Dorset Cereals has defended its packaging after campaigners criticised the ‘scandalous’ decision by some brands to not use a colour-coded labelling system that reveal sugar levels.

The Poundbury-based company does not use a ‘traffic light’ system, endorsed by the Department of Health, on its products, nor does it include any nutritional information on the front of its packaging.

Action on Sugar, a group of specialists concerned about sugar and its effects on health, surveyed 25 cereal manufacturers and found that many do not use the system despite their products containing high levels of sugar which would attract a red label.

Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut Honey and Nut Clusters, Eat Natural Toasted Muesli Vine Fruit and Jordans Country Crisp with Crunchy Chunky Nuts were highlighted as some of the cereals that would have a red label for sugar content.

It also found that a further six brands,including Dorset Cereals, contain no FOP nutrition labelling.

It is calling for traffic light front of pack (FOP) nutrition information to be introduced across all food and drink products.

Katharine Jenner, Action on Sugar and FoodSwitch UK campaign director, said: “Shoppers should be seeing red, and they would be if manufacturers used the correct labels.

“It’s scandalous that certain food manufacturers are still refusing to be transparent when it comes to front of pack nutrition labelling.

“If there is no front of pack label with one brand, shoppers should assume they are hiding something - so buy another brand instead.”

The traffic light colour-coded system uses red for high, amber for medium and green for low on labels to indicate to consumers what levels of fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt are in the product.

Action on Sugar says that without such information, consumers find it very difficult to interpret the information and make informed decisions.

It claims that shoppers could save themselves around 45 teaspoons of sugar per month (182g) if they had access to consistent FOP labelling.

But Dorset Cereals say that ‘oversimplifying’ nutrition labels could also be misleading.

A spokesman said: “We believe most people who eat our muesli understand that dried fruits, nuts and seeds contain some naturallyoccurring sugars and fats, but are also an excellent source of fibre and whole grain, as well as essential vitamins and minerals.

“As we continue to work on reducing added sugar from our recipes, we will continue to ensure the nutritional content of our products is communicated as clearly as possible, while recognising that an overly simplistic representation of the nutritional value of some more natural foods can potentially be quite misleading.”