General / November 16, 2024
To produce and distribute food products in the United States, companies must comply with manufacturing, handling and packaging regulations defined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In addition, organizations must ensure that food labels meet the standards laid out in the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA).
Small missteps can cause noncompliance — for example, the Nutrition Facts label must always be a box shape, even on round packages. Navigating multiple regulations for multiple products can quickly become complicated.
There are two ways you can label packages and containers: by placing all label statements on the principal display panel (PDP) or by splitting your label statements between the PDP and the information panel, which is located on the right side of the package or container.
No matter where you put your statements, however, several elements must be on every package.
The name of the food item must appear on the front label as well as any additional PDP. It must be in bold type and should be the common name of the food. Names should also include modifiers if the food in the package is sold in different forms — e.g., cheddar cheese and sliced cheddar cheese.
The net quality of contents states the amount of food in the container. It may be expressed as weight, measure or numeric count. Foods that are solid or semisolid generally use weight, while liquids use fluid measure.
The list of ingredients states each ingredient in descending order of prominence by weight. The list may be placed either on the PDP or the information panel. The type used for the list should be at least 1/16 inch high.
Worth noting? Water added in the making of food is considered an ingredient and must be listed unless all of the added water is subsequently removed by cooking, baking or other means.
The Nutrition Facts label should be placed on the PDP. It contains information about the nutritional content of the food item.
Data on the label must include a definition of the product’s serving size and how many servings are in each container. It must also specify the amount of total fat, saturated fat and trans fat measured in grams. Additionally, the product must list cholesterol, sodium and total carbohydrates in milligrams.
Under FDA food packaging requirements, nutrition content claims are defined as any claims that directly state or imply the level of a nutrient in the food product. Common claims include “low fat,” “high in X ingredient or vitamin” or “contains X calories.”
FDA guidance specifies what claims may be used and under what conditions. No other claims are permitted.
If you’re looking for even more detailed regulations on food labeling, check out the FDA Labeling Guide.
There are also additional FDA regulations for frozen food packaging. This is because frozen food is handled differently than fresh items and requires different rules to ensure consumer safety.
For example, frozen food items are often handled in bulk using conveyor packaging systems. As a result, the safety and cleanliness of these systems is a top priority in food regulations. Common compliance priorities include resistance to extreme temperature changes, improved packaging durability and resistance to chemical hazards such as acid and oil.
To help navigate these requirements, it’s important to work with a reliable and reputable partner for frozen food packaging.
At Eagle Flexible Packaging we take into consideration your product and your packaging processes when making a material recommendation so that it complys with the FDA requirements.
We are fully committed to providing sustainable packaging solutions for a wide range of food and non-food applications. Our Recyclable – both Store Drop-off and curbside, PCR (Post Consumer Recycled content), Compostable, and premium traditional packaging materials are chosen to minimize negative environmental impact.