 May 2024].

 

Read more:

 

Little Freddie is still a small part of the category but is growing quickly as parents are drawn to its claims to source only the best ingredients with nothing artificial, no fillers and no added water. It registered a 35.4% jump in volumes and 38.2% rise in retail sales value to pass the £4m mark last year [NIQ 52 w/e 6 April 2024] but remained a long way behind category leader Ella’s Kitchen.

However, the Little Freddie group is understood to generate annual revenues of upwards of $100m and employs hundreds of staff, making it bigger than Ella’s overall. Despite appearing to be a British brand, the company was founded by husband-and-wife team Piers Buck and Taslim Ho in Hong Kong in 2014, expanding into mainland China in 2016, which accounts for most of its sales.

The business, which makes the products in the UK, did not launch in the domestic market until 2018. It is now listed across mainstream grocers such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Ocado and Co-op.

* This article was updated at 9:50am on 15/11 to include response from Little Freddie.

Topics