Front-of-pack claims such as 'natural', 'light' or 'made with real fruit' are marketing language with loose or no regulatory definition in many jurisdictions. The nutrition facts panel on the back is the regulated, standardised part of the package, and it is where a genuine comparison between two products should happen.
Start with the serving size
Every number on the panel — calories, fat, sugar, sodium — is calculated per serving, and the manufacturer sets the serving size, not the shopper. Two similar-looking products can list very different figures simply because one defines a serving as a smaller quantity. Checking the serving size first, and the number of servings per package, prevents a misleading comparison before it starts.
Percent daily value is a reference point, not a target
The FDA's percent daily value (%DV) shows how much a nutrient in one serving contributes to a general 2,000-calorie reference diet. It is useful for judging whether a food is relatively high or low in a nutrient — 5% DV or less is generally considered low, 20% or more is generally considered high — but it is not a personalised recommendation and does not account for individual energy needs.
Not medical advice
This guide explains how nutrition labelling works. It is general information, not dietary advice tailored to any individual, and does not replace guidance from a registered dietitian or physician.
The lines worth checking first
- Added sugars: listed separately from total sugars in the US and increasingly elsewhere, this line reflects sugar added during processing rather than sugars naturally present in, for example, fruit or dairy.
- Sodium: a major contributor to sodium intake in many diets comes from packaged and restaurant food rather than the salt shaker, which makes this line worth comparing across similar products.
- Saturated fat: distinguished from total fat because of its different relationship to cardiovascular risk in the research literature.
- Fibre: one of the few nutrients most diets in high-income countries tend to under-consume relative to public health targets.
