New Food Label: What You Need to Know

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced updates to the Nutrition Facts Label for packaged foods. This is the first major change to the food label since 1994. Here’s what’s new on the label:

• Larger and bold print for Calories: These changes make this information easier to see.  It is important for consumers to look at how many calories are in the foods they buy.

• Updated Serving Sizes: Package size affects what people eat. Certain items will be required to be labeled as one serving because people typically consume it in one sitting. A 20 ounce soda is a good example of this change.

• Added sugars: Added sugars are defined as any sugar, honey, or syrup added in the making of the food.

• Updated daily values: Daily values for nutrients like sodium, dietary fiber and vitamin D have been updated based on newer scientific evidence.

• New nutrients will now be on the label:

         ·        Vitamin D: Builds strong bones.
         ·        Potassium: Helps lower blood pressure and is healthy for your heart.

Manufacturers will need to use the new label by July 26, 2018. However, smaller companies will have an additional year to change their labels to the new format.

The Nutrition Facts Label is the best tool to check for Calories, sodium, fat, sugars, etc. and compare products. The Nutrition Facts Label can help you and your family pick healthier foods at the grocery store.