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FCOS · Food Compliance OS

EU nutrition declarations (Regulation 1169/2011)

The EU's Food Information to Consumers regulation standardizes the nutrition declaration across member states. Here is the format your EU-bound packs need.

  • Required panel structure
  • Ingredient and allergen context
  • Review before export
  • PDF handoff for printers
Mango Juice 1L / EU · FICSample label
  • Energy in kJ and kcal
  • Salt instead of sodium
  • Per 100 ml is mandatory

At a glance

Europe (EU)

Regulation
  • Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011
Label format in FCOS
Europe
Last updated
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Market guide

What this label needs before it goes on pack.

This guide is written for product, operations, QA, and regulatory teams who need the practical shape of a Europe (EU) nutrition label.

One regulation across the EU

Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on Food Information to Consumers (FIC) makes a nutrition declaration mandatory on most prepacked foods across the EU. The mandatory declaration, per 100 g or 100 ml, covers:

  • Energy (in both kJ and kcal)
  • Fat and saturates
  • Carbohydrate and sugars
  • Protein
  • Salt (declared as salt, not sodium)

Per-portion values may be added voluntarily. Vitamins and minerals can be declared when present in significant amounts.

Details that catch teams out

  • Allergens are emphasised inside the ingredient list (e.g. bold), not in a separate box
  • Minimum font size: mandatory particulars need an x-height of at least 1.2 mm on most packs
  • Language requirements follow the member state of sale — multi-country packs usually go multilingual

How FCOS helps

Choose Europe as a market in FCOS to generate an EU-style nutrition declaration from the same product data you use for your other markets, with team review and PDF export built in.

This overview is general guidance, not legal advice. Final compliance always depends on your product and jurisdiction — confirm requirements with your regulatory counsel.

Built into FCOS

From product data to a reviewed Europe (EU) label.

  1. Create the product record

    Enter ingredients, nutrition values, serving details, and the markets the SKU will sell in.

  2. Generate the market view

    FCOS uses the same product data to shape the label around the selected market format.

  3. Review, approve, export

    Keep reviewers in the loop, then export the approved label PDF for your team or partner.

Where it pays off

The difference between a label file and a label system.

P / 1

The market changes, but the product record stays the same.

Add Europe (EU) as a market target without copying values into another spreadsheet or rebuilding the SKU from scratch.

P / 2

Review happens before the PDF leaves.

Editors prepare the label, reviewers approve the version, and the exported file reflects the version that passed review.

P / 3

Retailer and co-packer handoff gets cleaner.

Share a shelf-ready PDF generated from structured product data instead of screenshots, emails, or disconnected drafts.

Stack comparison

Today vs. with FCOS

Today vs. with FCOS
WorkTodayWith FCOS
Market dataTodayKept in docs, emails, or spreadsheetsWith FCOSEurope (EU) sits on the product record
Review stateTodayHard to know which file is approvedWith FCOSApproval state stays with the label version
ExportTodayScreenshots and manually assembled PDFsWith FCOSPDF export comes from structured data
Multi-market workTodayCopy data into each formatWith FCOSReuse one product record across markets

Frequently asked questions

Is a nutrition declaration mandatory in the EU?

Yes. Regulation (EU) 1169/2011 makes the nutrition declaration mandatory on most prepacked foods, expressed per 100 g or 100 ml.

Does the EU label use salt or sodium?

Salt. The EU declaration lists salt (sodium × 2.5), unlike the US label which declares sodium.

How are allergens shown on EU labels?

Allergens are emphasised within the ingredient list itself — typically in bold — rather than in a separate allergen box.

Keep exploring

Other market guides

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Build your Europe (EU) label in minutes.

Try the FCOS label builder free. Pick Europe (EU) as the market and see the label take shape from structured nutrition data.

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