The SCANSMART Method, Decoded.

The ingredient list is the most regulated part of any food label. It follows three rules every time: descending order by weight, allergens highlighted, and quantitative percentages for any ingredient that is named, emphasised, or essential to the product.

The first ingredient in the list is the one in the highest quantity. The second is the second highest. And so on, all the way down. Once you internalise this rule, every label tells you what the product is mostly made of in the first three or four words.

The ingredients in bold, italics, or CAPITALS are the 14 mandatory UK allergens. Any allergen present at any level must be highlighted — even traces of an ingredient less than 2% of the recipe.

A percentage in brackets — chicken (28%) or strawberry fruit (12%) — is the QUID rule. It must appear when the ingredient is in the product name (chicken pie), emphasised on the pack ("with real strawberry"), or essential to the product's character. The percentage refers to the recipe weight at the time of manufacture, not the cooked finished product.

• Ingredient List Rules, Decoded
• The 14 UK Allergens, Decoded

The nutrition declaration is the table on the back of the pack. UK law (FIR Annex XIII) requires seven values per 100g (or per 100ml for liquids): energy in kJ and kcal, fat, of which saturates, carbohydrate, of which sugars, protein, and salt. Manufacturers may add monounsaturates, polyunsaturates, polyols, starch, fibre, and named vitamins and minerals.

The per-100g column is the comparable column. It lets you compare two products of any size or shape. The per-portion column depends on what the manufacturer chose to call a portion, which is not regulated to a specific size for most categories.

The FSA front-of-pack thresholds apply to the per-100g column:

• Fat: high >17.5g/100g — low ≤3g/100g
• Saturates: high >5g/100g — low ≤1.5g/100g
• Sugars: high >22.5g/100g — low ≤5g/100g
• Salt: high >1.5g/100g — low ≤0.3g/100g

The salt-to-sodium conversion is salt = sodium × 2.5. A label showing "sodium 0.4g" carries 1g of salt.

• Hidden Names for Salt, Decoded
• Hidden Names for Sugar, Decoded
• Hidden Names for Fats, Decoded

UK supermarkets typically display traffic-light front-of-pack labelling: red, amber, or green dots for fat, saturates, sugar, and salt, with the per-100g number alongside. The colour follows the FSA per-100g threshold rules above. The label is voluntary in the UK but adopted by every major retailer.

You will also see the Reference Intake (RI) — the percentage of an average adult's daily intake (the legacy 2,000 kcal figure) the portion contributes. RIs are useful as a relative scale but the underlying assumption is the average adult; children's intakes are different.

Some products carry the European Nutri-Score A–E label, which converts the underlying nutrition into a single letter grade. The UK has not formally adopted Nutri-Score; products carrying it are usually sold in multiple European markets.

Every claim on the front of a UK food pack has a legal threshold. "Low fat" means less than 3g fat per 100g. "Fat free" means less than 0.5g per 100g. "Reduced sugar" means at least 30% less sugar than the standard product. "Source of fibre" means at least 3g per 100g. "High in protein" means at least 20% of energy from protein.

The thresholds are set in retained EU Regulation 1924/2006. Words like "natural" and "fresh" have specific definitions: "natural" requires that the source is not chemically modified beyond traditional preparation; "fresh" requires the product has not been preserved beyond chilling.

Health claims (rather than nutrition claims) are tighter. "Calcium contributes to the maintenance of normal bones" is allowed because it's on the EFSA approved list. "Boosts your immunity" is not allowed. "Helps support digestion" requires an approved underlying claim about a specific nutrient at a specific level. The EFSA approved-claims register is the document of record.

Two phrases. Two different meanings. Use by is the safety line for highly perishable foods (cooked meats, dairy, fresh juice, ready meals). After the use-by date, the food may not be safe to eat. Best before is the quality line for shelf-stable foods (tinned, dried, frozen, ambient). Past the best-before date, the food is generally still safe but the manufacturer no longer guarantees the quality.

Display until and sell by are voluntary retailer codes. They have no legal status as consumer information and the FSA recommends consumers ignore them.

Storage instructions matter. "Keep refrigerated" usually means below 8°C (UK standard); home fridges should run at 0–5°C. "Once opened, consume within X days" can be shorter than the printed use-by date. "Suitable for home freezing" extends the safe window if you freeze before the use-by date.

• Date Labels, Decoded

Here's a worked example. A hypothetical "Crunchy Multigrain Breakfast Cereal With Real Strawberry."

Ingredients: WHEAT flour (38%), sugar, OAT flakes (16%),
glucose syrup, palm oil, dried strawberry pieces (3%),
BARLEY malt extract, salt, flavourings, vitamins
(niacin, riboflavin, B6).

Allergens highlighted in bold.

Nutrition information per 100g:
Energy 1,640 kJ / 388 kcal
Fat 5.2g (LOW)  of which saturates 2.4g (MED)
Carbohydrate 78g  of which sugars 22g (MED, almost HIGH)
Protein 7g
Salt 0.6g (MED)

Front-of-pack: G · A · A · A
Claim: "Source of fibre" · "With real strawberry"

Best before end May 2027.
Once opened, consume within 4 weeks.