Myperfectpack share guidance which tells you the information you must provide with food products, so you comply with the rules on food information to consumers.
These rules apply to you if you operate a food business, even if you give food to consumers for free. You do not need to give food information to customers if you’re not a food business and you’re providing food for an occasional event, like a village fair.
To sell food and drink products, the label must be:
clear and easy to read
permanent
easy to understand
easily visible
not misleading
You must show certain basic information and list the ingredients. You might also have to show certain warnings.
There are special regulations for labelling wine.
Responsibilities
The business under whose name the food is marketed is primarily responsible for the food information unless that business is not established in the EU, in which case the first importer into the EU has the responsibility. However, even businesses that don't affect the information shouldn't supply food where they suspect the information is non-compliant.
Any changes made to the food information must not mislead or reduce consumer protection. They are the responsibility of the business to make the changes.
Businesses that supply ingredients or consumer-ready loose food to other businesses must provide enough information for the recipients to meet the eventual obligations to caterers and consumers. When consumer-ready prepacked food is not marketed directly to the consumer, the required food information can be provided in commercial documents. However, the legal name of the food, the durability date, the storage/usage conditions and the business name and address must also appear on the external packaging of the prepacked assssssssssssssfoods. This also applies when prepacked food is intended for caterers to use in dish preparation.
Packaging
If you package food yourself, you must use packaging that’s suitable for food use. Suitable packaging is marked ‘for food contact’ or has a symbol on it that looks like a wine glass and a fork.
There are special rules for using plastics, ceramics or cellophane for packaging. You must have written evidence that you’ve kept to them.
This is known as a ‘declaration of compliance’ and you can get it from your packaging supplier. You also have to get one if you buy food that’s already packaged for sale in any of those materials.
Food labelling - what you must show
You must show the following information
the name of the food
a ‘best before’ or ‘use by’ date
any necessary warnings
net quantity information
a list of ingredients (if there is more than 1)
the country or place of origin, if required
the lot number or use-by date
any special storage conditions
instructions for use or cooking, if necessary
If you’re selling food in Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland), you must also include the name and address of the UK or EU business responsible for the information on the food. If the business is not in the UK or EU, you must include the name and address of the importer. If you’re selling food in Northern Ireland, you must include the name and address of the Northern Irish or EU business responsible for the information on the food. If the business is not in Northern Ireland or the EU, you must include the name and address of the importer.
Quantity information
You must put the net quantity in grams, kilograms, millilitres or litres on the label of:
packaged food over 5g or 5ml
packaged herbs and spices
Solid foods packed in a liquid (or an ice glaze) must show the drained net weight.
The net quantity must be close enough to the name of the food that you can see all this information at the same time. This also applies to the alcoholic strength for alcoholic drinks.
You do not have to show the weight or volume on foods sold by number, for example 2 bread rolls, provided that you can clearly see the number of items inside the packaging.
Information you may have to show
You must also show these if they apply to your product:
a warning for drinks with an alcohol content above 1.2%
a warning if the product contains GM ingredients, unless their presence is accidental and 0.9% or less
a warning if the product has been irradiated
the words ‘packaged in a protective atmosphere’ if the food is packaged using a packaging gas
Country or place of origin
You must show the country or place of origin for:
beef, veal, lamb, mutton, pork, goat and poultry
fish and shellfish
honey
olive oil
wine
fruit and vegetables
You must also show the country of origin if customers might be misled without this information, for example if the label for a pizza shows the leaning tower of Pisa but the pizza is made in the UK.
If the primary ingredient in the food comes from somewhere different from where the product says it was made, the label must show this. For example, a pork pie labelled ‘British’ that’s produced in the UK with pork from Denmark, must state ‘with pork from Denmark’ or ‘made with pork from outside the UK’.
Special rules for some products
There are special rules about what you have to show on the label if you supply any of the following:
bottled water
bread and flour
cocoa and chocolate products
fats and oils
fish
fruit juices and nectars
honey
jams and preserves
meat and meat products
milk and milk products
soluble coffee
sugar
Ingredients list
If your food or drink product has 2 or more ingredients (including any additives), you must list them all. Ingredients must be listed in order of weight, with the main ingredient first.
Ingredient quantities
You also have to show the percentage of an ingredient if it is:
highlighted by the labelling or a picture on a package, for example ‘extra cheese’
mentioned in the name of the product, for example ‘cheese and onion pasty’
normally connected with the name by the consumer, for example fruit in a summer pudding
Allergens
You must highlight allergens on the label using a different font, style or background colour. You must also list them in the ingredients.
The allergens you need to highlight and list are:
celery
cereals containing gluten - including wheat, rye, barley and oats
crustaceans - including prawns, crab and lobster
eggs
fish
lupin
milk
molluscs - including squid, mussels, cockles, whelks and snails
mustard
nuts
peanuts
sesame seeds
soya beans
sulphur dioxide or sulphites at levels above 10mg per kilogram or per litre
Nutrition, health claims and supplement labelling
Nutrition labelling You must follow nutrition labelling information rules for all pre-packed products unless both of the following apply:
you’re a small business with under 10 employees and a turnover of less than £1.4 million
you supply either direct to consumers or to local retailers - local means within your county, your neighbouring county, or up to 30 miles from your county boundary
Nutrition and health claims You have to follow certain rules if you want to make a nutrition claim (for example, low fat) or a health claim (for example, calcium helps maintain normal bones). You cannot claim or imply that food can treat, prevent or cure any disease or medical condition. Food supplements, fortified foods and foods for specific nutritional uses You must follow certain rules if you are manufacturing, selling or importing:
a food supplement
a food fortified with vitamins and minerals
There are also specific rules for ‘parnuts foods’, for example:
formula milk for infants and young children
baby food
meal and total diet replacement for weight control
medical foods
Organic food