Hell dodges burger pizza warning
Hell Pizza’s covert use of fake meat didn’t meet food standards but the company won’t face formal action from the Ministry for Primary Industries.
Hell left a bad taste in many consumers’ mouths after revealing it had secretly used plant-based Beyond Meat burger patties on one of its pizzas in June, describing the ingredient only as ‘‘medium-rare burger patty’’.
There were particular concerns in relation to allergens, and for customers being able to make an informed decision.
The ministry launched an investigation after receiving several complaints about the way the pizza was described, including the company’s failure to mention that the patties were derived from pea protein.
Yesterday, the ministry said the investigation had concluded and although the product description didn’t meet food standards, the situation didn’t warrant a warning or more serious action.
‘‘Pea protein is not a listed allergen and therefore there is no legal requirement for the company to declare that the patty was derived from pea protein,’’ a spokesperson said.
‘‘Despite this, the way the product was marketed could have resulted in consumers thinking they didn’t need to request allergen information from the company due to the name and description of the pizza.’’
The ministry found the product description fell short of requirements under the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, including the need for food to have a name or description that indicated its true nature.
The company had been given education and advice but the situation did not meet the threshold for a formal warning or more serious action, the spokesperson said.
The ministry had taken several factors into consideration when deciding what action to take, including Hell’s agreement to follow the ministry’s advice in any future campaigns, improved allergen information listed on the company’s website, and the fact that Hell Pizza hadn’t previously been the subject of similar complaints.
There had also been no reports of illness from people having eaten the burger pizza, the spokesperson said.
‘‘Where an incidence of noncompliance has caused serious harm to public health, the behaviour is deliberate or reckless or the conduct is repeated, a different approach would be taken.’’
A separate investigation by the Commerce Commission is ongoing.