Nutritional Food Labels in Australia

The nutrition information panel must be presented in a standard format which shows:

Nutrition information panels provide information on the:

Average amount of energy (in kilojoules or both in kilojoules and kilocalories),
Protein,
Fat,
Saturated Fat,
Carbohydrate,
Sugars
and Sodium (a component of salt)
Number or the name of any additives (e.g. monosodium glutamate = MSG or 621)

in the food, as well as any other claim that requires nutrition information.

For example, if a food had a ‘good source of fibre’ claim then the amount of fibre in the food must be shown in the nutrition information panel.

Some foods don’t require a nutrition information panel:

a herb or spice, mineral water, tea and coffee (they have no significant nutritional value)
foods sold unpackaged
foods made and packaged at the point of sale, e.g. bread made and sold in a local bakery.
- However, if a claim is made about any of these foods (for example, ‘good source of calcium’, ‘low
- fat’) a nutrition information panel must be provided.
foods in small packages, i.e. packages with a surface area of less than 100 mm squared (about the size of a larger chewing gum packet) are not required to have a nutrition information panel.