Aldi 'dark rye sourdough' trading standards case

According to the label, the main ingredient of the ‘dark rye sourdough’ in Aldi’s ‘Specially Selected’ range is non-wholemeal wheat flour. Rye flour is placed second on the ingredients list, though the company does not state that it is wholemeal.

‘Dark rye sourdough’ appears in the product name; the company emphasises ‘rye sourdough bread’ on the labelling; wholemeal rye flour is essential to characterise ‘dark rye’ bread and to distinguish it from products with which it might be confused because of the name; and wholemeal rye flour is usually associated with the name ‘dark rye’ by the consumer. As such, Article 22 of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 requires the company to give a quantitative ingredients declaration (QUID) of the wholemeal rye flour on the product label. The company does not do this.

As the main ingredient in this product is non-wholemeal wheat flour, the Real Bread Campaign also believes the product name and description ‘rye sourdough bread’ to be inaccurate by and misleading by omission – even more so in the absence of the QUID, so consumers are unaware of how much non-wholemeal wheat flour, and how little wholemeal rye flour, the product contains.

On 28 January 2026, the Campaign raised this issue with @AldiUK by direct message via Instagram. On 10 February 2026, the company responded:

“The legislation also provides exemptions, including where the name of the food is a customary or established name that consumers would commonly understand without the need for a quantitative declaration. In the case of Specially Selected Dark Rye Sourdough, we considered the product name to be a customary description of this style of bread rather than an emphasis on a particular ingredient for promotional purposes. The rye is declared appropriately within the ingredients list in line with legal requirements, and on this basis, a separate QUID was not originally included.”

No such exemption is provided by Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011. Even if it did exist, consumers commonly understand ‘dark rye’ bread to be made from only (or, at least, mainly) wholemeal rye flour, rather than having non-wholemeal wheat flour as its main ingredient.

The Campaign sent the complain to the trading standards department of its local authority, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, asking LBTH to liaise with the company’s Primary Authority on the case.

See also

• Lidl 'sourdough rye' rebrand
• Aldi comes clean about ‘fermented wheat flour’ 
• New research echoes Honest Crust Act calls
• Loaf-tanning salon lies?
• Dirty secret behind factory loaf 'clean labels'?
• What's 'wholemeal' hiding
• Words ‘woolly as white-sliced’
• Where are The Bread Police?

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