Food Labelling

Food labelling usually includes nutrition information, portion information, allergens, health claims and symbols. The nutrition information can be tricky to navigate. Below is a short guide with key points to remember.

• The ingredients are listed in descending order with the first ingredient being the ingredient present in the largest quantity.
• The nutritional information will contain the quantities of protein, fats, carbohydrates, sugars and any other relevant vitamin or mineral in that food. This will include quantity per portion and per 100g/100ml of the product. It can be useful to compare products using the per 100g/100ml information.
• Reference Intakes (RIs) will also be included on the label. Reference Intakes are guidelines on the approximate amounts of particular nutrients and energy required for a healthy diet. On food labelling it will show what percentage of the RI that food contains.
• Nutrition and health claims can be confusing to decipher. Claims that products are high/low in a particular nutrient are regulated by the European Food and Safety Authority (EFSA). A table of these claims and what they mean can be found in this (opens in a new window)article published by The European Food Information Council (EUFIC). The article also covers health claims which are claims that 'state, suggest or imply that a relationship exists between a food or one of its components and health'. Understanding what these mean can make you a better consumer and help with purchasing the products that are most beneficial for your health.
• EUFIC have a (opens in a new window)new interactive food labelling resource that explains food labelling clearly.
• For more information check out the (opens in a new window)EUFIC guide on food labelling and the (opens in a new window)Safefood guide.