"More Than Half of 'Subscription Meal Boxes' Emphasizing Nutrition Fail to Meet Standards"

Korea Consumer Agency Survey Results
37 Out of 52 Products Found Non-Compliant
28 Products Also Found with False Advertising

Many 'subscription lunchbox' products emphasizing nutrition such as low sodium and high protein were found to have actual nutritional content that does not comply with food labeling standards.

The Korea Consumer Agency announced on the 6th that after investigating the nutritional content and labeling/advertising practices of 52 subscription lunchbox products sold both online and offline, 37 products were found to have nutrition claims or nutrient content labeling that did not meet the standards. In particular, among 33 products that emphasized nutrition such as low calorie, low sodium, and high protein in their labeling and advertising, 12 products (36.4%) were found to be non-compliant with nutrition claim standards.

Looking at the nutrition claims by nutrient, all 9 products emphasizing low calories exceeded the claim standard (0 kcal/100g) by at least 3.5 times (140 kcal) up to 5.9 times (237 kcal). Additionally, 9 out of 12 products emphasizing low sodium, 3 out of 9 emphasizing low fat, and 1 out of 6 emphasizing low cholesterol also exceeded the claim standards. Among 8 products emphasizing high protein, 1 product had a protein content (9g) below the claim standard (11g or more). The Consumer Agency pointed out that "there is a concern that patients with diabetes or hypertension who consume these products long-term based solely on low calorie or low sodium claims may actually harm their health."

When the Consumer Agency investigated the nutrient content of 50 products that displayed nutritional information, 33 products (66.0%) showed actual content differing from the labeled amount by up to 433%. This exceeds the allowable error range set by the 'Food Labeling Standards.' The agency stated, "26 products inaccurately labeled sugar content, which was the most frequent issue," and "3 products labeled sugar content as '0g' were found to contain 2 to 4g of sugar."

Among the 52 products surveyed, 28 displayed or posted advertisements that could mislead consumers, such as claims related to 'diabetes,' 'obesity suppression,' or 'detoxification,' indicating a need for improvement. Additionally, 8 products were found to have insufficient mandatory labeling items that must be displayed on food, such as expiration dates.

The Consumer Agency reported that it recommended improvements to manufacturers and sellers of products with inappropriate nutrient content and labeling/advertising. It also plans to request the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to prepare measures to prevent consumers from mistaking subscription lunchbox products, which are general foods, for diet-type meal management products. A Consumer Agency official urged, "When choosing subscription lunchboxes for health management, consumers should carefully check the nutritional content, and those with chronic diseases must verify the food category."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.