Integral Review- A Journal of Management

p-ISSN : 0974-8032, e- ISSN : 2278-6120, Vol. 6 No. 1, June 2013, pp 61 - 69

http://intergraluniversity.ac.in/net/journals Andpublications.aspx

ANALYSIS OF NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION DISCLOSURE ON LABELS

OF MILK BASED MALTED HEALTH DRINKS IN INDIA
Nivi Srivastava1, Ali Ghufran2
1. Research Scholar, Department of Business Management, FMR, Integral University, Lucknow, India
2. Asst. Professor, Department of Business Management, FMR, Integral University, Lucknow, India

Abstract
The present paper aims at analyzing the nutritional information disclosure on the
wrapper of major milk based malted health drinks of leading Indian and multinational
brands being marketed in India. This study covers 20 milk based malted health drinks,
further they are classified on the basis of their segmentation which is based on regular health
drinks, children health drink and mothers health drink .This analysis clearly indicate that
milk based malted health drink manufacturers disclose nutritional information on their food
labels to facilitate the consumers in making informed choices as per their
corporate/marketing strategy. The difference in information contents across health drinks
imply that there is no standard regulation for disclosing the nutritional information and
therefore these information are provided by the organization on voluntary basis.
Key Words: Milk based malted Health Drinks, labels, nutritional information, regulation
1. Introduction:
Food purchase behaviour of consumers in most emerging economies such as India has
signi? cantly changed due to an increase in the per capita disposable income, global interaction,
information and communication technologies, urbanisation, education and health awareness, movement
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of households towards higher income groups, changes in lifestyle and family structure (KPMG, 2005) .
The health & wellness market of India has been growing at healthy growth rates for past few years. The
growing awareness for healthier lifestyle is the major reason behind the same. The health food and
beverages market in India is witnessing double digit year-on-year growth for quite a few years now, as a
result of changing lifestyle, improving disposable income, growing health awareness, etc. Malted food
products, baby food products, and cooking oils are the top three preferred products in the health foods
and beverages market of India. Other popular health food segments in the country are energy drinks,
Chyawanprash, fruit juices, butter alternatives, digestive biscuits, health drinks etc. (Research and
Markets Adds Report: 2012-2017)

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Nivi Srivastava, Ali Ghufran

1. Review of Literature

Food labels are- the prime channel for information dissemination between food producers and
retailers, and the consumers of food products (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
and the World Health Organization (FAO, WHO, 2001)3. food labels play an important role by
disseminating important nutritional information to consumers. Initially, food labelling was limited to
food name, quantity, price and identity of the manufacturer. But recently, one of its important functions is
to bridge the gap between the consumer and the original food ingredients. The picture on the label
sometimes gives an idea of the colour, form and shape of the raw food and nutritional information guides
the consumer about the contents and the usefulness of the product. Thus, detailed and well-informed
food labels have become an indispensable part of today's consumption scenario.
Nutrition labelling is not strictly mandatory at present; therefore, consumers rely on food
producers to inform them about the nutritional content of their products. Food companies can satisfy
consumer demand for nutritional information by including such information on labels. Morris (1991)4
advocates the need for nutrition information on food products. He argues that nutrition labelling assists
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consumers in their quest to obtain optimal intake of nutrients. Lewis et al. (1994) also support such
views. They view the nutrition label as a means of bridging the gap between general dietary guidelines
and speci? c food choices. Hence, they consider the nutrition label as a means of implementing dietary
recommendations. Similarly, Gourlie (1995)6 believes that nutrition labelling will act as a link between
the scienti? c community and the consumer. Nutritional labelling is not mandatory at present even in
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India (Sankar, 2007) but the Indian Government is working on a proposal to do so (Economics Times,
8

2007) . The Ministry of Consumers Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has made The Standards of
Weights and Measures Rules 1977 mandatory for labelling. They include packaging, MRP, weight
speci? cations and production details. There is no reference to nutritional labelling. The suggested
amendments are the incorporation of quantitative ingredient Declaration, nutritional labelling and other
details regarding production. Some food companies have nutritional labelling (EU norms) on their
products but majority of them do not have. The draft regulation under the Prevention of Food
Adulteration (Amendment) Rules 2006 has been deferred for a third time to October 2008 (Chitrodia,
9

2008) . This delay in making labels mandatory has become an important point of concern for Indian
consumers. While the Indian Government is deliberating the law on nutritional labelling, it is important
to know the usage of these labels by Indian consumers and how they view the most prevalent format. No
research to date has been carried out on the subject, so this study aims to provide an insight into the usage
of labels by Indian consumers in order to inform the future policy debate.
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Analysis of Nutritional Information Disclosure on Labels of Milk Based Malted Health Drinks in India

2.1 Malted Beverage Market

10

According to Majumdar (2007) , Malted beverages are popularly known as the health drinks in
India. Historically, malted beverages have had a strong association with milk. Such drinks used to be
consumed in the southern and eastern regions of the country which were having a perennial shortage of
milk supply. So malted beverages positioned themselves as substitutes for milk. Malted beverages are
usually marketed in white and brown colour forms, where beverages constitute about 65 per cent of the
market. The malted beverages market is estimated to be 82,000 tonnes per annum which in value terms is
estimated at Rs 13000 crores and is growing at the rate of 12-14 per cent per annum. The penetration of
malted beverages in India was found to be only 6.1 per cent in 2005. However, there have been clear
indications of growth due to several positive trends. More variety of tastes, and flavours, and awareness
building efforts by the MNCs increased acceptability of health drinks products. Other factors of growth
are due to better standard of living, increased health consciousness amongst affluent people and
affordability of the price. Malted beverages have always been positioned as regular heath drinks targeted
at children and the elderly population; however, in the recent past companies have focused on products
for other consumer brackets as well. In the process, a number of products were launched for women and
kids for cognition and general well being. The major players in the health beverages market are
GlaxoSmithKline, Cadbury, Nestle and Heinz. The market is dominated by GlaxoSmithKline with about
70 per cent share. Cadbury and Heinz have about 12 per cent each, and Nestle only 3 per cent. Malted
beverages include Horlicks, Boost, Viva and Maltova from GlaxoSmithKline, Bournvita from Cadbury,
and Milo from Nestle.
In India, the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (PFA) and Fruit Products Order (FPO) under
the Essential Commodities Act are two regulatory arrangements which primarily deal with permitted
ingredient limits and safety standards of food items. Food labelling standards and requirement are not
very stringent and are governed by both these regulatory provisions as well as by the Packaged
Commodities Rules (PCR) under Weights and Measures Act. Under such scenario where government
regulation on nutritional content of food labelling is not very stringent and/ or is vague,
3. Objectives of the Study

To analyse the nutritional information disclosure on the wrapper of major Milk based malted
Health drinks of leading Indian and multinational brands being marketed in India.
4. Research Methodology
The purpose of this study to examine/analyse nutritional information disclosure on labels of
milk based malted health drinks in India.
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Nivi Srivastava, Ali Ghufran

?
Research Design - research design is descriptive in nature, as it attempts to describe the quality

and quantity of prevailing nutrient information disclosed by manufacturers of milk based

malted health drinks.
?
Data Type

- The nature of data is secondary, as labels /wrappers of milk based health drinks

were collected to record nutritional information already indicated by manufacturers in their

products.

?
Sample Size This study covers labels of twenty milk based malted health drink. So sample

size is twenty.
?
Analysis of Data - This study covers 20 milk based malted health drink. Labels/ wrappers of

these products were collected to record if the nutritional information such as energy, fat,
cholesterol, carbohydrates, fibre, sugars, protein, vitamins, calcium, iron, sodium, minerals etc
has been indicated on the labels. Drinks are classified as regular, children and mothers health
drink based on their segmentation. Further, existing regulatory arrangements for food labelling
in the country has been analysed to evaluate the level of information disclosure by the food
processors. The collected data were digitized in a Microsoft excel spreadsheet and a simple
statistical analysis to assess the nutrient information disclosure which included descriptive
statistical analysis, cross tabulation and frequency distribution was carried out.
5. Analysis of Data

Fig1. Nutrients Disclosed in Regular Health Drinks

Source: Compiled by author

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Analysis of Nutritional Information Disclosure on Labels of Milk Based Malted Health Drinks in India

Fig 1 shows the nutrients disclosed in regular health drink, in regular health drink section Complan
Growth, bournvita, Horlicks, Horlicks Women's, Boost, Protinex (Diabetes Care), Protinex Original,
abott ensure gold has been included.Protein,fat,sugar, calcium,iron,Vitamin C,vitamin B complex are
the most common nutrients disclosed by health drinks.
Protinex Diabetics Care is positioned for Diabetic Patients however it is compared with regular
?
Health Drinks as no other Competing product was found during study.
?
Fatty Acids includes

- Saturated Fatty Acid (SFA)

- Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acid (MUFA)
- Poly Unsaturated Fatty Acid (PUFA)
?
Vitamin B Complex includes the following:
Vitamin B1 (thiamine)
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
Vitamin B3 (niacin or niacinamide)
Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine, pyridoxal, or pyridoxamine, or pyridoxine hydrochloride)
Vitamin B7 (biotin)
Vitamin B9 (folic acid)
Vitamin B12 (various cobalamins; commonly cyanocobalamin in vitamin supplements)
?
FOS (Fructo Oligo Saccharides)

Fig2. Quantity of Nutrients Disclosed in Regular Health Drink

Source: Compiled by author

Fig 2 shows the nutrients Quantity of Nutrients Disclosed in Regular Health drink section. Abott
Ensure Gold discloses maximum nutrient information.
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Nivi Srivastava, Ali Ghufran

Fig.3 Nutrients Disclosed in Children Health Drink

Source: Compiled by author

Fig 3 shows the nutrients disclosed in children health drink, in children health drink section Complan
(with memory charges), Complan (Nutri-Grow 2-4 yrs), bournvita little champs, Horlicks Junior 1st
stage, Horlicks Junior 2nd stage, Protinex Junior, Abott Pediasure has been included. Protein, fat,
carbohydrate, calcium, iron,Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Vitamin E, Vitamin C, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2,
Vitamin B6, folic acid,Vitamin B12, niacinamide, Calcium pentothenate and iodine are the most
common nutrients disclosed by health drinks of this section.
?
Fatty Acids includes

-Saturated Fatty Acid (SFA)

-Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acid (MUFA)
-Poly Unsaturated Fatty Acid (PUFA)
?
FOS (Fructo Oligo Saccharides)

Fig.4 Quantity of Nutrients Disclosed in Children Health Drink

Source: Compiled by author

Fig 4 shows the Quantity of Nutrients Disclosed in Children Health Drink section. Abott
Pediasure discloses maximum nutrient information.
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Analysis of Nutritional Information Disclosure on Labels of Milk Based Malted Health Drinks in India

Fig.5 Nutrients Disclosed in Mother's Health Drink

Source: Compiled by author

Fig 5 shows the nutrients disclosed in Mother's health drink, in Mother's health drink section Horlicks
mothers, protinex mama care, Abott mama's care,Wallace ultrich Mom, British biological PRO-PL. has
been included. Energy, fat, carbohydrate, calcium, magnesium, iron ,Vitamin A ,Vitamin E, Vitamin C,
Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B6, folic acid,Vitamin B12, niacinamide, copper, zinc, iodine and
DHA***** are the most common nutrients disclosed by health drinks of this section.
Fatty Acids includes
?
-Saturated Fatty Acid (SFA)

-Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acid (MUFA)

-Poly Unsaturated Fatty Acid (PUFA)
?
FOS (Fructo Oligo Saccharides)
?
DHA - (Docosahexaenoic acid)

Fig.6 Quantity of Nutrients Disclosed in Mother's Health Drink

Source: Compiled by author

Fig 6 shows the Quantity of Nutrients Disclosed in mothers Health Drink section. Abott
mama's best discloses maximum nutrient information.
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Nivi Srivastava, Ali Ghufran

7. Results and Discussion

The disclosure of information on food labels in India are primarily governed by the Prevention
of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, which has primarily focused on the basic information of the product on
the food labels and put less emphasis on health and nutritional information to be given on the food labels.
However, recent amendments on packaging and labelling of food under part VII of the Prevention of
Food Adulteration Rules, 1955 has mandated to disclose the health and nutritional claims on the labels
along with basic information.
Major health drinks of malted health drinks being market in India and covered in the study are
nd

Horlicks, Horlicks Women's, Horlicks Junior 1st Stage, Horlicks Junior 2 Stage, Horlicks Mother's Of
GlaxoSmithKline Complan Growth, Complan with Memory Chargers Complan Nutri-Grow 2-4 yrs of
Heinz Bournvita, Bournvita Little Champs of Cadbury, Protinex Diabetes Care ,Protinex Original,
Protinex Junior, Protinex Mama Care of Wockhardi Nutrition , Abott Ensure Gold, Abott Pediasure,
Abott Mama's Best of Abott, Boost of Nestle ,Wallace Ultrich Mom of Wallace and PRO-PL of British
Biologicals.
In the study, it was found that every manufacturer use different marketing strategy for
nutritional information disclosure
As shown in Fig 1 & Fig 2, in regular health drink maximum nutrient information .i.e. (31)
disclosed by Abott ensure gold followed by Complan growth (26), Protinex diabetes care (25), Horlicks
(20), Bournvita (18), Horlicks women (17), boost (15), Protinex original (15).
As shown in Fig 3 & Fig 4, in children health drink maximum nutrient information .i.e. (44) disclosed by
Abott Pediasure followed by Protinex junior (42) Complan Memory Charges (35), Bournvita Little
Champs (28), Horlicks junior 2nd stage (28), Horlicks junior 1st stage (26), Complan nutri grow 2-4 yrs (26).
As shown in Fig 5 & Fig 6, in Mothers health drink maximum nutrient information .i.e. (35)
disclosed by Abott mama's best followed by Protinex mama care (32), British biological Pro PL (32)
Horlicks mothers (28), Wallace Ultrich mom (26).
Note: Figures mentioned in ( ) above denotes Total number of Nutrients Disclosed.
8. Conclusions and Implications

Malted food drinks play important role in providing nutrition and health to the consumer.
In terms of labelling, the way the packaging is presented is a highly visible element in the promotional
mix. The impact of the label in distinguishing one product from another can be critically important at
point of sale, particularly when consumers are faced with large choices in branded processed food
products on supermarket shelves.
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Analysis of Nutritional Information Disclosure on Labels of Milk Based Malted Health Drinks in India

With the changed customer food preferences the Indian food market is witnessing
unprecedented transformations. Manufacturers who can match the wholesome quality of their brands
through effective and informative labelling might alleviate anxieties and gain a competitive advantage.
The extent to which individuals process messages is influenced by both ability and motivation and
should therefore be of prime importance to food marketers, in their attempts to offer suitable labelling
and packaging information within the constraints of statutory requirements and by the physical pack
shape and size on which information can be presented. Therefore in current scenario the manufacturer of
malted health drinks who are disclosing relevant information will have greater competitive advantage.
References

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