Making Sense of Food Packaging Claims
Have you ever bought a food because the package said the item was “low sodium” or “low fat” or made some other claim? It’s important to understand what these claims mean so you can make informed decisions about the food you buy for yourself and your family.
There are three categories of claims defined by statute and/or FDA regulations that can be used on food and dietary supplement labels:
- Health claims
- Structure/function claims
- Nutrient content claims
A health claim describes a relationship between a substance, including whether it’s a food, food component or dietary ingredient, and a disease or health-related condition. Here are some examples of health claims:
- Non-starchy vegetables can reduce risk of cardiovascular disease.
- Calcium may reduce risk of osteoporosis.
- Oatmeal helps reduce cholesterol.
A structure/function claim describes the role of a nutrient or dietary ingredient to maintain a structure, or bodily function. Some examples include:
- Calcium builds strong bones.
- Fiber maintains bowel regularity.
- Antioxidants maintain cell integrity.
Nutrient content claims are used for two purposes:
- To describe the level of a nutrient in the product using terms such as free, high and low.
- To compare the level of a nutrient in a food to another food using terms such as more, reduced and lite.
CALORIES |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Calorie free | Less than 5 calories |
| Low calorie | 40 calories or less |
| Reduced calorie or less calorie | At least 25% less calories than the regular product |
SUGAR |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Sugar free | Less than 0.5 grams sugars and no ingredient that is a sugar or generally understood to contain sugars (e.g., honey, fruits) |
| Reduced sugar or less sugar | At least 25% less sugars than the regular product |
| No added sugar | No sugar or sugar-containing ingredient added during processing or packaging |
SODIUM |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Sodium free, salt free or no sodium | Less than 5 mg of sodium and no ingredient that is sodium chloride or contains sodium (e.g., cheese, condiments, baking soda, baking powder) |
| Very low sodium | 35 mg or less of sodium |
| Low sodium | 140 mg or less of sodium |
| Reduced or less sodium |
At least 25% less sodium than the regular product |
| Light or lite in sodium | At least 50% less sodium than the regular product |
| Lightly salted |
50% less sodium than normally added |
| No salt added or unsalted |
No salt added during processing If the food is not sodium free, the statement “not a sodium free food” or “not for control of sodium in the diet” must also appear on the label |
FAT |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Fat free | Less than 0.5 g fat and no ingredient that is fat or generally understood to contain fats (e.g., butter, oils) |
| Low fat | 3 g of fat or less (and not more than 30% of calories from fat for meals and main dishes) |
| Reduced fat or less fat | At least 25% less fat than the regular product |
SATURATED FAT |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Saturated fat free | Less than 0.5 g saturated fat and less than 0.5 g trans fat |
| Low in saturated fat | 1 g or less of saturated fat, and 15% or less of the calories coming from saturated fat (10% or less for meals and main dishes) |
| Reduced or less saturated fat | At least 25% less saturated fat than regular product |
CHOLESTEROL |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Cholesterol free | Less than 2 mg of cholesterol and no ingredient that contains cholesterol (e.g., egg yolk, cream) |
| Low cholesterol | 20 mg of less of cholesterol |
| Reduced cholesterol | At least 25% less cholesterol than the regular product |
OTHER NUTRIENT CONTENT CLAIMS |
|
| If a food claims to be … | It means that one serving* contains … |
| Lean | Less than 10 g of fat, 4.5 g of saturated fat and 95 mg of cholesterol per 100 g of seafood or game meat products |
| Extra lean | Less than 5 g of fat, 2 g of saturated fat and 95 mg of cholesterol per 100 g of seafood or game meat products |
| Light (lite) |
If 50% or more of the calories are from fat, at least 50% less fat than the regular product If less than 50% of the calories are from fat, 1/3 fewer calories or at least 50% less fat than the regular product |
| High or excellent source |
Contains 20% or more of Daily Value (DV) |
| Good source | 10-19% of the Daily Value (DV) |
| More |
Contains at least 10% of Daily Value (DV), only used for vitamins minerals, protein, fiber and potassium |
| Fortified, or enriched | Contains at least 10% of Daily Value (DV), only used for vitamins minerals, protein, fiber and potassium |
| Added, extra or plus |
Contains at least 10% of Daily Value (DV), only used for vitamins minerals, protein, fiber and potassium |
*Based on the labeled serving size and/or the reference amount customarily consumed (RACC). If RACC is 30 g or less or 2 tablespoons or less, the per 50 g criterion refers to the prepared form of the food.
When grocery shopping, keep in mind:
- Free means a food has the least possible amount of the specified nutrient.
- Low means the food has a little more than foods labeled Free.
- Reduced or Less means the food has 25% less of a specific nutrient than the regular product.
- Healthy Claim means the food is recommended by the Dietary Guidelines and nutrient-dense (e.g., whole grains, fruits, vegetables) with limited amount of added sugars, saturated fat and sodium.
Understanding food packaging claims is important, but read the Nutrition Facts labels too. Together, this information can help you make informed decisions about choosing healthier options.
