Alpro Addresses Campaigner Protests over Soy Production Plans

21 Mar 2014 --- Non-dairy milk producer Alpro has agreed to keep production of its one-litre Alpro Soya 1+ Junior Drink in a nut-free environment following protests by campaigners. The producer announced last year it would be merging production of its soya, almond and hazelnut lines but this move angered campaigners who felt it would reduce choice for allergy sufferers.

At the end of last year the producer began adding warnings to its products to alert consumers that the dairy-free milks ‘may contain traces of nuts’, but campaigners argued that Alpro should be avoiding cross contamination between its soya and nut lines.

Continued pressure by campaigners has led to Alpro announcing this month that it has arranged for the separate production of its one-litre Alpro Soya 1+ Junior Drink in a nut-free facility. The ‘may contain traces’ warning will be removed from packs, the company said.

In a letter to campaigners, marketing controller Tim Smith said: “I am pleased to confirm that we have been able to arrange the continuing separate production of the 1 Litre Alpro Soya 1 + Junior Drink in a nut free facility beyond 2014 when the rest of the Alpro soya and nut range production is due to be integrated. “

The integration of other lines will still go ahead, and warning messages on those products will continue to be applied.

In response to this move, campaigners have stated that they are pleased that such an important product for dairy allergic infants will be excluded from the factory merger, but they “do not believe that this move fully addresses their concerns”.

“We have asked Alpro as an interim measure to also remove the perceived need for 'may contain' labels from its yoghurt and - even better - dessert products,” the campaign group AlproSOS said on its Facebook site. “The company has a 95% share of the soya yoghurt market and, potentially, a 100% share of the calcium fortified soya yoghurt market. These products are extremely important for allergic kids once they develop beyond the infant formula age.”

The news comes in the wake of new EU laws on ‘food information to customers’, which will change existing legislation on food labelling later this year. Changes will include mandatory nutrition information on processed foods; mandatory origin labelling of unprocessed meat from pigs, sheep, goat and poultry; highlighting allergens such as peanuts or milk, in the list of ingredients and better legibility such as the size of text. Manufacturers will also be required to give information on allergens for non pre-packed foods, such as those sold in restaurants and cafes.

By Sonya Hook