Since 2016, the Nutrition Facts panels on food label designs has reflected the most recent scientific findings on diet and chronic diseases in America, according to the US Food and Drug Administration. Let us analyze what all this means for you when shopping groceries.
The major focus is calorie clarity. It’s got bolder, bigger numbers now; it is like a diva of grammatical errors and repetitions. These serving sizes have been modified to reflect more closely how much people actually consume and avoid underestimating calories.
You’ve spent endless hours perfecting your recipe, tasting it with friends, family and coworkers, found the perfect package design, and now it’s time to create your product label. The product label design is a crucial step in grabbing the attention of your potential customer but it has to be done within FDA guidelines. There are an endless (or so it seems) amount of regulations for specific products and claims but they all share some of the same requirements.
For starters, here are some fairly major changes that need to be made to the Nutrition Facts panel on all packaging design in 2024.
Food Name
One of the most obvious items that must be on your food label is the name of your product. Naming your product may not be as simple as it sounds. Your brand name can be on principle display panel but that does not identify the product. If your product has a defined standard of identity by the FDA or USDA then that name must be on the front of the label design. Items that have a defined standard of identity are ice cream, juices, yogurt, and many others. If your product does NOT have a standard of identity then you can establish a name that is appropriately descriptive and is not misleading.
Net Contents
The net quantity statement provides the consumer with an accurate weight or volume of how much product they are actually purchasing and consuming. As a general statement food that is solid or semisolid will be listed by weight and products that are liquid will be listed by volume. This information needs to be present on the bottom 30% of the label on the principal display panel. The net contents needs to be listed in both metric and US Customary System. Examples:
· Net wt 1 lb 8 oz (680g)
· 32 fl oz (946ml)
· 1 gallon (3.79L)
Name and Address
Name and address of the manufacturer, packer, or distributor. If the name listed is anything but the manufacturer it must be accompanied by a phrase similar to “manufactured for Company Name”. Along with the name you must list the street address if the company name is not listed and easily assessable. If the address is assessable you must list the city or town, state and zip code.
Ingredient Statement
Your ingredient statement is arguably your most important part of your label. There are many nuances and regulations within creating a compliant ingredient statement. Each raw material may have its own regulation on how it can be labelled. The most important aspects of your ingredient statement are listing your raw materials in descending order of predominance by weight and your allergen statement. Undeclared allergens are the number 1 reason for product recalls. Accurate allergen labeling is crucial part of your label as an inaccurate ingredient statement can cause harm or even death to a consumer.
Nutrition Facts Panel
A nutrition panel is required on almost all food products as it’s the only way the consumer can understand various nutritional attributes of the product. The nutritional facts label should be placed by the ingredient statement and the name and address. There are various types of nutritional panels that are allowed to be used depending on your label size. The nutrition panel has a recent update that will be required on all food products by either 2020 or 2021 depending on total sales of the manufacturer.
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If you need a nutritional panel for your product www.fadcalc.com can create one for you and do an FDA compliance review on your label.
Sugar spotlight! This indicates added sugars as separate from total sugars. This distinction is important since health issues are associated with added sugar intake. You can easily see these in grams and Daily Value (DV) percentages.
Making sense of fat. The revised labels identify specific types of fat i.e., saturated vs unsaturated fats thus giving you the opportunity to choose healthier oils. In addition, any trans fats that may be lurking have to be labeled too.
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Other Information
Beyond the basics. Now FDA also suggests manufacturers include vitamin D which is good for bones, potassium which controls blood pressure among others in their product contents besides other essential nutrients such as calcium and vitamin E that may be voluntarily disclosed.
Remember, this percentage is based on a 2,000-calorie diet. This number might not apply to you so readjust how you view things according to your particular needs
An improved Nutrition Facts Label provides consumers with an important tool for making informed food choices they can use everyday.The grocery aisles became easier than ever before due to better visible caloric figures, amounting of sugar and information about vital nutrition elements necessary for human body function.The next time you pick up an item just pause for a moment – your health will appreciate it!
There is also other information that might be required on your label depending the product type and nutrition claims made. These happen on a case by case basis and must be evaluated for every unique product. This list is not all inclusive and your product may require additional information to be compliant.
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