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Food labelling

All food labels must include basic information by law, including:

  • Name or description of the food.
  • Manufacturer’s name and address.
  • Weight or volume, though some foods are sold by quantity. An ‘e’ symbol next to the weight means that an average weight must be accurate, but the weight of each pack may vary slightly.
  • Datemark. Use by dates are for highly perishable foods and it is illegal for shops to sell the food after this date. Best before dates are used on less perishable foods. Food eaten after the date may not be dangerous but will be past its best. Both assume that food has been correctly stored. Sell by or display-until dates are used by shops although it is not an offence to sell food past this date.  

  • Ingredients list. Ingredients, including additives, must be listed in descending order of weight. From February 2000, products will also have to declare the percentage of their key ingredients – e.g. the amount of fish in a fish finger or strawberry in a strawberry yoghurt.

  • Information about certain processes used in manufacturing – e.g. pasteurised, dried, frozen, concentrated, smoked.
  • Nutrition information is sometimes included, but isn’t required by law unless the manufacturer makes a claim such as ‘low fat’ or ‘high fibre’.
  • Place of origin must be given if there is a chance shoppers could otherwise be misled. Any special storage or cooking instructions.
  • Organic food standards are laid down by law to ensure that organic food has been produced without the use of artificial chemicals and pesticides, and that farm animals have not been fed or treated with antibiotics and other drugs or kept in intensive systems. Organic producers are regularly inspected. Organic standards also cover all imported organic food.
 
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