Nutritional Information Regulations

European Food Information to Consumers Regulation No 1169/2011 (FIC)

The new EC Food Information Regulations (EU 1169/2011), which include nutritional information was first introduced on 13th December 2014 and will now become mandatory from 13th December 2016. This new regulation will replace the previous UK/EU food labeling laws regulations.

The new food nutrition labeling regulation replaces directive 90/496/EEC of 1990 and directive 2000/13/EC.  The new regulation makes nutrition labeling mandatory, and instructs food manufacturers to provide information on the energy value and 6 nutrients; fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt – in this order and expressed per 100 g or per 100 ml of product. In addition values can be expressed on a per portion basis. Further nutrients (i.e. monounsaturates, polyunsaturates, polyols, starch, fibre, vitamins and minerals) can be included voluntarily.

The mandatory back of pack declaration will now comprise of: energy (kJ, kcal), fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein & salt and must also be included on any webpage or catalog prior to completion of purchase.

Key new requirements:

• For pre-packed foods, allergen information must be emphasised in the ingredients list.
• For non-prepacked foods (including catering), allergen information must be made available to consumers
• A minimum font size for the mandatory information on food labels eg. name of the food, ingredients lists, date marks etc.  This also extends to voluntary front-of-pack (FOP) nutrition information.
• Nutrition labelling will be required for most pre-packed foods and this must be presented in a consistent format.
• Allergen information requirements – Allergen Guidance

Here’s a full list of mandatory requirements for food product labels as of Dec 13th 2016

• Name of the food*
• List of ingredients
• Allergens
• Quantity of certain ingredients
• Net quantity*
• Date of minimum durability
• Special storage conditions and/or conditions of use
• Name and address of seller in the EU
• Country of origin or place of provenance where provided for in Article 26
• Instructions for use where necessary
• Alcoholic strength*
• Nutrition declaration

The Regulations say that general average nutritional values for ingredients can be used to calculate nutritional information for products. DEFRA (the Government Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs) guidance states that data from McCance and Widdowson’s The Composition of Foods can be employed for this purpose. (use the link to use this data set to calculate your own Nutritional Information.

Guidance on providing ‘front of pack’ labelling in line with UK government 2013 recommendation can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/front-of-pack-nutrition-labelling-guidance

We have you covered

We know how daunting this can be, trying to make sense of the mass of information. So we do all the work for you, you get a full break down of the 7 compulsory nutrition elements, values and compliant regulation issued images with each report. Simply drop them onto your label and you’re done! Take a look at our Services.