Food labeling

To improve the quality of the foods we plan to include in our diet, we must select those whose nutritional characteristics best suit our needs, for which adequate information provided by the producer and the consumer's interest in knowing and interpreting it is essential.

To ensure proper communication and facilitate the user's choice, labeling is established, a document that has indications, mentions, trademarks, drawings or signs, related to the food product and appears on any package, band or collar that accompanies the product.

Food labeling can be a useful source of information for food selection and purchase. It includes the name of the food, the quantity, the list of ingredients, and information about its manufacture, such as processing date, expiration date or suggested sell-by date, lot number, and manufacturer's address. Serving sizes contained in the package and nutritional information.

Labels may also contain some health messages or nutritional messages. For example, "low fat" or "low sodium" must meet approved definitions. Health messages on food labels, such as "low cholesterol" or "low blood pressure" may also be regulated. List of mandatory label statements:

• Name of the food shall be its legal name. In the absence of this, the name shall be the usual name, or, if this does not exist or is not used, a descriptive name of the food shall be provided.

• When the information is not sufficient to know the real nature of the food and to distinguish it from foods with which it could be confused, the name shall be supplemented by other descriptive indications which shall appear nearby.

• In the country of marketing, the use of the name of the food under which the product is legally manufactured and marketed in the country of production is permitted.

The list of ingredients: shall be headed or preceded by an appropriate heading which contains or includes the word "ingredients". Any ingredient or processing aid that causes allergies or intolerances and is used in the manufacture or processing of a food and is still present in the finished product, even in a modified form, shall be indicated in the list of ingredients with a clear reference to the name of the substance or product.

The quantity of certain ingredients or of certain categories of ingredients shall be required to indicate the quantity of an ingredient or of a category of ingredients when:

• It appears in the name or is normally associated by the consumer with that name.

• It is highlighted in the labeling by means of words, pictures or graphic representation.

• It is essential to define a food and to distinguish it from other foods with which it could be confused by name or appearance.

The net quantity of the food: shall be expressed in units of volume, liter (l or l), centiliters (cl), and milliliters (ml), for liquid products, or in units of mass, kilograms (kg) and grams (g), for others.

Date of minimum durability or expiration date:

• Use-by date: to be used for foods that are microbiologically highly perishable and therefore may pose an immediate danger to human health after a short period of time.

After its "use by date", the food shall not be considered safe. It shall be expressed by the legend "use by date" accompanied by the date itself or by a reference to the place where it is indicated, and shall be supplemented by a description of the storage conditions. The date shall consist of a clear and orderly indication of day, month and possibly year.

Date of minimum durability: shall be expressed by the following indications, accompanied by the date itself or by a reference to the place where it appears and, if necessary, by the storage conditions to be observed to ensure the durability indicated:

• best before", when the date includes the day.

• best before the end of", in other cases.

Special storage conditions and/or conditions of use:

• Shall be indicated when foods require special storage conditions and/or conditions of use.

• In order to allow proper preservation and/or use after opening, the conditions and/or use-by date should be indicated, where appropriate.

Identification of the company: shall include the name or business name and address of the food business under whose name or name the food is placed on the market or, if not established in the European Union, the importer of the food into the Union market.

The country of origin or place of provenance shall be compulsory when: Its omission could mislead the consumer as to the country of origin or place of provenance of the food, in particular, if the information accompanying the food or the label as a whole could imply that the food has a different country of origin or place of provenance. In the case of meat of the codes of the combined nomenclature.

The instructions for use if, in the absence of this information, it would be difficult to make proper use of the food. Beverages containing more than 1.2% alcohol by volume, the actual alcoholic strength by volume shall be specified.

Batch: indicates the set of sales units of a food product produced, manufactured or packaged under practically equal conditions. The lot shall be preceded by the letter l.

Nutritional information: Nutritional information must be expressed per 100 grams (grams) or 100 milliliters (ml). They may also be expressed per serving or per unit of consumption, provided that the serving or unit is expressed quantitatively on the label; and the number of servings contained in the package is indicated.

In addition, they may be expressed as a percentage of the reference intakes, including the legend "" reference intake of an average adult equivalent to 8400 kilo joule or the same as 2000 kilocalories, in this case, may be expressed only per serving or per unit of consumption.

The mandatory nutrition information shall include the following:

• The energy value.

• Quantities of fats, saturated fatty acids, carbohydrates, sugars, proteins and salt.

It may be supplemented with the indication of the amount of one or more of the following substances:

• Monounsaturated fatty acids.

• Polyunsaturated fatty acids.

• Polyalcohols.

• Starch.

• Dietary fiber.

• Any vitamin or mineral that is present in significant amounts.

List of mandatory statements for specific categories or types of foods:

• Foods packaged in certain gases: foods whose shelf life has been extended by authorized packaging gases.

• Must state: "" packaged in protective atmosphere.

• Foods containing sweeteners: Foods containing one or more authorized sweeteners.

• Shall read: "" with sweetener(s); this statement shall accompany the name of the food.

Foods containing both added sugar(s) and an authorized sweetener(s). To read: "" with sugar(s) and sweetener(s); this statement shall accompany the name of the food.

Foods containing aspartame or salt of aspartame-acesulfame, authorized. Must state: "" contains aspartame (a source of phenylalanine) or the statement "" contains a source of phenylalanine.

Foods containing more than 10% of authorized added polyols. Should read: "" excessive consumption may produce laxative effects.

Foods containing glycyrrhizic acid or its ammonium salt.

Beverageswith a caffeine content or foods with added caffeine: Beverages, except those made from coffee, tea or tea or coffee extracts, in which the name of the food includes the words "" coffee or "" tea, which are intended for consumption without any modification and contain caffeine, whatever its origin with a proportion greater than 150 milligrams per liter. Should read: "" high caffeine content: not recommended for children or pregnant or breastfeeding women.

Foods other than beverages, to which caffeine is added for physiological purposes. Should read: "" high caffeine content: not recommended for children or pregnant or lactating women.

Foods with added phytosterols, phytosterol esters, phytostanols or phytostanol esters: should read: "" with added plant sterols or "" with added plant stanols.

Frozen meat, frozen meat preparations and frozen unprocessed fishery products: should read: "" date of freezing or date of first freezing in cases where the product has been frozen on more than one occasion. Recommendations for reading and evaluating the nutritional information: Observe the size of the portions, to evaluate if they coincide with the portion to be consumed. It is necessary to bear in mind that the portions, or unit of consumption, sometimes, are very small, and we need to consume more than one, reason why the nutritional values, contained in the nutritional information, we must multiply them by the amount of portions that we take in each ration.

It is not advisable to consume foods that contain many calories, a portion should not exceed 120-150 kilocalories, a product is considered of "low energy value" if it does not exceed 40 kilocalories per 100 grams in solids, or more than 20 kilocalories per 100 grams in liquids. If it lacks energy content, it should not have more than 4 kilocalories per 100 milliliters.

The amount of carbohydrates and simple sugars should be reviewed, as well as the amount of fiber. It is recommended to increase the consumption of fiber and reduce the consumption of simple sugars. Products with "low sugar content" should not contain more than 5 grams in 100 grams or 2.5 grams in 100 milliliters.

The fat content and quality of fat should be assessed. Foods containing high levels of saturated fats (butter, animal fats, coconut or palm oil) and trans fats (margarines) are harmful to health. Foods rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (olive, sunflower, corn and soybean oils) are healthy.

We must take into account the salt content, a food should not have more than 0.3 grams per serving. The WHO recommends that adults should not exceed 5 grams of salt per day. A food is considered "low sodium/salt" when its content does not exceed 0.12 grams of sodium per 100 grams or 100 milliliters.