TORONTO — Health Canada and Food & Consumer Products of Canada (F.C.P.C.) have joined to launch a nutrition labeling initiative to help Canadians make informed food choices. The Nutrition Facts Education Campaign includes a multi-faceted approach to understanding the Nutrition Facts table, and, in particular, to explaining % Daily Value to consumers.

As part of the effort, Health Canada and F.C.P.C. will post messaging on food packages, in stores, and in national media directing Canadians to Health Canada’s educational web site, www.healthcanada.gc.ca/dailyvalue.

“We know that many consumers are using the information in the Nutrition Facts table,” said Leona Aglukkaq, Canadian Minister of Health. “This innovative, national initiative builds on ongoing efforts by our government to help Canadians better understand and use this information to make healthier food choices for themselves and their families.”

In making its case for understanding nutrition labeling, the groups have posted on the web site a key rule of thumb when looking at % Daily Value: “5% is a little, 15% is a lot.”

PepsiCo Canada issued its support of the Nutrition Facts Education Campaign by announcing it will display the %Daily Value icon and messages on more than 27 million packages of PepsiCo Canada products, including Pepsi, Tropicana, Quaker ready-to-eat cereals, Lay’s, Baked! Lay’s and SunChips. Similar to the Nutrition Facts Panel in the United States, the % Daily Value icon in Canada shows consumers how much of a certain nutrient is in each product.

“We are committed to playing a responsible and supportive role in the health and wellness of Canadians,” said Marc Guay, president of PepsiCo Foods Canada. “Part of that is making food choices easier for consumers by providing easy-to-understand nutrition labeling on our products. This new education initiative enhances the consumer’s understanding of % Daily Value, and we’re excited to include those messages on select brands within our Quaker and Frito-Lay Canada portfolios.”