There have been health concerns about how the current labels work
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There could be changes to the labels for a common product(Image: Getty)
A major change to food labels could be brought in at UK supermarkets such as Tesco and Asda. Campaigners have launched a petition to Parliament urging for new laws so that labels for pre-packed coffee have to show their caffeine content.
The petition urges: “Recommended daily caffeine intakes are 400 mg for adults and 200 mg for pregnant women, but consumers cannot reliably use product labels to help track intake. Excess caffeine risks can include heart palpitations, anxiety, insomnia, and adverse pregnancy outcomes.
“We think mandatory labelling would help empower safe, informed choices and protects public health. We want clearer caffeine labelling (mg per 100g and per serving) to help protect health.”
Under the current rules, bags of coffee do not have to include details of caffeine content. Drinks that have more than 150mg of caffeine per litre have to include the label: ‘High caffeine content. Not recommended for children or pregnant or breast-feeding women.’
This includes concentrated or dried drinks that will contain above this level once you have made the drink. However, this does not apply to tea or coffee drinks that have either the word ‘tea’ or ‘coffee’ in the name of the food.
Government guidance explains: “Where caffeine has been added to a food product (other than a drink) for a physiological purpose, you must put the words ‘Contains caffeine. Not recommended for children or pregnant women’ on the label.
“You must put these warnings in the same field of vision as the name of the food and include the caffeine content in milligrams per 100 grams or per 100 millilitres in brackets after the warning.” The amount of caffeine in coffee can vary depending on the type of bean used and how it has been processed.
Russian owners have agreed to sell their shares in Serbia’s Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS) after the major oil and gas company was slapped with Western sanctions.
Russia’s state-controlled company Gazprom Neft owns a 44.9 percent stake in NIS, while an investment division of its parent company, Gazprom, holds 11.3 percent. The Serbian government retains a 29.9 percent share.
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Serbian Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic announced on social media on Tuesday that the Russian companies had sent a request to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the United States Treasury to request the extension of a sanctions waiver based on negotiations with a third party.
“The petition states that the Russian side is ready to give up control and influence over the NIS company to a third party,” she said, adding that the Serbian state supported this request.
The minister said OFAC has already responded to some comments, and Serbia anticipates that it will know Washington’s position as early as this week.
“Time is running out and a solution has to be found, but the citizens must not suffer and run out of fuel. That won’t and shouldn’t happen,” Djedovic Handanovic wrote.
NIS is a major provider in the Serbian market, and the Balkan state is trying to ensure continued operations as winter approaches and the US and its European allies ramp up pressure on Russia to end its war with Ukraine.
The sanctions on NIS came into effect in early October, leading to banks processing the company’s payments and Croatia’s JANAF pipeline stopping its deliveries of crude oil.
Officials estimate that the refinery can only operate until November 25 without new crude supplies.
The broader package of US sanctions has also targeted Russia’s two largest oil companies, Lukoil and Rosneft, and dozens of their subsidiaries.
Lukoil has stakes in oil and gas projects in 11 countries, as well as refineries and petrol station networks across several European states.
In late October, Lukoil announced it is pursuing a swift sale of several overseas assets.
The company has said it is talking with potential buyers, and that transactions would be carried out under a sanctions grace period that runs until November 21. Lukoil said it would seek an extension if necessary to complete the fast-tracked transactions.
George Ford returns at fly-half and Freddie Steward at full-back for England’s much-anticipated showdown with New Zealand on Saturday at Allianz Stadium in Twickenham.
Tom Roebuck has recovered from an ankle problem and replaces the injured Tommy Freeman on the right wing.
In the forwards, Sam Underhill starts on the open-side flank with Guy Pepper on the blind-side and Ben Earl at number eight.
With Ollie Chessum out, Alex Coles partners captain Maro Itoje in the second row, while Fin Baxter, Jamie George and Joe Heyes are the starting front row.
Head coach Steve Borthwick has again opted for a 6-2 split on the bench, with Chandler Cunningham-South, Tom Curry and Henry Pollock among the reinforcements.
Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ellis Genge and Will Stuart – all British and Irish Lions this summer – are also part of a formidable bench.
Marcus Smith is preferred to Fin Smith as the outside back replacement.
England have won only one of their last 11 meetings with the All Blacks – a 19-7 victory in the 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-finals – but have rarely been far off their opponents in that time.
In addition to a 25-25 draw at Twickenham, their average losing margin in the remaining nine games over that period is less than six points.
Ford was in the midst of the fine margins in last year’s 24-22 reverse, missing a drop-goal attempt on the game’s final play.
His chances in an England shirt were restricted to just one cameo off the bench in the following Six Nations campaign, as Fin Smith edged in front of him in the pecking order.
But the 32-year-old Ford steered an under-strength side to a clean sweep of their tour of the Americas in the summer, including back-to-back victories over Argentina, and his bravery at the gain-line and shrewd decision-making was trusted from the start in the 25-7 win over Australia a fortnight ago.
Alex Iwobi says Nigeria’s efforts to reach the 2026 Fifa World Cup have been “resurrected from the dead” following an ominously poor start that saw the Super Eagles take just three points from their first four qualifiers.
A campaign that involved home draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe, three different coaches and several injuries to talismanic striker Victor Osimhen eventually ended in salvation thanks to an injury-time goal in their final group game against Benin.
That strike by Brentford’s Frank Onyeka gave the West Africans a 4-0 victory that saw them sneak into the African play-offs on goal difference as runners up in Group C.
But Nigeria face a new challenge on Thursday – how to stop Iwobi’s former Arsenal team-mate Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang when they meet Gabon in their play-off semi-final (16:00 GMT) in Morocco.
“He’s getting on, but you wouldn’t think that. He’s a youthful guy,” Iwobi told BBC Sport Africa when discussing the 36-year-old Gabon skipper.
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Aubameyang has already bagged seven goals in World Cup qualifying, including four in one game against The Gambia, as Gabon finished a point behind holders Ivory Coast in their group.
And the Marseille striker will be motivated by the possibility of leading his nation to the World Cup for the first time.
Iwobi, who played alongside Aubameyang for the Gunners during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, added: “We both have the same goal and we both respect that, but he’s such a great person off the pitch as well.
“I was his little brother. He was taking care of me. He used to talk to me, have banter, just make sure I feel comfortable.
“On the pitch, he always said to me, ‘Alex, just express yourself, be you’.
Tricky route to 2026 World Cup
After missing out on top spot to South Africa in Group C, which would have guaranteed automatic qualification for next year’s World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States, Nigeria now face a difficult path to reach the finals.
They must beat Gabon and then the winner of Thursday’s other play-off between Cameroon and DR Congo (19:00 GMT) to progress to an intercontinental qualifier which will be held in March.
Should Nigeria reach that stage, their world ranking should see them play one match against an opponent from Asia, Oceania, South America or the Concacaf (North, Central America and Caribbean) region.
The winners will then take their place at the expanded 48-team tournament.
After Nigeria missed out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Iwobi is keen to return to the international game’s biggest stage.
“Giving ourselves another chance to go into the World Cup, the confidence is high,” said the 29-year-old.
“I’ve been in one [Russia 2018], I would like to be in one again.
Praise for ‘great man’ Chelle
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The man who has resurrected Nigeria’s World Cup dream is Eric Chelle.
The Malian became the first non-Nigerian African to take charge of the Super Eagles when he was appointed in January.
He has gone unbeaten in six competitive games, with four wins and two draws, and Iwobi says the 48-year-old has installed a positive atmosphere among the squad.
“Our manager constantly reminds us that we’re able to push through all circumstances,” explained the Fulham midfielder.
“He’s such a great man. We almost don’t see him as like a manager, but like a big brother. He’s created a big brotherhood.
“You see him on the touchline. He gets heated – he’s literally trying to fight for us.
“It motivates us, that we want to play not just for Nigeria but for him as well.”
Iwobi also had a message for fans who have been unhappy with the team’s qualifying campaign up until now.
“It wasn’t the greatest of starts,” he acknowledged with knowing understatement.
“But they (the fans) also need to understand we all have the same goal.
“I understand when they’re disappointed because we are very disappointed in not winning games comfortably or winning against teams that maybe we should have.
“We feel like on any day, if we give 100%, and we’ve got the players to do so, that we can beat any team.
“But there’s one thing saying it, we have to prove it.”
Former Abia State governor Orji Uzor Kalu, believes President Bola Tinubu will face little to no opposition in the 2027 presidential election, declaring that the contest will be ‘Tinubu versus Tinubu’.
Kalu spoke with members of the Senate Press Corps at the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Senator Kalu, who chairs the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission (SEDC), noted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) remains firmly rooted across the country and continues to enjoy massive grassroots support.
“Has he gotten anyone contesting against him? The election is Tinubu vs Tinubu, just like Soludo vs Soludo, Our party is fully on ground and with the people. We’ll keep doing all we can to help Nigerians progress,” the lawmaker told the gathering.
READ ALSO: [VIDEO] Atiku, Obi, Jonathan Can’t Defeat Tinubu In 2027 — Orji Kalu
The former Chief Whip of the 9th Senate underscored that the National Assembly, under Senate President Godswill Akpabio, is focused on passing laws that will support the President’s economic recovery drive.
Reacting to comments by US President Donald Trump on killings in Nigeria, Kalu said Trump told the truth, insisting that the attacks have affected both Christians and Muslims and must be condemned by all.
“If it’s a lie, then it’s not a lie because he said the truth. Nigerians are being killed, Christians and Muslims alike. There are jihadists who want to destroy Nigeria. We must blacklist and smoke them out without pity,” he said.
The former governor revealed that he had discussed Nigeria’s security challenges with two ex-U.S. presidents and six sitting Senators who, according to him, expressed readiness to assist Nigeria in the fight against terrorism.
He added that recent airstrikes by the Nigerian Air Force may have benefited from U.S. intelligence sharing.
“Before Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located,” Kalu said.
The Senator blamed part of the global insecurity on the U.S.-led removal of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, which he said unleashed arms across Africa.
He also dismissed speculation that the U.S. was targeting President Tinubu’s administration, further noting that its focus is on jihadist groups destabilizing Nigeria.
After nearly 30 years, Canada has lost its measles “elimination” status, which, by default, has caused the overall Americas region to lose its status as well.
In a statement issued on Monday, the country’s Public Health Agency stated that Canada was experiencing a “large, multi-jurisdictional outbreak of measles” which began in October last year.
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Over the past year, the agency has recorded cases in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories. Overall, 5,000 positive cases of the illness and the deaths of two premature babies have been reported.
“Canada can re-establish its measles elimination status once transmission of the measles strain associated with the current outbreak is interrupted for at least 12 months,” the agency said.
Here’s what we know about the loss of the elimination status:
What is measles?
It is a highly infectious virus which can be life-threatening if not caught early.
The illness, which is spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes, begins with cold-like symptoms, including a runny nose, high temperature and sore, red eyes.
A few days after infection, small white spots can appear inside the cheeks and on the back of the lips. A rash then begins on the face and behind the ears before spreading across the body – the main telltale sign of the illness, according to information from NHS England.
In the worst-case scenario, measles can cause pneumonia and become life-threatening. Babies and anyone with a weakened immune system are most at risk.
Measles is widely prevented through the use of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine, which is administered in two doses to children at one year old and three years old.
According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), two doses of the vaccine are 97 percent effective in preventing a measles infection.
A vial of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is pictured at International Community Health Services, Wednesday, September 10, 2025, in Seattle, US [File: Lindsey Wasson/AP]
Why has Canada lost its measles status?
The “elimination” designation, which Canada has had since 1998, indicates that no locally transmitted infections or outbreaks have been reported in the past 12 months. This is no longer the case.
Mark Joffe, Alberta’s chief medical officer until earlier this year, blamed low take-up of vaccinations and told the Reuters news agency last month that more could have been done in the country to boost immunisation rates.
“If the vaccination rates were high, this would never have happened. There may have been [some spread], but nothing like this,” Joffe said.
Why are vaccination rates falling?
According to the WHO and the US CDC, the main reason measles is spreading is that fewer people are taking up vaccines across the Americas region generally.
One contributing factor for low vaccination rates is a growing distrust of healthcare providers following the COVID-19 pandemic, in which anti-vaccine misinformation spread.
One of the most persistent myths driving MMR vaccine hesitancy is the claim that it causes autism. This belief stems from a 1998 study, which has since been discredited and retracted. There is no scientific evidence of any link between the MMR vaccine and autism.
In some US states and Canadian provinces, exemptions for vaccine mandates – giving non-medical reasons for declining vaccines, such as for personal or religious reasons – are becoming more common. This has led to the existence of clusters of unvaccinated people who are more vulnerable to outbreaks when exposed to the virus.
Some communities, such as the Mennonites – Anabaptist Christians who have communities in the US, Canada and Mexico – have low vaccination rates, as conservative branches of the community do not believe in modern medicine. Several outbreaks in the past year have been traced to Mennonite communities.
Overall in Canada, according to public health data, measles immunisation also fell during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, when lockdowns made it harder to access general healthcare, and continued afterwards.
In 2019, 89.5 percent of children in Canada received their first dose of the MMR vaccine. But by 2023, that figure had dropped to 82.5 percent.
In the US, during the 2024-2025 school year, 92.7 percent of children received the vaccine, according to the CDC.
In Mexico, according to WHO figures, 79.86 percent of children received the first dose of the MMR vaccine.
At least 95 percent of a population is required to be vaccinated in order to achieve “herd immunity” against measles. Herd immunity means enough people have been vaccinated to make it too hard for the disease to spread.
Experts say the safest way to maintain herd immunity is through vaccination programmes.
How effective is the measles vaccine?
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), measles vaccination prevented an estimated 31.7 million deaths globally between 2000 and 2020.
The MMR vaccine, widely used around the world, provides about 97 percent protection against the measles virus, according to public health agencies.
The vaccine is normally given to children in two stages: The first dose at 12 months and the second at about three years and four months of age (when the child is nearing pre-school age), as part of routine immunisation programmes in countries like the United Kingdom.
Breakthrough cases in vaccinated people are rare and usually mild.
A woman receives the measles vaccine as part of a free, mass measles vaccination campaign in the car park of the Estadio Olimpico Universitario in Mexico City, Mexico, on September 19, 2025 [Jose Luis Torales/NurPhoto via Getty Images]
How has the wider Americas region been affected?
According to the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO), part of the wider World Health Organization, Canada’s loss of its status means that “the Region of the Americas has lost its verification as free from endemic measles transmission”.
Once the MMR vaccine was approved for distribution in 1963, healthcare practitioners and school programmes were initiated in Canada, pushing for families to receive immunisation.
By 1998, Canada had achieved its measles elimination status. Two years later, the US achieved its elimination status, as well.
By 2016, the Americas region was declared free from measles, which meant that every country in the region had reached elimination status.
Following an outbreak in Venezuela and Brazil in 2018, the Americas lost its regional elimination status, only to have it reinstated last year once the outbreak was brought under control.
Now, the Americas region has lost its elimination status once again because of the Canadian outbreak. While many individual countries within the region still have their elimination status, measles cases are on the rise, generally.
As of November 7, the PAHO said, there were 12,596 cases of measles across the region, with about 95 percent reported in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
The PAHO said this was a “30-fold increase compared to 2024″.
Twenty-eight deaths have been recorded: 23 in Mexico, three in the United States, and two in Canada.
Jarbas Barbosa, director of PAHO, said the region’s loss of its elimination status was a “setback – but it is also reversible”.
“Until measles is eliminated worldwide, our region will continue to face the risk of reintroduction and spread of the virus among unvaccinated or under-vaccinated populations. However, as we have demonstrated before, with political commitment, regional cooperation, and sustained vaccination, the region can once again interrupt transmission and reclaim this collective achievement,” Barbosa said.
Which other countries in the region are at risk of losing their elimination status?
Currently, active outbreaks are occurring in Mexico, the US, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Belize, which have been “mostly triggered by imported cases”, according to PAHO.
Mexico
Mexico had reported 5,019 measles cases by October 31, according to data from PAHO. The cases are concentrated in the northern state of Chihuahua.
Just seven cases were reported in the whole of Mexico last year. A 31-year-old unvaccinated man from Ascension, Chihuahua, died from the disease in early April this year and at least 14 deaths have been reported since then, according to PAHO.
US
In the US, since January, a measles outbreak has led to 1,681 confirmed cases, according to the CDC last week.
In February, it reported its first measles death in a decade after an unvaccinated child fell ill amid an outbreak in Texas. The school-aged child died overnight after being hospitalised in Lubbock, northwest Texas, the state’s health department said.
Of those who have tested positive for the disease, 92 percent were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status.
Demetre Daskalakis, a former CDC official, told Reuters that the US has a deadline of January 20 to prove that it has curbed the outbreak if it is to retain its elimination status.
Are measles cases on the rise in other parts of the world?
Yes. In late 2023 and early 2024, there was a surge in measles cases in the UK, particularly in England.
In 2024 as a whole, there were 2,911 laboratory-confirmed measles cases in England, the highest number of cases recorded in a year, since 2012, according to the UK Health Security Agency.
In comparison, there were only two confirmed cases of measles across the whole of the UK in 2021 and 54 one year later.
There was another surge in cases in April 2025 – particularly in London and the northwest of the country – the agency said, but cases have since been declining. In 2025 so far, there have been 811 confirmed measles cases in England.
