What Information Must Be on a Food Label in the UK?

Last Updated: November 4, 2026

Table of Contents

• The Core Mandatory Information Every Prepacked Food Label Needs
• Allergen Labelling Requirements UK Businesses Must Follow
• Ingredients List Order and the QUID Labelling Requirements
• Nutrition Declaration: What to Include and How to Set It Out
• Food Labelling Exemptions for Small Businesses and Non-Prepacked Food
• Legibility, Font Size and Dates: Getting the Details Right
• Your Label Checklist Before Stock Goes on Sale
• Frequently Asked Questions

Every prepacked food product sold in the UK has to carry a specific set of details on its label, and getting even one of them wrong can mean withdrawn stock and an unhappy environmental health officer. If you run a café, restaurant or food-producing business, the question of what information must be on a food label in the UK is one you need answered before the first pot of soup hits the shelf. The short answer is that most prepacked food needs a name, an ingredients list, allergen emphasis, a net quantity, a date mark, storage instructions and the name and address of the food business operator. This guide walks through each element, the exemptions that apply to smaller operators, and a checklist you can use before stock goes on sale.

The Core Mandatory Information Every Prepacked Food Label Needs

The core mandatory information rules sit in the Food Information Regulations 2014, which apply across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Under those rules, prepacked food must show the name of the food, the ingredients list, any allergen information, the net quantity, a date of minimum durability or use-by date, any special storage conditions, the name and address of the food business operator, the country of origin where its absence would mislead, and instructions for use where needed. You can read the full rules on legislation.gov.uk Food Information Regulations 2014.

The food name must describe the product accurately and not mislead the consumer. A sandwich labelled "chicken mayo" that contains mostly bread and very little chicken creates exactly the sort of confusion the rules are designed to prevent. Keep the name plain and factual.

Watch out: a date mark printed in the wrong format, or one that is missing entirely, is among the most common reasons stock is pulled from shelves during inspection.

The core mandatory particulars for prepacked food are summarised below.

Element	Requirement	Note
Food name	Accurate, not misleading	Keep it plain and factual
Ingredients list	Descending order by weight	First item is the largest
Allergens	14 major allergens emphasised	Bold or contrasting style
Net quantity	Stated in metric units	Required on all prepacked food
Date mark	Use by or best before	Check each product line
Storage conditions	Stated where relevant	Include where they apply
Food business operator	Name and address shown	Required on all prepacked food

Allergen Labelling Requirements UK Businesses Must Follow

Allergen labelling is the area where most small food businesses feel the greatest pressure. Since October 2021, Natasha's Law has required that all food made and packed on the same premises for sale, such as a sandwich assembled in the morning and sold in the afternoon, carries a full ingredients list with the 14 major allergens emphasised in bold, or in a contrasting style. The Food Standards Agency explains the requirements on Food Standards Agency guidance on allergen labelling.

In practice, that means you need to know exactly which of the 14 allergens appear in each product, including hidden sources such as stock cubes, sauces and bread. A simple allergen matrix listing every product against every allergen is the most reliable way to keep track. Reviewing that matrix whenever a supplier changes a recipe is good practice, because a supplier's reformulation is one of the most frequent ways an allergen slips through unnoticed.

Best for: cafés and restaurants preparing food on site. Skip if: you only sell sealed factory-packed goods that you have not repackaged, since those follow the manufacturer's labelling.

Ingredients List Order and the QUID Labelling Requirements

Ingredients must be listed in descending order by weight at the time of manufacture. The first ingredient is therefore the one present in the largest amount. Where an ingredient is highlighted in the product name or on the pack, you must also declare its percentage, a requirement known as quantitative ingredient declaration, or QUID.

QUID applies to ingredients that are emphasised on the label, such as "strawberry yoghurt" with strawberries featured in the image, or "beef burger" with a beef claim on the front. Declaring the percentage means you need accurate recipe weights rather than estimates. Standard recipe costings often make this easier, because you already need the weights to price and portion correctly.

Nutrition Declaration: What to Include and How to Set It Out

For most prepacked foods, a nutrition declaration is mandatory and must follow a fixed order and format set out in the Food Information Regulations 2014. The declaration must show energy in both kilojoules (kJ) and kilocalories (kcal), followed by fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt. These figures are given per 100 grams or 100 millilitres, and you may additionally show them per portion or per serving, provided the portion size is stated and the number of portions in the pack is clear.

The order is not optional: energy first, then fat, saturates, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt. You may also declare monounsaturates, polyunsaturates, polyols, starch, fibre and certain vitamins and minerals, but only if you include them in the correct position within the table. Salt must be expressed as salt, not sodium, if your laboratory analysis reports sodium, multiply by 2.5 to convert to salt.

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Figures should come from a recognised calculation method or laboratory analysis, with inputs kept accurate and updated whenever the recipe or a supplier's ingredient specification changes. A common pattern is for small producers to calculate once and then fail to update when a supplier reformulates, which is one of the most frequent causes of inaccurate declarations found at inspection.

Some foods are exempt from the nutrition declaration, including food sold in small quantities directly to the final consumer or to local retail establishments directly supplying the final consumer, and food for which labelling would be impracticable because of its small size. Herbs, spices, salt, sweeteners, vinegar, flavourings, additives, processing aids, food enzymes, gelatine, jam-setting compounds, yeast, chewing gum and certain small-pack foods also have specific exemptions. The conditions are narrow, so check the current guidance rather than relying on a rule of thumb.

Where you make a nutrition or health claim, such as "low fat" or "high fibre", the nutrition declaration becomes mandatory regardless of any exemption, and the claim must meet the conditions set out in the retained Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims. Front-of-pack traffic-light labelling is voluntary in the UK, but if you use it, the figures must be consistent with the mandatory declaration and follow the agreed format.

Food Labelling Exemptions for Small Businesses and Non-Prepacked Food

Not every food needs a full label, and the rules for non-prepacked food are where most small operators get caught out. Food sold loose, bread from a counter, cakes in an open display, takeaway meals, deli items, is classed as non-prepacked and falls under different requirements from prepacked food.

For non-prepacked food, the mandatory particulars are narrower: you must provide the name of the food and allergen information. Allergen information must be available in writing, or verbally, but if you provide it verbally you must display a written notice directing customers to ask a member of staff. The 14 allergens must be declared by name in the ingredients list or, where there is no ingredients list, in a clearly signposted allergen statement. Natasha's Law, which took effect in October 2021, applies to food packed on the same premises for sale, such as a sandwich assembled in the morning and sold in the afternoon, and requires a full ingredients list with the 14 allergens emphasised in bold or a contrasting style. You can check whether your business is ready to comply with a simple checklist.

Some small producers may be exempt from the nutrition declaration when they sell directly to consumers or to local retail, but the conditions are specific and should be checked against the current official guidance.

Post-Brexit labelling changes matter here too. Check which labelling regime applies to your market before printing, as arrangements differ between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Legibility, Font Size and Dates: Getting the Details Right

Mandatory information must be easy to read. For most prepacked food, the minimum x-height for text is 1.2 millimetres, and allergen emphasis must stand out clearly from the rest of the ingredients list.

Date marks need equal attention. Use "use by" for highly perishable foods that could pose a risk after the date, and "best before" for foods whose quality declines gradually. Mixing these up is a common error, so check each product line individually.

Your Label Checklist Before Stock Goes on Sale

Before any prepacked product goes on sale, run through this list:

• Food name is accurate and not misleading
• Full ingredients list in descending weight order
• All 14 major allergens emphasised in bold or a contrasting style
• QUID percentages declared for emphasised ingredients
• Nutrition declaration complete and in the correct order
• Net quantity shown in metric units
• "Use by" or "best before" date present and correct
• Storage conditions stated where relevant
• Name and address of the food business operator shown
• Text legible and at the required size

For an overall view of the legal framework behind these labels, the Food Standards Agency's guidance on UK food safety regulations overview is a useful starting point. Once the checklist is complete, a worked label example can show how the details come together on a real pack.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the mandatory requirements for prepacked food labels?

Prepacked food sold in the UK generally needs the name of the food, a list of ingredients, allergen emphasis, net quantity, a use-by or best-before date, storage conditions, the name and address of the food business operator, and lot or batch identification. Nutrition information is also required for most prepacked foods. The exact wording and layout rules are set out in the UK retained version of EU Regulation 1169/2011, known as the Food Information Regulations, and the Food Information (Amendment) Regulations. Check the official legislation.gov.uk text before finalising any label, as details can change.

How do I display allergen information on food labels?

The fourteen major allergens must be emphasised within the ingredients list, for example in bold, italics or a contrasting background, so they stand out from the surrounding text. Allergens can also be listed in a separate 'Contains' statement directly after the ingredients. For prepacked food, this information must be provided before purchase, including online. Where food is not prepacked, such as in a café, allergen information must still be available to customers on request. Keeping a written allergen matrix for each product helps staff answer questions accurately.

Do small businesses have exemptions from food labelling laws?

Small businesses are not automatically exempt from core labelling rules. Some flexibility applies, for example certain food sold directly to the consumer at the point of sale, such as freshly made sandwiches packed on site, may not need the full prepacked labelling set. Exemptions depend on how the food is sold and packaged, so a café selling takeaway food should check whether each product counts as prepacked. Where you are unsure, the Food Standards Agency and your local authority trading standards team can confirm which rules apply to your business.

What is the difference between 'use by' and 'best before' dates?

A use-by date applies to highly perishable food that could pose a safety risk after that date, and the food should not be eaten, sold or used after it passes. A best-before date indicates quality rather than safety, and food may still be safe to eat after that date if it has been stored correctly. Both dates must be presented clearly, and the storage conditions that keep the date valid should be stated on the label.