Supermarkets may be forced to adopt traffic light labels

A deal to make the system mandatory is being forged between the Department of Health, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the EU, the newspaper reports.

In the UK, some supermarkets such as Tesco have adopted the rival Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) labelling system, while others such as Sainsbury's have opted for traffic lights. Asda has introduced a hybrid system combining the two.

Last year, Which? - the consumer watchdog and campaigning organisation - criticised Tesco, Unilever and Nestlé for choosing the GDA scheme. Studies carried out by the FSA and Which? both confirmed traffic light labelling is more effective at helping consumers decipher the nutritional content of products.

The organisation said manufacturers that use GDA labelling have claimed research supports the usability of the format, but had not made any further information about the research available.

The Which? study, conducted in May 2006, found 97% of people spotted healthier versions of similar foods using the FSA's traffic light label compared with 87% using the GDA label.