Food labels

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Nutrition labels can help you choose between products and keep a check on the amount of foods you're eating that are high in fat, salt and added sugars.

Most pre–packed foods have a nutrition label on the back or side of the packaging.

These labels include information on energy in kilojoules (kJ) and kilocalories (kcal), usually referred to as calories.

They also include information on fat, saturates (saturated fat), carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt.

All nutrition information is provided per 100 grams and sometimes per portion of the food.

Supermarkets and food manufacturers now highlight the energy, fat,

saturated fat, sugars and salt content on the front of the packaging, alongside the reference intake for each of these.

You can use nutrition labels to help you choose a more balanced diet.

For a balanced diet:

eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day
base meals on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates – choose wholegra...