Which information must a prepacked food label carry by law?

Answer

The information that must appear on prepacked food labels is set out in the Turkish Food Codex Regulation on Food Labelling and Informing Consumers, dated 26 January 2017. Under this regulation a label must show: the name of the food, the list of ingredients, substances causing allergies or intolerances, the quantity of certain ingredients or ingredient groups, the net quantity, the use-by date or the best-before date, any special storage and use conditions, the name or trade name and address of the food business operator, the establishment registration number or identification mark, the country of origin where this is mandatory, instructions for use where needed, the alcoholic strength for beverages containing more than 1.2% alcohol by volume, the batch (lot) number and the nutrition declaration. The nutrition declaration gives energy plus fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt per 100 g or 100 ml. The regulation also requires this information to be accurate, clear, easily visible and not misleading. The label is the main channel of information between producer and consumer, so checking these fields first makes for a better informed choice.