April 28, 2023
Once the Heart Symbol is added to known Pirkka items, it will be easier to make choices at the grocery store that are good for your heart and don’t cost a lot of money. So far, almost 100 Pirkka goods have been given permission to use the Heart Symbol, and more than 30 of them already have the symbol on their packaging.
K Group is dedicated to making it easier for people to make decisions that are good for their health. They do this by setting health goals and making nutrition promises.
In the K-Group April K-Barometri survey*, more and more people feel like they are eating unhealthy foods. According to the poll data, almost one in three customers (28%) eats less healthily now than they did before prices went up.
This number goes up to more than a third (36%) for families with children. On the other hand, 16% of people say that because prices are going up, they are eating healthier. At the same time, more than half of customers have switched to cheaper options, and 64% of those surveyed said they buy more private name goods.
By putting the Heart Symbol on at least 200 of its own-brand goods, K Group hopes to make it easier for people to choose healthier foods that are also cheap. By the end of 2024, the sign will be added to the packaging of Pirkka, Pirkka Parhaat, and K-Menu items.
The Heart Label is given by the Finnish Heart Association to products that are better choices in their product group. “As many as 90% of Finns know about the Heart Symbol, which is great because goods with the Heart Symbol are for everyone.
Anna Kara, a Heart Symbol nutrition expert, says that the foods you eat most and most often are the ones that mean most for your health. This is why it’s especially important to choose a Heart Symbol product when you eat these foods.
Starting quickly, especially for Pirkka goods, the number of Heart Symbols has been going up. So far, almost 100 Pirkka goods have been given permission to use the Heart Symbol, and more than 30 of them already have the symbol on their packaging.
Products like fruit purées, salad sauces, and fish will all use the Heart Symbol a lot. As the packing for the product is updated, the symbol will be put to it. The old packaging will be used up so that nothing goes to waste.
“The labels on meat and cold cuts have been updated in a relatively short amount of time. As a result, many Pirkka cold cuts, like thin cooked gammon and turkey fillet, have already been marked. You can now find the Heart Symbol on a lot of chicken items, like unseasoned Pirkka chicken joint strips.
The first K-Menu product, K-Menu instant muesli, has also been given the Heart Symbol, says Tuuli Luoma, who is in charge of private brands at Kesko.
The standards for the Heart Symbol were made by an independent group of experts, and they are based on scientific data. “A product can get the Heart Symbol if it meets the nutrition standards for its product group.
Depending on the type of food, the factors include the amount and quality of sugar, salt, and fibre, as well as the amount and type of fat. For example, cold cuts and other types of meat need just the right amount of salt and fat, as Kara says.
Five new diet pledges have been made by K-Group.
By making nutrition promises, K-Group helps get the Finnish nutrition advice put into place.
A diet pledge is a part of the Society’s pledge to Sustainable Development, which is a group of people who promise to work in ways that are more sustainable.
The K-Group health and nutrition plan, which came out at the beginning of the year, is what the company is committing to in terms of nutrition. At sitoumus2050.fi, you can find out more about the promises.
Anyone can see how the pledge goals are coming along because success reports are made clear on the website.
In addition to putting Heart Symbols on packages, K Group wants Finns to eat a half kilogramme of veggies every day by 2030. Another goal is to make Pirkka goods with less salt, sugar, and excessive fat.
“Pirkka is known for making reliable items that are a good deal for the money and come in a wide range of categories. By lowering the amount of sugar, salt, and saturated fat in Pirkka goods, we can help Finns eat better without them noticing,
while still letting them enjoy their favourite cheap products. With the changes to the nutritional value, more Pirkka goods will also meet the requirements for the Heart Symbol, says Luoma.
On the Heart Symbol website, you can find a full list of all the Pirkka items that have been given the Heart Symbol.
*A K-Barometri poll was done through the K-Kyla customer group in April 2023. There were 961 respondents, 226 of whom were families with children.
February 14, 2023
