Genesis R&D Manual

Choosing a Format

Owned by Nate Edwards
Last updated: Jun 28, 2017
5 min read

U.S. Standard Full

This is the most common label format. If space is available (> 40 sq. inches) you should use this format.

In some cases, there is not enough continuous vertical space to do so. In that case, you may use the “side-by-side” format.

U.S. Standard Simplified

This simplified format may be used if seven or more of the following nutrients are present in “insignificant amounts”: calories, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, sugars, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron. 

U.S. Tabular Full

If the package does not have enough continuous vertical space or the total available space is less than 40 sq. inches, you may use the tabular (horizontal) format. 

U.S. Tabular Simplified

This simplified format may be used if seven or more of the following nutrients are present in “insignificant amounts”: calories, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, sugars, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron. 

U.S. Linear Full

If the available labeling space is 40 square inches or less, and the shape cannot accommodate the horizontal, “side-by-side” or tabular formats, you may use the linear format. The formatting differs quite greatly from the other labels and looks like this:

U.S. Linear Simplified

This simplified format may be used if seven or more of the following nutrients are present in “insignificant amounts”: calories, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, sugars, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron. 

U.S. Dual Column

This label is required when the total package size is between 200%-300% of the RACC. When this holds true a column listing the quantitative and % daily value amounts of the serving is required, as well as a column listing the quantitative and % daily value amounts of the entire container. This label can be found in Edit Label once the recipe has been built.

U.S. Aggregate

The Aggregate Label is used when individual items are packaged together (a variety pack of breakfast cereals, for example). Information for each item is listed in a separate column. (This label is created with our advanced Label feature.)

Format Modifications

In some circumstances, variations in the format of the nutrition panel are allowed. Some are mandatory.

Children

The labels of foods for children under 2 (except infant formula, which has special labeling rules under the Infant Formula Act of 1980) may not carry information about saturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, monounsaturated fat, cholesterol, calories from fat, or calories from saturated fat. The reason is to prevent parents from wrongly assuming that infants and toddlers should restrict their fat intake, when, in fact, they should not. Fat is important during these years to ensure adequate growth and development.

The labels of foods for children under 4 may not include the % Daily Values for total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, potassium, total carbohydrate, and dietary fiber. They may carry % Daily Values for protein, vitamins and minerals, however. These nutrients are the only ones for which FDA has set Daily Values for this age group. Thus, the top portion of the “Nutrition Facts” panels of foods for children under 4 will consist of two columns. The nutrients’ names will be listed on the left and their quantitative amounts will be on the right. The bottom portion will provide the % Daily Values for protein, vitamins and minerals. Only the calorie conversion information may be given as a footnote.

Simplified Label Format

Some foods qualify for a simplified label format.

This format is allowed when the food contains insignificant amounts of seven or more of the mandatory nutrients and total calories. “Insignificant” means that a declaration of zero could be made in nutrition labeling, or, for total carbohydrate, dietary fiber, and protein, the declaration states “less than 1 g.”

For foods for children under 2, the simplified format may be used if the product contains insignificant amounts of six or more of the following: calories, total fat, sodium, total carbohydrate, dietary fiber, sugars, protein, vitamins A and C, calcium, and iron.

If the simplified format is used, information on total calories, total fat, total carbohydrate, protein, and sodium--even if they are present in insignificant amounts--must be listed. Other nutrients, along with calories from fat, must be shown if they are present in more than insignificant amounts. Nutrients added to the food must be listed, too. 

Small Packages

Some format exceptions exist for small and medium-size packages. Packages with less than 12 square inches of available labeling space (about the size of a package of chewing gum) do not have to carry nutrition information unless a nutrient content or health claim is made for the product. However, they must provide an address or telephone number for consumers to obtain the required nutrition information.

If manufacturers wish to provide nutrition information on these packages voluntarily, they have several options: (1) present the information in a smaller type size than that required for larger packages, or (2) present the information in a tabular or linear (string) format. The tabular and linear formats also may be used on packages that have less than 40 square inches available for labeling and insufficient space for the full vertical format. 

Other options for packages with less than 40 square inches of label space are:

    • abbreviating names of dietary components
    • omitting all footnotes, except for the statement that “Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000- calorie diet”
    • placing nutrition information on other panels readily seen by consumers.

Insufficient Space

A select group of packages with more than 40 square inches of labeling space is allowed a format exception, too.

These are packages with insufficient vertical space (about 3 inches) to accommodate the required information. Some examples are bread bags, pie boxes, and bags of frozen vegetables. On these packages, the “Nutrition Facts” panel may appear, in tabular format, with the footnote information appearing to the far right.

For larger packages in which there is not sufficient space on the principal display panel or the information panel (the panel to the right of the principal display), FDA allows nutrition information to appear on any label panel that is readily seen by consumers. This lessens the chances of overcrowding of information and encourages manufacturers to provide the greatest amount of nutrition information possible. 

Insignificant value nutrients

In certain cases (bottled water, for instance) you may omit the insignificant value nutrients and the footnote.

The footnote is used to denote one or more of the following nutrients:

    • Calories from Fat: when the food contains less than 5 calories from fat.
    • Saturated Fat: when the food contains less than 0.5 grams of total fat per serving and if no claims are made about fat  or cholesterol content and if no claims are made about calories from fat.
    • Cholesterol: when the food contains less than 2 milligrams cholesterol per serving and makes no claim about fat, fatty acids or cholesterol.
    • Dietary Fiber: when a serving contains less than 1 gram of dietary fiber.
    • Sugars: when a serving contains less than 1 gram of sugar and no claims are made about sweeteners, sugars, or sugar alcohol content.
    • Vitamins/Minerals: when a serving contains less than 2% of the RDI.

You may choose to hide the footnote if you’re not listing those nutrients of insignificant value (see above)