10 arguments

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"Red means stop."

The argument: A red traffic light on a food product means, “Stop, don’t eat!” Products with even just one red light will never make it off the shelf.

The truth: The traffic light label does not convey a ban on certain foods. Red simply signifies a high level of the respective nutrient, as opposed to amber (medium level) and green (low level). A high sugar content, for example, does not necessarily make a food taboo. However, a shopper with a cart full of red-light products is probably doing something wrong – provided he wants to eat a balanced diet.

Scientific evidence shows: Labels must be explained. This is why, according to the scheme proposed by foodwatch, the traffic light colours are not displayed alone but in combination with the text “high”, “medium” or “low”. The only comprehensive study conducted to date on the consumers’ understanding of various labelling systems in practice was commissioned by the British Food Standards Agency (FSA). This study showed: The highest comprehension levels can be achieved through a combination of traffic light colours and text.

The industry also doesn’t use red as a stop signal

Another illustration of the lack of logic behind the “read means stop” argument is the industry’s own use of the colour red. Red is a popular colour used on many product packages – and its meaning often is completely positive.

Just a few examples: Nestlé prints a seal that reads “Fettarm” (low fat) on its breakfast cereal "Fitness Fruits" – this seal is flame red. Kellogg's has designed the entire package for its "Smacks" in bright red. The most ironic of all, however, is the company’s use of red in its “health pyramid” printed right on the cardboard box. Here, the colour red is used for "balanced diet" – not for "don’t eat". And the signal red used by the company to highlight its Internet address is also not meant to be interpreted as “Stop! Don’t surf this site!” Even the industry uses red as a signal colour, but not as a stop signal.

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