How to Read a Food Label in Singapore: A 5-Minute Guide
Start at the back of the pack, not the front. The ingredient list tells you what is actually in the food, ordered from the largest amount to the smallest, and it is the one of the most useful places to start.
Here is how to read it quickly, without a nutrition degree.
What Singapore labels have to tell you
Under Singapore Food Regulations, prepacked food must carry an ingredient list in descending order of weight, and known allergens must be declared. A nutrition information panel is only compulsory when a product makes a nutrition claim, such as "low fat" ([SFA – Understanding food nutrition labels: LINK NEEDED]).
So a missing panel does not automatically mean something is being hidden. But a claim on the front is your cue to flip the pack over and check.
Step 1: “The first three ingredients make up most of what you are eating”
Because ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, the first few ingredients give you a good sense of what the food is primarily made from.
For example, our Just Puffs are made with corn grits, coconut oil, nutritional yeast and seasonings. Our Mini Rice Cakes are organic brown rice and a touch of pink Himalayan salt. You can picture every one of those.
Step 2: A short list is not automatically a good one
This is the trap with "clean label" marketing. A short list can still be made primarily from ingredients you may not want to eat frequently, while a slightly longer list can be perfectly sound if each ingredient has a purpose. Riyana Rupani, Everiday's founder and a holistic nutritionist, unpacks this in The Truth About "Clean Labels" and What Matters Most. Read the ingredients, not the word count.
Step 3: Look at the fat and the sweetener
Two lines are worth a second look.
The oil. "Vegetable oil" tells you very little about which oil it is. Riyana explains which cooking fats she prefers, and why she steers away from certain seed oils, in her guide to cooking fats and oils and in Why You Should Stay Away From Vegetable Oils.
The sweetener. Check what is sweetening the product and how high up the list it sits. Our Chocolate Chip and Oatmeal Raisin cookies are sweetened with maple syrup or coconut sugar rather than refined sugar. These are still added sugars, so always look at the amount.
Step 4: The front of the pack gives you the headline. Turn it over for the full story.
Front-of-pack claims can be useful, but they rarely tell you everything you need to know. Two examples from Riyana's shopping advice:
- Honey. Even when the front says "pure honey", turn it over and check that honey is the only ingredient. Her full checklist is in What's up Honey.
- Tuna. "Wild caught" does not mean sustainably caught. She lists what to look for instead in What To Look For When Buying Tuna.
Step 5: Compare nutrition panels like for like
If there is a panel, it shows energy, protein, carbohydrate and fat. Compare products per 100g rather than per serving, because serving sizes vary wildly between brands. Then go back to the ingredient list. The panel tells you how much; the ingredients tell you what.
Step 6: Check allergens and where it was made
Read the allergen line every time, even for products you buy often. Our snacks are made in a dedicated gluten-free facility, but several contain nuts, so always check the pack in your hand.
Your 60-second checklist
- Read the first three ingredients
- Name the oil and the sweetener
- Put front-of-pack claims into context
- Compare per 100g
- Check the allergen line
Ready to put it into practice? Browse our crackers, granola and cookies and read the back of the pack. We would rather you checked.
FAQ
- Are ingredients listed by weight in Singapore? Yes. They are listed from the largest amount to the smallest.
- Does a missing nutrition panel mean a food is unhealthy? No. A panel is only required when the product makes a nutrition claim.
- Is a shorter ingredient list always better? Not always. What the ingredients are matters more than how many there are.