Understanding food labellingFood jargon buster

Barn eggs

A kind of halfway between free range and battery systems. Barn hens stay inside, but have freedom of movement and access to feed, water nests and perches.

Best before

Best before dates are an indication of quality rather than safety. They appear on foods that can be kept for some time, such as tinned, frozen and dried products. These foods are unlikely to be harmful after the date has passed, but might have begun to lose their flavour or texture. The exception is eggs, which have a best before date after which you shouldn't eat them.

Fairtrade

Foods displaying the Fairtrade logo have met international fair trade standards, which guarantee that farmers in developing countries get a fair price for the food they produce and that workers receive fair wages and decent working conditions. Farmers are also paid an additional premium to be used to improve businesses or communities.

For more information, see the Fairtrade Foundation website or our report on Fairtrade schemes.

Farm fresh

Sometimes applied to eggs, this statement makes no claims about the conditions the hens are kept in and can be applied to eggs from caged battery hens. It's worth noting that EU regulations require egg packs to display the method of production – that is, whether they are from battery, barn or free-range hens.

Free range eggs

Free range eggs are laid by hens that have continuous daytime access to outdoor runs. In practice, this can mean they still spend most of their time in hen houses, with access to the runs. There is no legal definition for free range beef lamb or pork.

Under EC regulations, there are three 'marketing terms' for free-range chickens in the UK. 'Free range', 'Traditional free range' and 'Free range - Total Freedom'.

The welfare of a free range chicken is not necessarily any better than a chicken reared indoors. For example, the stocking densities can be as high.

• Free Range - no more than 13 chickens can be together per square metre and no more than 27.5 kg per square metre. Half their lifetime has continuous access to open air runs mainly covered by vegetation.
• Traditional Free Range - no more than 12 chickens can be together per square metre and no more than 25kg per square metre. They should also have continuous daylight access from the age of 6 weeks.
• Total Freedom - chickens are the same as Traditional Free Range with the added extra for the chickens of continuous day-time access to open-air runs of unlimited area.

Fortified

Fortified means nutrients have been added to a product at the manufacturing or packaging stage. Some foods are fortified by law, such as margarine, which must be fortified with vitamins A and D; others voluntarily, such as breakfast cereals fortified with vitamins and minerals.

Homogenised

A mechanical process used to distribute fat evenly, resulting in smoother and creamier milk. The process involves forcing milk through a tiny hole at considerable pressure, which breaks up the fat globules and makes them a more uniform size. Single cream is often homogenised to stop it from separating during storage.

Hydrogenated fats and oil

Hydrogenated (or partially hydrogenated) vegetable oils or fats are used in many processed foods. They're created by bubbling hydrogen through oils to turn the fat solid, which alters the texture of the food and also extends its shelf life. The process can create trans fats, which boost cholesterol in the blood and are thought to cause even more damage to the heart than saturated fats.

Light or lite

Only applied to foods where nutrients have been reduced by at least 30%

This term can only be applied to foods where nutrients (such as fat) have been reduced by at least 30% compared to a standard version of the product. If the term refers to the salt/sodium content, this must be reduced by at least 25%.

Low calorie

Foods described as low calorie can't contain more than 40kcal (170kJ) per 100g or 20 kcal (80kJ) per 100ml.

Low fat

A food can only claim to be low fat if it has no more than 3g fat per 100g or 1.5g fat per 100ml (or 1.8g fat per 100ml in the case of semi-skimmed milk).

Low salt/sodium

A food can only claim to be low salt/sodium if it has no more than 0.3g salt/0.12g sodium per 100g or per ml.

Low sugar

Low sugar foods have no more than 5g sugar per 100g or 2.5g sugar per 100ml.

Organic

Produced without the use of artificial fertilisers or pesticides, the routine use of veterinary medicines such as antibiotics, or the use of genetic modification. EU-wide rules require organic foods to be approved by an organic certification body, which carries out regular inspections to ensure the food meets a strict set of detailed regulations relating to production methods and labelling.

Organic farming also offers benefits for animal welfare, requiring animals to be kept in more natural, free-range conditions. For more information on the Food Standards Agency's Eat Well website.

Probiotic

Probiotics provide great health benefits

Probiotics are live micro-organisms, such as bacteria, which may provide a health benefit if you eat enough of them. You may see dairy products containing lactobacillus and bifidobacteria, for example, which are naturally present in your gut where they help digestion.

Probiotic foods are marketed as 'good' bacteria which can balance out any 'bad' bacteria and so aid digestion. However, although probiotic bacteria may be beneficial in certain circumstances, the evidence is patchy. For more information see our probiotics report.

Sell by

Used by some shops to help with stock control. The important dates for you to look at are the 'best before' and 'use by' dates, rather than the 'sell by' date.

Use by

Food shouldn't be eaten after this date

This is the key date in terms of food safety. You'll find a 'use by' date on food that goes off quickly, such as poultry, meat, fish and some dairy products. Food shouldn't be eaten after the use by date has passed.

Pasteurised

A type of heat processing, pasteurisation applies enough heat to kill any harmful microbes and extends shelf life by several days. However, it doesn't kill the microbes than can make a product 'go off', so products usually need to be stored in the fridge and have a short shelf-life and a use by date. Unlike sterilisation, pasteurisation doesn't affect the flavour or nutritional value.

Polyunsaturated fats, saturated fats and monounsaturated fats

There are 3 different types of fat: saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Too much saturated fat can increase the amount of cholesterol in the blood, increasing our chances of developing heart disease.

Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, on the other hand, have been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels and therefore help in reducing the risk of heart disease. Polyunsaturated fats are found in oily fish and some plant oil, including sunflower and soya oil, while monounsaturated fats are found in olive and rapeseed oil and avocados and some nuts.

Prebiotic

Prebiotics, such as inulin, are nutrients that are hard for us to digest, but which provide nourishment for the beneficial bacteria in our intestines. Prebiotics are found naturally in many foods, such as asparagus, bananas, wheat, onions and garlic.

Red Tractor logo

All foods displaying the red tractor logo have met certain production standards in areas such as food safety and hygiene, environmental protection, animal welfare and inspections. The scheme is industry-run and the standards have been developed by producers and retailers. The logo can be applied to intensive as well as free-range farming methods, and can be used on imported products, as long as they meet the standards.

More information on the Food Standards Agency’s Eat Well website.

Sterilised

Foods that have been sterilised have been treated (usually with heat) to kill all micro-organisms present. It is a more severe process than pasteurisation and can affect the appearance, taste and nutritional content of the food. Sterilised foods have a long shelf-life and include long-life milk.

Wholegrain

There is no legal definition that currently exists in the UK for the term wholegrain. It’s generally used as a marketing term to mean that all 3 parts of the grain have been used: the fibre-containing bran, the middle layer and the nutrient-rich inner layer. Wholegrain foods contain more fibre and other nutrients than white or refined starchy foods. They also take longer to digest, so they can help you feel full for longer.