Reading Food Labels
The Parts of a Food Label That Actually Matter Indian FSSAI regulations require specific information on food labels, but manufacturers are skilled at making the important information hard to find...
The Parts of a Food Label That Actually Matter
Indian FSSAI regulations require specific information on food labels, but manufacturers are skilled at making the important information hard to find and the marketing claims prominent. Here is what to look at, in order of importance.
1. Ingredient List (Most Important)
Ingredients are listed in descending order of weight. The first ingredient is the most abundant. If sugar, refined wheat flour (maida), or refined vegetable oil appears in the first three ingredients, that is what the product primarily is — regardless of the health claims on the front of the pack.
- Count the number of ingredients — fewer is almost always better
- Watch for sugar aliases: glucose syrup, fructose, corn syrup, maltodextrin, dextrose, sucrose — all are added sugars
- Watch for refined fat aliases: palmolein, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, vanaspati, interesterified fat
2. Nutrition Facts Panel
- Serving size — manufacturers often use unrealistically small serving sizes to make the numbers look good. Calculate per 100g for fair comparison.
- Added sugars vs total sugars — FSSAI labels show total sugars; added sugars are not separately listed in India. Use the ingredient list to identify added sugars.
- Sodium — often the hidden story. Anything above 600mg per 100g is a high-sodium product.
- Trans fat — should be 0 or labelled as absent. Any presence of "partially hydrogenated" oils in the ingredient list means trans fat is present regardless of what the label says.
The FSSAI's proposed Front of Pack Nutrition Label (FOPL) — a red label warning system similar to Chile's black octagons — was proposed in 2022 to make high-sugar and high-salt products immediately identifiable. As of 2025, implementation remains pending. Until it is mandatory, use the ingredient list as your primary guide.
Front-of-Pack Claims to Ignore
- "Multigrain" — does not mean whole grain; can be multiple refined grains mixed together
- "Low fat" — often means high sugar; fat removal requires adding something else for texture
- "No added sugar" — still may contain high natural sugars, concentrated fruit juice, or artificial sweeteners
- "Fortified with vitamins" — micronutrient fortification does not offset a poor base nutritional profile
- "Baked not fried" — baking with refined flour and oil produces a product that is only marginally better than frying
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