INFORMATION ON ORGANIC MILK PACKAGING IN COUNTRIES WITH DIFFERENT LEVELS OF ORGANIC MARKET MATURITY – A COMPARISON BETWEEN GERMANY, THE NETHERLANDS, ITALY AND POLAND

The packaging of a food product is an important communication tool between producers and consumers. Consumers have special requirements for organic products. However, organic food markets within the EU are on a different maturity level. Are there differences in the product quality information on the packages of organic milk in countries in a different stage of development? The research was conducted in Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Poland in the summer of 2019. The number of milk packages analysed was 37 in Germany, 27 in the Netherlands, 16 in Italy and 13 in Poland. Information on animal welfare, place of origin and on sensory aspects was frequently present on packages in all four countries. Detailed information about the processing of milk was only seldomly found. Differences were found in the amount of national and international labels. Consumers can be overwhelmed by information on product packaging. Therefore, the selection of information should be conducted with care.