Food labels contain everything you need to make a quick, informed choice — once you know where to look.
1. Start with the traffic lights
Front-of-pack labels in the UK use red, amber and green for fat, saturates, sugars and salt. For foods (per 100g), the thresholds are:
| Nutrient | Low (green) | High (red) |
|---|---|---|
| Fat | 3g or less | More than 17.5g |
| Saturates | 1.5g or less | More than 5g |
| Sugars | 5g or less | More than 22.5g |
| Salt | 0.3g or less | More than 1.5g |
Anything in between is amber. Aim for more greens and ambers, and fewer reds — but remember healthy foods like nuts and olive oil are naturally "red" for fat.
2. Compare per 100g, log per portion
Per-100g figures let you compare products fairly. Per-portion figures tell you what you actually eat — but check the manufacturer's portion matches yours.
3. Reference intakes
The % RI figures are based on an average adult's needs (2,000 kcal). Your needs may be higher or lower, which is why Mealify calculates personal targets.
4. Read the ingredients
Ingredients are listed in order by weight. If sugar (or one of its many names — glucose syrup, dextrose, honey) appears near the top, the product is high in it.
5. Allergens
The 14 major allergens are highlighted in bold within the ingredients list.
Shortcut: scan the barcode in Mealify's Log Food page and the per-100g nutrition fills in automatically.