Food and Drug Regulations
B.01.401 (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section and sections B.01.402 to B.01.406 and B.01.467 to B.01.469, the label of a prepackaged product shall carry a nutrition facts table that contains only the information set out in column 1 of the table to this section, expressed using a description set out in column 2, in the unit set out in column 3 and in the manner set out in column 4.
(1.1) For the purpose of subsection (1), the serving of stated size set out in a nutrition facts table for a prepackaged product, as expressed in a metric unit, shall be used as the basis for determining the information appearing in the nutrition facts table in respect of the energy value and nutrient content of the product.
(1.2) The percentage of the daily value for a mineral nutrient shown in the nutrition facts table for a prepackaged product in accordance with subsection (1) shall be established on the basis of the amount, by weight, of the mineral nutrient per serving of stated size for the product, rounded off in the applicable manner set out in column 4 of the table to this section.
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a prepackaged product if
(a) all the information set out in column 1 of the table to this section, other than in respect of item 1 (“Serving of stated size”), may be expressed as “0” in the nutrition facts table in accordance with this section;
(b) the product is
(i) a beverage with an alcohol content of more than 0.5%,
(ii) [Repealed, SOR/2016-305, s. 18]
(iii) a raw single ingredient meat, meat by-product, poultry meat or poultry meat by-product,
(iv) a raw single ingredient marine or fresh water animal product,
(v) sold only in the retail establishment where the product is prepared and processed from its ingredients, including from a pre-mix if an ingredient other than water is added to the pre-mix during the preparation and processing of the product,
(vi) sold only at a road-side stand, craft show, flea market, fair, farmers’ market or sugar bush by the individual who prepared and processed the product,
(vii) an individual serving that is sold for immediate consumption and that has not been subjected to a process to extend its durable life, including special packaging, or
(viii) sold only in the retail establishment where the product is packaged, if the product is labelled by means of a sticker and has an available display surface of less than 200 cm2; or
(c) the product is
(i) a fresh vegetable or fruit or any combination of fresh vegetables or fruits without any added ingredients, an orange with added food colour or a fresh vegetable or fruit coated with mineral oil, paraffin wax, petrolatum or any other protective coating,
(ii) a prepackaged individual portion of food that is intended solely to be served by a restaurant or other commercial enterprise with meals or snacks, or
(iii) milk, partly skimmed milk, skim milk, goat’s milk, partly skimmed goat’s milk, skimmed goat’s milk, (naming the flavour) milk, (naming the flavour) partly skimmed milk, (naming the flavour) skim milk or cream sold in a refillable glass container.
(3) Despite paragraphs (2)(a) and (b), subsection (1) applies to a prepackaged product if
(a) the product contains an added vitamin or mineral nutrient;
(b) a vitamin or mineral nutrient is declared as a component of one of the product’s ingredients other than flour;
(c) [Repealed, SOR/2022-168, s. 14]
(d) the product is a meat, meat by-product, poultry meat or poultry meat by-product that is ground; or
(e) the label of the product, or any advertisement for the product that is made or placed by or on the direction of the manufacturer of the product, contains
(i) a reference to the energy value, a nutrient set out in column 1 of the table to this section or in column 1 of the table to section B.01.402 or a constituent of such a nutrient, other than information required by Division 12 or a reference to the common name of an ingredient in the list of ingredients for the product,
(ii) a representation that expressly or implicitly indicates that the product has particular nutritional or health-related properties, including any statement or claim set out in column 4 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims or column 1 of the table following section B.01.603 or referred to in section B.01.311, D.01.006 or D.02.004,
(iii) a health-related name, statement, logo, symbol, seal of approval or mark, or
(iv) the phrase “nutrition facts”, “valeur nutritive” or “valeurs nutritives”.
(4) Subsection (1) does not apply to a formulated liquid diet, human milk fortifier, human milk substitute, food represented as containing a human milk substitute, meal replacement, nutritional supplement or food represented for use in a very low energy diet.
(5) The label of, or an advertisement for, a formulated liquid diet, human milk fortifier, human milk substitute, food represented as containing a human milk substitute, meal replacement, nutritional supplement or food represented for use in a very low energy diet shall not contain a nutrition facts table or the phrase “nutrition facts”, “valeur nutritive” or “valeurs nutritives”.
(6) If, for a prepackaged product other than one intended solely for infants six months of age or older but less than one year of age, the information in respect of six or more of the energy value and nutrients referred to in column 1 of items 2 to 5 and 7 to 15 of the table to this section may be expressed as “0” in the nutrition facts table in accordance with this section, the nutrition facts table need only include the following information:
(a) the serving of stated size;
(b) the energy value;
(c) the amount of fat;
(d) the amount of carbohydrate;
(e) the amount of protein;
(f) the amount of any nutrient that is the subject of a representation referred to in subparagraph (3)(e)(ii);
(g) the amount of any sugar alcohol, vitamin or mineral nutrient added to the prepackaged product, other than iodide added to salt for table or general household use or fluoride added to prepackaged water or ice;
(h) the amount of any vitamin or mineral nutrient that is declared as a component of one of the prepackaged product’s ingredients other than flour;
(i) the amount of any nutrient referred to in column 1 of any of items 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11 and 13 to 15 of the table to this section that may not be expressed as “0” in the nutrition facts table; and
(j) the statement “Not a significant source of (naming each nutrient that is omitted from the nutrition facts table in accordance with this subsection)” or, if the prepackaged product meets the condition specified in subsection B.01.455(3), the statement “Not a significant source of other nutrients”.
(6.1) The nutrition facts table of a single-serving prepackaged product, other than one that is a prepackaged meal, need only include the following information:
(a) the serving of stated size;
(b) the energy value;
(c) the amount of fat;
(d) the amount of carbohydrate;
(e) the amount of protein;
(f) the amount of any nutrient that is the subject of a representation referred to in subparagraph (3)(e)(ii);
(g) the amount of any sugar alcohol, vitamin or mineral nutrient added to the prepackaged product, other than iodide added to salt for table or general household use or fluoride added to prepackaged water or ice;
(h) the amount of any nutrient referred to in column 1 of item 4 or 5 of the table to this section and the sum of saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids if any of the amounts or the sum may not be expressed as “0” in the nutrition facts table; and
(i) the amount of any nutrient referred to in column 1 of item 8 or 11 of the table to this section that may not be expressed as “0” in the nutrition facts table;
(j) the % Daily Value interpretative statement.
(7) Subsection (1) does not apply to a prepackaged product
(a) that is intended solely for use as an ingredient in the manufacture of other prepackaged products intended for sale to a consumer at the retail level or as an ingredient in the preparation of food by a commercial or industrial enterprise or an institution; or
(b) that is a multiple-serving ready-to-serve prepackaged product intended solely to be served in a commercial or industrial enterprise or an institution.
(8) If the nutrition facts table on the label of a prepackaged product corresponds to Figure 6.5(B), 6.6(B), 6.5.1(B), 6.6.1(B), 7.3(B), 7.4(B), 7.3.1(B), 7.4.1(B), 17.2(E) and (F), 17.2.1(E) and (F), 24.1 (E) and (F) to 24.6(E) and (F), 25.1 (B) to 25.6(B), 26.1(B) to 26.4(B), 32.1(E) and (F) or 32.2(E) and (F) of the Directory of NFT Formats, the nutrition facts table is not required to show the % Daily Value interpretative statement referred to in item 16 of the table to this section.
Core Information
Item Column 1 Column 2 Column 3 Column 4 Information Description Unit Manner of expression 1 Serving of stated size “Serving Size (naming the serving size)”, “Serving (naming the serving size)” or “Per (naming the serving size)” The size is expressed
(a) in the case of a single-serving prepackaged product,
(i) per package, and
(ii) in grams or millilitres, in accordance with subparagraph B.01.002A(2)(a)(i) or (ii); and
(b) in the case of a multiple-serving prepackaged product, in the following units set out in column 3B of the Table of Reference Amounts:
(i) the household measure that applies to the product, and
(ii) the metric measure that applies to the product.
(1) The size when expressed in a metric unit is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 10 g or 10 mL, to the nearest multiple of 0.1 g or 0.1 mL; and
(b) if it is 10 g or more or 10 mL or more, to the nearest multiple of 1 g or 1 mL.
(2) The size when expressed as a fraction is represented by a numerator and a denominator separated by a line.
(3) The size shall include the word “assorted” if the information in the nutrition facts table of a prepackaged product that contains an assortment of foods is set out as a composite value.
2 Energy value “Calories”, “Total Calories” or “Calories, Total” The value is expressed in Calories per serving of stated size. The value is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 5 Calories
(i) if the product meets the conditions set out in column 2 of item 1 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims for the subject” free of energy” set out in column 1, to “0” Calorie, and
(ii) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1 Calorie;
(b) if it is 5 Calories or more but not more than 50 Calories, to the nearest multiple of 5 Calories; and
(c) if it is more than 50 Calories, to the nearest multiple of 10 Calories.
3 Amount of fat “Fat”, “Total Fat” or “Fat, Total” The amount is expressed
(a) in grams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g
(i) if the product meets the conditions set out in column 2 of item 11 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims for the subject “free of fat” set out in column 1 and the amounts of saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids are declared as “0 g” in the nutrition facts table or are omitted from that table in accordance with subsection B.01.401(6) and no other fatty acids are declared in an amount greater than 0 g, to “0 g”, and
(ii) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 0.1 g;
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more but not more than 5 g, to the nearest multiple of 0.5 g; and
(c) if it is more than 5 g, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as “0 g”, to “0%“; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
4 Amount of saturated fatty acids “Saturated Fat”, “Saturated Fatty Acids”, “Saturated” or “Saturates” The amount is expressed in grams per serving of stated size. The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g
(i) if the product meets the conditions set out in column 2 of item 18 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims for the subject “free of saturated fatty acids” set out in column 1, to “0 g”, and
(ii) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 0.1 g;
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more but not more than 5 g, to the nearest multiple of 0.5 g; and
(c) if it is more than 5 g, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
5 Amount of trans fatty acids “Trans Fat”, “Trans Fatty Acids” or “Trans” The amount is expressed in grams per serving of stated size. The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g
(i) if the product meets the conditions set out in column 2 of item 22 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims for the subject “free of trans fatty acids” set out in column 1, to “0 g”, and
(ii) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 0.1 g;
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more but not more than 5 g, to the nearest multiple of 0.5 g; and
(c) if it is more than 5 g, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
6 The sum of saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids “Saturated Fat + Trans Fat”, “Saturated Fatty Acids + Trans Fatty Acids”, “Saturated + Trans” or “Saturates + Trans” The sum is expressed as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size. The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amounts of saturated fatty acids and trans fatty acids are declared as “0 g”, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
7 Amount of cholesterol “Cholesterol” The amount
(a) is expressed in milligrams per serving of stated size; and
(b) may also be expressed as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if the product meets the conditions set out in column 2 of item 27 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims for the subject “free of cholesterol” set out in column 1, to “0 mg”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 5 mg.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as “0 mg” to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
8 Amount of sodium “Sodium” The amount is expressed
(a) in milligrams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 5 mg
(i) if the product meets the conditions set out in column 2 of item 31 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims for the subject “free of sodium or salt” set out in column 1, to “0 mg”, and
(ii) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1 mg;
(b) if it is 5 mg or more but not more than 140 mg, to the nearest multiple of 5 mg; and
(c) if it is more than 140 mg, to the nearest multiple of 10 mg.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as “0 mg”, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
9 Amount of carbohydrate “Carbohydrate”, “Total Carbohydrate” or “Carbohydrate, Total” The amount is expressed in grams per serving of stated size. The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g, to “0 g”; and
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
10 Amount of fibre “Fibre”, “Fiber”, “Dietary Fibre” or “Dietary Fiber” The amount is expressed
(a) in grams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g, to “0 g”; and
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as “0 g”, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
11 Amount of sugars “Sugars” The amount is expressed
(a) in grams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g, to “0 g”; and
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as “0 g”, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
12 Amount of protein “Protein” The amount is expressed in grams per serving of stated size. The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.5 g, to the nearest multiple of 0.1 g; and
(b) if it is 0.5 g or more, to the nearest multiple of 1 g.
13 Amount of potassium “Potassium” The amount is expressed
(a) in milligrams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 5 mg, to “0 mg”;
(b) if it is 5 mg or more but less than 50 mg, to the nearest multiple of 10 mg;
(c) if it is 50 mg or more but less than 250 mg, to the nearest multiple of 25 mg; and
(d) if it is 250 mg or more, to the nearest multiple of 50 mg.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as 0 mg, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
14 Amount of calcium “Calcium” The amount is expressed
(a) in milligrams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 5 mg, to “0 mg”;
(b) if it is 5 mg or more but less than 50 mg, to the nearest multiple of 10 mg;
(c) if it is 50 mg or more but less than 250 mg, to the nearest multiple of 25 mg; and
(d) if it is 250 mg or more, to the nearest multiple of 50 mg.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as 0 mg, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
15 Amount of iron “Iron” The amount is expressed
(a) in milligrams per serving of stated size; and
(b) as a percentage of the daily value per serving of stated size.
(1) The amount is rounded off
(a) if it is less than 0.05 mg, to “0 mg”;
(b) if it is 0.05 mg or more but less than 0.5 mg, to the nearest multiple of 0.1 mg;
(c) if it is 0.5 mg or more but less than 2.5 mg, to the nearest multiple of 0.25 mg; and
(d) if it is 2.5 mg or more, to the nearest multiple of 0.5 mg.
(2) The percentage is rounded off
(a) if the amount is declared as 0 mg, to “0%”; and
(b) in all other cases, to the nearest multiple of 1%.
16 % Daily Value interpretative statement “*5% or less is a little, 15% or more is a lot” [not applicable] The “% Daily Value” or “% DV” subheading is followed by an asterisk in order to reference the % Daily Value interpretative statement shown in the nutrition facts table.
- SOR/2003-11, s. 20
- SOR/2007-176, s. 5
- SOR/2016-305, ss. 18, 73, 75(F)
- SOR/2021-57, s. 9
- SOR/2022-143, s. 18(E)
- SOR/2022-168, s. 14
- SOR/2022-168, s. 52
- Date modified: