Parents Beware of the Fruit Imposters

LONDON, August 31 /PRNewswire/ --

- Fruit Juice Drinks not as 'Fruity' as They First Appear

- 80% of Parents Think They are Giving Their Children Healthy Fruit Juice
Drinks

- 73% of Parents Struggle to Come up With new Ideas for their Children's
Packed Lunches

With the back-to-school season just around the corner, Del
Monte's Fruitini brand has commissioned a survey to research what parents are
putting into their children's lunchboxes. Findings show that parents are
becoming more aware of the 5-a-day message and are seeking out healthy fruit
juice drinks and desserts - just over 80% of parents think they are giving
their children healthy drinks and 67% say they think the desserts they give
their children are usually healthy. However, a report by paediatric dietician
Jacky Bernett worryingly highlights that many of the popular fruit juice
drinks and fruit-based jelly desserts "are not as healthy as they seem".

Jacky Bernett's 'Fruit Imposters' report highlights that
parents should read the small print labelled 'ingredients' on the back of the
carton rather than purchasing fruit juice drinks by choosing a drink with a
fruit name or one that displays mouth-watering fruit images on the packaging.
However, an alarming one third of parents do not check the ingredients of
fruit juice drinks, and in relation to fruit-based desserts, 30% of all
parents say they rarely read the ingredients at all.

What's more, less than one fifth (18%) of parents choose fruit
juice drinks based on the fruit juice content. According to Jacky Bernett, a
benefit of fruit juice drinks and fruit based desserts that have a high fruit
juice content - 70% or more - is that they do not need to be supplemented
with Vitamin C as they already contain natural goodness. However, she points
out that many fruit juice drinks on the market actually have a low fruit
juice content (predominantly under 20%) and she believes that manufacturers
may have added vitamins to them so that they appear more attractive and
healthy which can be misleading for parents.

The nutritional information can also be confusing or
misleading in many children's fruit juice drink brands as Jacky Bernett
highlights that the reference to "carbohydrate of which is sugar" does not
differentiate between natural or added sugar. Jacky Bernett goes on to say,
"If the products were 'true' fruit juices, it wouldn't be necessary to add
sugar or artificial sweeteners to the drinks because fruit contains naturally
occurring sugars."

For the 73% of parents surveyed who said they find it
difficult to come up with new ideas for their children's packed lunches, Del
Monte has the perfect solution. Its Fruitini range contains the perfect
lunchbox fillers that are crammed full of fruit. It's NEW Fruitini High Juice
Drink comprises of nothing more than juice and water, and its Fruitini Jelly
contains a massive 98% fruit juice content whereas the market leader contains
a mere 1%.

Naturally nutritious and fruity, all products in the Fruitini
range feature the Fruitini Brand Promise; "All our products are crammed with
the most succulent fruit, leaving no room for any artificial colours,
flavours or preservatives". The refreshing NEW Fruitini High Juice Drink and
delicious Fruitini Jelly are ideal for lunchboxes, after school activities or
weekend refreshment.

Notes to Editors:

- The research for Del Monte was carried out online by Tickbox.net 
between 06/07/07 and 18/07/07 amongst a nationally representative sample of
1,778 UK adults aged 16+.

- Report extracts are from Jacky Bernett's 'Fruit Imposters Report' 
- July 2007

The Del Monte Fruitini Range includes:

    - NEW Fruitini High Juice Drink 200ml - available in two different
      flavours
    
        - Orange & Grape - 200ml singles and multipack- 3 x 200ml
        - Blackcurrant & Grape - 200ml singles and multipack- 3 x 200ml
    
    - Fruitini Jelly 120g singles - available in two different flavours:
    
        - Orange - single serve 120g pot
        - Strawberry - single serve 120g pot
    
    - Fruitini Jelly 4x 120g Multipacks
    
        - Orange and Strawberry - Multipack of four with 2x Strawberry and 2x
          Orange
        - Raspberry and Blackcurrant - Multipack of four with 2x Raspberry
          and 2x Blackcurrant
    
    - Fruitini Fruit in Juice 120g Singles
    
        - Peach pieces in juice - single serve 120g pot
        - Mixed fruit pieces in juice - Single serve 120g pot
    
    - Fruitini Fruit In Juice Multipacks
    
        - Fruit Pieces in juice - 4 x 120g pot. 2x Mixed fruit pieces in
          juice and 2x Peach pieces in juice