Tips on the consumption of Sweet dumplings (Tangyuan) during the Lantern Festival --- How to read the label of packaged food for sweet dumplings
Lantern Festival is the first important festival after the Spring Festival of the Chinese lunar calendar. People have the tradition of eating sweet dumplings (Tangyuan) on that day. The raw materials and ingredients used in "Bao Tangyuan" and "Roll sweet dumplings" are basically the same, but the processing technology is slightly different, and the taste is also different. Faced with the dazzling variety of Lantern Festival products on the market, how should consumers choose and buy them? The State Administration of Market Supervision and Administration has the following tips from the perspective of reading the labels of packaged food for Lantern Festival.
1. Label information should be complete and "9+" elements are indispensable.
When consumers buy sweet dumplings in supermarkets and other regular food venues or channels, they need to carefully check whether the contents of food labels on the packaging are complete. According to the relevant national standards, the labeling of pre-packaged food directly provided to consumers should include nine items, such as food name, ingredient list, net content and specifications, name, address and contact mode of producers and/or distributors, production date and shelf life, storage conditions, food production license number, product standard code, and other contents to be labeled. Do not buy or eat sweet dumplings without labels or with incomplete label information, unclear content, masking, reprinting or tampering with labels.
2. The order of ingredients is exquisite, and the sensitization information should not be omitted.
In accordance with the requirements of relevant national food safety standards, any substance (including food additives) used in the manufacture or processing of food and existing in the product should be labeled in the food ingredients list. The ingredients with a dosage of more than 2% should be ranked from high to low in order when food is manufactured or processed. Therefore, when choosing and purchasing sweet dumplings, consumers can first check the ingredient list, understand the ingredient use of products, and then decide which products to buy.
If the ingredients contained that may cause allergies, such as cereals and products containing gluten, peanuts and their products, the manufacturers usually (not necessarily) use easily identifiable names in the ingredient list or give prompts in the adjacent location of the ingredient list; the food or products mentioned above may be brought into the processing process, and should also be prompted in the adjacent location of the ingredient list. Therefore, when selecting or eating Sweet dumplings, susceptible people should carefully check the ingredient list and whether there is any prompt information about the adjacent location of the ingredient list.
3. Look at the two dates carefully and follow the instructions for storage and cooking.
The production date and shelf life on the product label should be checked. When choosing sweet dumplings, it is recommended to purchase products with stable quality during the shelf life, and not products that have passed the shelf life.
According to regulations, storage conditions are marked on the label of pre-packaged sweet dumplings. If quick-frozen dumplings are generally stored at - 18 ℃, they should be stored under labeled storage conditions, whether in the selection of products or after purchase.
In addition, usually on the package label of Sweet dumplings, the manufacturer will give reasonable cooking suggestions, which consumers can refer to for the best taste.
4. Reading nutrition labels carefully, it's more suitable to purchase by reference
According to relevant national standards, nutrition labels will also be provided on sweet dumplings labels. Nutrition labels mainly include: "Nutrition Composition Table"with the table form, as well as the explanation of the level of nutritional components of the "nutrition claim" and the explanation of the role of health "nutrition component function claim". Among of them, the nutrient composition table should indicate at least five elements (energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, sodium) content and its percentage in the nutrient reference value (NRV). Consumers can choose to eat according to the reference value of nutrients and their own conditions.
5. Although the sweet dumplings is delicious, special people should pay attention to it.
Consumers can choose sweet dumplings according to their preferences and the name on the pre-package. Generally speaking, the main ingredients of sweet dumplings include glutinous rice flour, modified starch, sugar and so on. Because of the relatively high content of sugar and oil, it is suggested that consumers should eat in moderation, older people and children with relatively weak digestive system should pay more attention to consumption, and patients with special diseases such as diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases should eat cautiously.
