Food producers should always take pains to show sensitivity to those with dietary restrictions, whether physical or cultural, as this is extremely important when it comes to packaging food for mass distribution and consumption.
Making labels that declare a food to be within the limits of what someone can eat when it really isn’t is disingenuous and could be enough to turn someone away from a brand, even if it is a mistake. Badly placed labels stuck on the wrong food can also cause offense.
Wales Online describes the case of a Muslim family in Cardiff who was misled by the label on some pasties (a turnover-like baked pastry good) they purchased at a local grocery store. They were found to have large portions of meat inside them even though these items were labeled as containing “onions and cheese.”
Since this meat was not halal and therefore against their religion, the father of the family, Majid Khan, expressed his frustration to the manager of the Morrison’s grocery store where the purchases were made.
Unfortunately, while the manager apologized, he made the situation even worse by attempting to give Khan a free bottle of champagne to make up for the mistake, when alcohol is also forbidden by Muslim practices.
“I was very angry,” Khan told the source. “They should be far more careful with how they label their products, especially when it could contain meat.”
Even one mistake like this could give the company a lot to lose—more than it may be aware of. Keeping your labeling practices controlled is important and significantly easier with a color label printer primed and ready to roll.
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