2.6: Understanding Food Labels

Learning Objectives

• Use the Nutrition Facts label to discover the nutritional information of food.
• Identify foods that are a good/poor source of a nutrient using %DV.
• Describe various claims that can appear on a food label.
• Identify the eight most common food allergens.
• Distinguish between enrichment and fortification of foods.

The Labels on Your Food

Understanding the significance of dietary guidelines and how to use DRIs in planning your nutrient intakes can make you better equipped to select the right foods the next time you go to the supermarket.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires food labels on most prepared foods (e.g., bread, cereal, canned foods, frozen foods, snacks, desserts, drinks).¹ Food labels for raw produce (fruits and vegetables) and fish is voluntary.¹ Detailed food labels are not required for meat and poultry which are regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 requires that all packaged foods sold in the United States have nutrition labels that accurately reflect the contents of the food products. Information that is required by law to appear somewhere on the food package includes:

• Name and address of the manufacturer, packager, or distributor
• Statement of identity (the common name of what the product actually is; e.g., granola)
• Net contents of the package including weight, volume, measure, or numerical count
• Ingredients, listed in descending order by weight (the first product on the list is the predominant ingredient in that food)
  • must also clearly state presence of any common food allergens (peanuts, tree nuts, milk, wheat, eggs, soy, fish, shellfish)
• Nutrition information (also known as the Nutrition Facts label)

The Nutrition Facts label provides a wealth of information about the nutritional content of the product. The information also allows shoppers to compare products. Because the serving sizes are included on the label, you can see how much of each nutrient is in each serving to make the comparisons. Knowing how to read the label is important because of the way some foods are presented. For example, a bag of peanuts at the grocery store may seem like a healthy snack to eat on the way to class. But have a look at that label. Does it contain one serving, or multiple servings? Unless you are buying the individual serving packages, chances are the bag you picked up is at least six servings, if not more.

Reading the Nutrition Facts Label

The first part of the Nutrition Facts label gives you information on the serving size and how many servings are in the container. For example, a label on a box of crackers might tell you that twenty crackers equals one serving and that the whole box contains 10 servings. Serving size information has been updated to reflect typical amounts eaten; it is important to pay attention to how many servings of a food you eat to accurately reflect the calories and nutrients consumed.

All other values listed thereafter, from the calories to the dietary fiber to the potassium, are based on this one serving. On the label, the serving size is followed by the number of calories and then a list of selected nutrients.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): The Nutrition Facts label ("Nutrition Facts Label" by U.S. Food and Drug Administration)

% Daily Value (%DV)

You will also see “% Daily Value” on the far right-hand side. This helps you determine if the food is a good source of a particular nutrient or not. The Daily Value (DV) represents the recommended amount of a given nutrient based on the DRI of that nutrient in a 2,000 calorie diet. The % Daily Value (% DV) represents the proportion of the total daily recommended amount that you will get from one serving of the food. For example, in the food label in Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\), the % DV of calcium is 20%, which means that one serving of this food provides 20% of the daily recommended calcium intake. Whether you consume 2,000 calories per day or not you can still use the % DV as a target reference.

Foods that contain less than 5% DV of a nutrient are considered low in that nutrient. Foods that contain more than 20% DV of a nutrient are considered high in that nutrient. This means, as a general rule, for fat, saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, or sodium, look for foods with a low % DV. Alternatively, when concentrating on essential mineral or vitamin intake, look for a high % DV.

Interactive Nutrition Facts Label

The FDA has an Interactive Nutrition Facts Label at https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/InteractiveNutritionFactsLabel/ that you can visit to explore each section of the label in more detail.

Claims on Labels

Food labels can display a variety of claims such as "good source of calcium" or "reduced fat". There are three categories of claims that are defined by statute and/or FDA regulations: nutrient content claims, health claims, and structure/function claims.²

Nutrient Content Claims

Any nutrient content claims on food labels must meet certain requirements. For example, a manufacturer cannot claim that a food is fat-free or low-fat if it is not, in reality, fat-free or low-fat. Low-fat indicates that the product has three or fewer grams of fat; low salt indicates there are fewer than 140 milligrams of sodium, and low-cholesterol indicates there are fewer than 20 milligrams of cholesterol and two grams of saturated fat. The Daily Values on food labels serve as the basis for many nutrient claims. See Table \(\PageIndex{1}\) for some examples.³

Table \(\PageIndex{1}\): Common Label Terms Defined

Term	Explanation
Lean	Fewer than a set amount of grams of fat for that particular cut of meat
High	Contains more than 20% of the nutrient’s DV
Good source	Contains 10 to 19% of nutrient’s DV
Reduced	Contains 25% less of a certain component (e.g., calories, sugar, fat) as compared to the original version
Light/lite	Contains ⅓ fewer calories or 50% less fat; if more than half of calories come from fat, then fat content must be reduced by 50% or more
Organic	Contains 95% organic ingredients

Health Claims

Often we hear news of a particular nutrient or food product that contributes to our health or may prevent disease. Food companies are allowed to make certain claims related to health and disease on food labels. A health claim is a statement that links a particular food with a reduced risk of developing disease. As such, health claims such as “reduces heart disease,” must be evaluated by the FDA before it may appear on packaging. Prior to the passage of the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 products that made such claims were categorized as drugs and not food.

All health claims must be substantiated by scientific evidence in order for it to be approved and put on a food label. To avoid having companies making false claims, laws also regulate how health claims are presented on food packaging. In addition to the claim being backed up by scientific evidence, it may never claim to cure or treat the disease. For a detailed list of approved health claims, visit https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition/authorized-health-claims-meet-significant-scientific-agreement-ssa-standard.

Qualified Health Claims

While health claims must be backed up by significant scientific evidence, qualified health claims have credible evidence, which is not as definitive as with health claims. The evidence may suggest that the food or nutrient is beneficial. Wording for this type of claim may look like this: “Consuming EPA and DHA combined may reduce the risk of CHD (coronary heart disease) by lowering blood pressure. However, FDA has concluded that the evidence is inconsistent and inconclusive. One serving of [name of the food or dietary supplement] provides [x] gram(s) of EPA and DHA.".⁴

Structure/Function Claims

Some companies claim that certain foods and nutrients have benefits for health even though no scientific evidence exists. In these cases, food labels are permitted to claim that you may benefit from the food because it may boost your immune system, for example. These claims can be made without FDA approval and without proof. The claims are generic statements about a food's impact on the body (e.g., "builds stronger bones"). The claims cannot refer to a specific disease or symptom. There may not be claims of diagnosis, cures, treatment, or disease prevention, and there must be a disclaimer that the FDA has not evaluated the claim.²

Allergy Warnings

Food manufacturers are required by the FDA to list on their packages if the product contains any of the eight most common ingredients that cause food allergies.⁵ The eight common allergens are milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, and wheat. The FDA does not require warnings that cross contamination may occur during packaging, however most manufacturers include this advisory as a courtesy. For instance, you may notice a label that states, “This product is manufactured in a factory that also processes peanuts.” If you have food allergies, it is best to avoid products that may have been contaminated with the allergen.

Food Enrichment and Fortification

Many foods are enriched or fortified to boost their nutritional value. Enrichment involves adding nutrients to restore those that were lost during processing. For example, iron and certain B vitamins are added to white flour to replace the nutrients that are removed in the process of milling wheat. Fortification involves adding nutrients that didn't originally exist in the food; fortification is often done to enhance a food’s nutritive value. For example, folic acid is typically added to cereals and grain products, while calcium is added to some orange juice.

Key Takeaways

• The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 made it a law that foods sold in the United States have a food label that provides the accurate contents of nutrients within them.
• The Nutrition Facts label gives information on the amount of servings per container, the amount of calories per serving, and the amounts of certain nutrients.
• The %DV is the percentage of the amount of the nutrient in the food in relationship to its recommended intake. It is a guide to help you determine if a food is a good or poor source of nutrients.
• To keep companies from making false claims, the FDA provides regulation for food manufacturers in putting labels on packages that promote health. Allergens must also be listed on food labels.
• Enrichment involves adding nutrients to restore those that were lost during processing; fortification involves adding nutrients that didn't originally exist in the food.

References

1. Food Labeling & Nutrition. fda.gov. https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition. Accessed November 10, 2022.
2. Label Claims for Conventional Foods and Dietary Supplements. fda.gov. https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition/label-claims-conventional-foods-and-dietary-supplements. Accessed June 6, 2020.
3. US Food and Drug Administration. Food Labeling Guide. Last updated January 2013. https://www.fda.gov/media/81606/download. Accessed June 6, 2020.
4. FDA Announces New Qualified Health Claims for EPA and DHA Omega-3 Consumption and the Risk of Hypertension and Coronary Heart Disease. fda.gov. https://www.fda.gov/food/cfsan-constituent-updates/fda-announces-new-qualified-health-claims-epa-and-dha-omega-3-consumption-and-risk-hypertension-and. Accessed June 6, 2020.
5. Food Allergen Labeling And Consumer Protection Act of 2004 Questions and Answers. fda.gov. https://www.fda.gov/food/food-allergensgluten-free-guidance-documents-regulatory-information/food-allergen-labeling-and-consumer-protection-act-2004-questions-and-answers. Accessed June 6, 2020.