Reading and understanding food labels
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While we know fresh fruit, vegetables, cereals, legumes and lean meat are the best choices, at times we all rely on processed and packaged foods. In Australia, all packaged foods must display certain information such as a nutrition information panel (NIP), ingredient list and best-before or use-by date. |
Nutrition information panel (NIP)The NIP provides information about the nutrition in the product. The nutrients listed on the NIP include energy (kilojoules), protein, total fat, saturated fat, total carbohydrate, sugars and sodium. Other nutrients (such as calcium and iron) are listed if a claim is made about them, such as ‘good source of calcium'. The panel displays the amount of nutrient per 100g and per serve. When comparing products it is best to use the per 100g column as the serving size will vary between different products. |
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When reading the nutrition information panel we recommend you choose products with:
- Less than 600kJ of energy per snack food
- Less than 10g of total fat per 100g
- Less than 3g of saturated fat per 100g
- Less than 10g of sugar per 100g
- More than 3g of fibre per serve
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Less then 120mg of sodium (salt) per 100g
Ingredient list
The ingredient list lists ingredients in order from the highest weight to the lowest weight. This means the ingredient listed first is present in the largest amount and the ingredient listed last is present in the least amount. Ingredient lists are also useful for looking for sources of added fat, sugar and salt as well as potential allergens. Remember there are many other names used for fat, sugar and salt that may be listed in the ingredient list. Here are some to look out for:
Names for fat |
Names for sugar |
Names for salt |
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Beef fat |
Brown/raw sugar |
Celery salt |
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Butter |
Corn syrup |
Chicken salt |
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Coconut oil |
Cane sugar |
Garlic salt |
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Cocoa butter |
Dextrose |
MSG |
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Copha |
Disaccharides |
Rock salt |
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Diglycerides |
Fructose |
Sea salt |
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Dripping |
Glucose |
Sodium (any type) |
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Hydrogenated vegetable oil |
Golden syrup |
Table salt |
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Lard |
Honey |
Vegetable salt |
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Milk solids |
Invert sugar |
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Monoglycerides |
Lactose |
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Oven baked |
Malt |
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Palm oil |
Malt extract |
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Shortening |
Maltose |
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Tallow |
Molasses |
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Toasted |
Sorbitol |
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Vegetable oil |
Sucrose |
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Use-by and best-before date
The use-by date means that the food must be eaten or thrown away by this date as the food may be unsafe to eat.
The best-before date means that the food is still safe to eat (as long as its not damaged) but may have lost some of its quality and nutrition after this date.
For detailed information about reading and understanding food labels visit www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumerinformation/labellingoffood/
