Group in court

Verdict: “Frozen yogurt” contained too little yogurt

(Bild: thinkstockphotos.de)

A proportion of only ten percent yogurt in "frozen yogurt" is far too little in the opinion of local courts: The Salzburg Regional Court had already judged the product of the Spar retail chain to be misleading. The Linz Higher Regional Court has now confirmed the ruling, which is legally binding, announced the Association for Consumer Information (VKI) on Tuesday.

The VKI had filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Ministry of Social Affairs due to the misleading product presentation of "Spar Frozen Yogurt".

Yogurt content must be 60 percent
Spar sells frozen milk yogurt products under this name. The front of the label shows a white mass that looks like yogurt. However, the proportion is only ten percent for all varieties, while products from other manufacturers have a much higher yogurt content according to the VKI. The "Austrian Food Codex" stipulates that 60 percent of the milk components in the product must be yogurt.

The appeal lodged by Spar against the judgment issued in Salzburg was unsuccessful. The Linz Higher Regional Court agreed with the legal opinion of the Salzburg Regional Court. It emphasized that compliance with statutory labelling obligations does not generally immunize against misleading statements. Spar had argued with the list of ingredients, from which the yoghurt content was clear, reported the consumer advocates.