Half and half loaves may use the word ‘wholemeal’ on packaging and in advertising providing it is in relation to the flour used rather than the name of the bread, Defra has confirmed.
The eagerly awaited update came as part of newly published guidance on ‘Bread and flour: labelling and composition’ which outlines how to comply with the food standards law when producing, importing, or selling bread and flour. This includes clarification on the use of the word wholemeal.
Under the ‘labelling and marketing terms’ section, Defra said: “When labelling or advertising bread, the word ‘wholemeal’ is only allowed in the name of the bread when all of the flour used as an ingredient is wholemeal.
“A combination of wholemeal flour and white flour can be used to make bread, but this must not be named ‘wholemeal bread’ in the labelling or advertising.”
It added that the word wholemeal may be used in the wider description of a product as long as it’s clear that this is in relation to the flour used as an ingredient rather than part of the name of the bread. It offered the example of sliced bread made with an equal blend of white and wholemeal flour.
Defra defined wholemeal flour as “flour made from the whole grain after the milling or grinding of cleaned cereals. This is commonly understood to mean the entire edible grain after removal of inedible parts such as the hull and glume. This includes the germ, endosperm and bran”.
The above offers clarity on a contentious point for the baking industry following action by the Real Bread Campaign which, in 2023, queried why certain wholemeal loaves contained non wholemeal flours. Retailers and manufacturers responded explaining that the wheat flour was either sprinkled on post bake, used as a processing aid, or a carrier for other ingredients.
The conversation sparked another one – whether 50/50 loaves (such as Hovis Best of Both, Kingsmill 50/50, or Jacksons of Yorkshire’s Blend of Both) would have to be renamed.
The Federation of Bakers, which represents the UK’s largest plant bakers, sought legal advice on the matter which concluded that half and half loaves wouldn’t have to change their packaging and were legally compliant with the Regulation 6-(1) of The Bread and Flour Regulations 1998. This has now been corroborated by the latest guidance.
Notably, Ocado recently renamed its Wholemeal Sourdough loaves as Brown Sourdough following a complaint from the Real Bread Campaign which pointed out that the 500g loaf contained 65% wholemeal wheat flour as well as wheat flour and soya flour.
Other clarifications
The latest guidance also confirmed that “bread can only be named ‘wheat germ’ in labelling and advertising if it has an added processed wheat germ content of 10% or more” as calculated on the dry matter of the bread.
In addition, it said other bread descriptions such as ‘white’, ‘brown’, and ‘stone-ground’ are not specifically prescribed by law. Where there is no name prescribed by law for a food, a customary name or descriptive name must be used – this must be precise enough to inform the purchaser of the true nature of the food and must not mislead.
Defra defined ‘bread’ as a good of “any size, shape or form that is usually known as bread, consisting of a dough made from flour and water”, adding that it can include other ingredients. Notably, it stated that for the purposes of regulations, bread does not include:
- Buns and bun loaves
- Chapatis
- Chollas
- Pitta bread
- Potato bread
- Bread specifically prepared for people with coeliac disease.
The flour used in these products is still subject to the compositional requirements of the regulations though.
This includes the forthcoming fortification of flour with folic acid which is due to come into force from 13 December 2026.
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