Article Snapshot
- Most packaged retail foods need a combination of product identification, net quantity, ingredients, allergens, nutrition information, supplier details, traceability information, date marking and country-of-origin information. Storage or use directions may also be required depending on the product.
- The exact requirements depend on what the product actually is. A snack food, sports food, meal replacement and therapeutic product can sit beside each other on a shelf while being regulated very differently.
- Ingredients and allergens should come from the final production formula, not an early recipe or marketing description.
- Australia’s Plain English Allergen Labelling rules are now the current format for newly packaged food. The old transition period ended on 25 February 2026.
- Good food packaging design is not about squeezing compliance copy into whatever space is left. The compliance information is part of the layout from the beginning.
A food label has to do a lot of jobs in a very small amount of space.
It needs to tell us what the product is, what is inside it, whether it is suitable for us, how much we are buying, where it came from and, depending on the product, how to use or store it safely.
Then, after fitting all of that in, we still expect the packaging to look good enough to actually sell the product.
This is where food packaging design gets a little more complicated than choosing a logo, some pretty colours and dropping everything onto a label template.
I have worked on labels and packaging across food, supplements and wellness products, and one thing makes these projects easier every single time: get the information organised before the design starts.
This article is a practical guide to the main information Australian businesses should think about when creating a food label in Australia.
Please note, this is general information, not legal or regulatory advice. The exact requirements depend on the food, formulation, claims, pack format and how it is sold, so always check the current Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code and get specialist advice when the product needs it.
Start With the Product (not your artwork)
This is the part people sometimes want to skip because it does not feel very creative! But it is important.
Of course, it’s fun to generate concepts or ideas in AI, but really at first, we need to know what we’re actually designing!
A protein powder, electrolyte mix, protein bar, meal replacement, herbal powder and everyday snack may all live in the health and wellness category from a branding perspective. From a regulatory perspective though, they may not sit in the same bucket.
That classification can change the ingredients you can use, the warnings required, the claims you can make, the directions for use and even whether the product is regulated as a food.
Some things include certain allergies, declaring particular ingredients, recycling claims, and so on.
So what’s the first takeaway here? Let’s confirm the actual product and product category.
FSANZ’s Food Standards Code sets the rules for food labels in Australia. Chapter 1 contains requirements that apply broadly to packaged foods, while Chapter 2 includes additional rules for particular products, such as dairy, meat and alcoholic beverages (FSANZ labelling information).
Lock the formula before finalising the label
I’m sure this one is fairly self-explanatory, but it’s worth mentioning because it’s pretty important.
Your formula is your final production recipe, usually supplied or confirmed by your manufacturer once your product has reached its final development stage.
Ideally, this should be locked in before you finalise your label. Even a small formulation change, such as adding or replacing an ingredient, can affect allergen declarations, front-of-pack claims, ingredient statements and even make your Nutrition Information Panel incorrect.
Ingredients are also generally listed in descending order by their ingoing weight. Characterising ingredients or components may also require percentage labelling. A strawberry yoghurt, for example, may need to tell us how much strawberry is actually in it (FSANZ ingredient lists and percentage labelling).
That doesn’t mean you need to wait until everything is complete before involving a designer. You can absolutely start developing the brand, packaging concept and overall direction earlier in the process. It’s just better to have the formula reasonably well progressed before getting too close to final label artwork.
Confirm the pack format and physical label dimensions
The dieline matters more than people think, and this is actually a major one, especially when it comes to label dimensions.
I’ve seen label dimensions confirmed far too late in the process, which only results in major design changes and further billable costs.
The pack format is also important. A 500 g stand-up pouch, small jar, wrap-around bottle label and cardboard carton all give us very different real estate to work with. This affects key messaging placement, design aesthetics, and so on.
The simple takeaway is, make sure you know the pack format you’re using, and ask your manufacturer or pack supplier for the correct label or dieline template.
Core Mandatory Label Information
Once we know what the product is, we can start building the information that actually needs to live on the label.
We need to work out what belongs on the front, what belongs on the back or side panels, what needs prominence, and what is applied later during production.
Please note this list is not comprehensive, and I’m just covering core areas. Some notes not mentioned below are barcodes, product information, and any other product specifics. Always consult with someone (like myself) or a regulatory body to ensure your label (or product) is compliant.
Product name or description
Self-explanatory, and probably something you already have in mind, but let’s unpack it further.
Your product needs to have a blend of creative market fit, while also being understandable.
If the brand calls a product something like Daily Glow, that may be great, but somewhere nearby we may still need a clear description that tells the customer what it actually is.
This also matters visually too. If we cover the front of a product in giant mangoes, berries or cacao imagery, we need to make sure the overall impression matches the actual product. Australian food labels and advertising still sit under laws dealing with false, misleading or deceptive representations.
What do I mean? The imagery and words need to work together, and not be misleading.
Net quantity & serve
Pre-packaged goods sold in Australia generally need a net measurement showing the amount of product without the packaging.
Depending on the product, that might be weight, volume, number or another permitted measurement. Trade measurement rules also cover where that marking goes, the permitted units and the minimum character size (National Measurement Institute).
You also need to declare the serving size, and the number of servings in the pack. This is generally something that appears on the front panel as part of the key product information.
Ingredients and allergens
Your ingredient list and allergen declaration are two areas where accuracy really matters.
Under the current Plain English Allergen Labelling requirements, required allergens need to use prescribed names, be declared in the ingredient list in bold, and be repeated in a separate bold summary statement beginning with Contains near the ingredient list. Individual tree nuts, molluscs and relevant cereals are also declared specifically (FSANZ allergen labelling).
For example:
Ingredients: Rolled oats, almond meal (almond), milk powder (milk), cocoa, sunflower oil.
Contains: gluten, almond, milk.
The exact wording depends on the actual ingredients and the required allergen names, so do not copy an allergen statement from a competitor and assume it applies to your formula.
Generally, if you are working with a manufacturer, they will work with you to ensure you understand the correct allergen declarations that must go on your label.
Supplier, lot code, dates and storage
FSANZ identifies the food name, lot identification and supplier name and address in Australia or New Zealand as key traceability information for labelled food (FSANZ food traceability). Trade measurement requirements can also require an Australian street address for the packer of goods packed in Australia.
The lot code and date code are often added during production rather than printed as fixed artwork (so you can worry less about this), but you sometimes need to leave room for this to be added.
Date marking generally uses either Use By or Best Before, depending on the food. If specific storage conditions are required for the product to remain safe or maintain quality to that date, those directions also need to be included (FSANZ date marking).
From a design perspective, this means we need to know where the date printer hits the pack, how much clear space it needs and whether the ink has enough contrast to remain readable.
Nutrition Information Panel
Another fairly self-explanatory one: most packaged foods require a Nutrition Information Panel, commonly called the NIP, although there are exemptions for some foods and pack formats.
The standard panel generally includes average quantities of:
- energy
- protein
- fat
- saturated fat
- carbohydrate
- sugars
- sodium
- other active ingredients
These are shown per serving and per 100 g, or per 100 mL for liquid foods (FSANZ Nutrition Information Panels). Other nutrients may also need to be declared depending on the product and any claims being made. This ser
For example, if you make a fibre claim, fibre may also need to be declared in the NIP.
FSANZ has a Nutrition Panel Calculator, which can be useful, but remember: a calculator is only as good as the recipe and ingredient data going into it.
From a layout perspective, keep the NIP clean. I know it is tempting to compress it into the smallest possible corner because we want more space for the branding, but a nutrition panel with crowded columns and tiny numbers helps nobody.
Nutrition and health claims
This is where marketing and compliance really start crossing paths. Something that looks like a simple piece of front-of-pack copy can actually be a regulated claim.
Claims such as:
- high protein
- low sugar
- good source of calcium
- gluten free
are generally considered nutrition content claims. These describe the presence, absence or amount of a nutrient or substance in the food and usually need to meet specific conditions before they can be used.
Then we move into health claims, where the wording connects a food, nutrient or ingredient with a health effect.
For example:
“Calcium supports healthy bones and teeth.”
This is the type of statement FSANZ refers to as a general-level health claim. These claims must be based on an appropriate food-health relationship and supported in accordance with the requirements of Standard 1.2.7.
There are also high-level health claims, which go further and refer to a serious disease or a biomarker of serious disease. These are much more tightly controlled and can only be based on food-health relationships specifically pre-approved by FSANZ.
Foods carrying general- or high-level health claims generally also need to meet the Nutrient Profiling Scoring Criterion (NPSC) (FSANZ nutrition and health claims).
And there is another important line to be aware of.
A food label shouldn’t simply start making claims that suggest the product can treat, prevent, cure or alleviate a disease or medical condition. Depending on the product, its ingredients and the way it is represented, this can move you away from food regulation and into therapeutic goods territory, which is regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) (TGA – What are therapeutic goods?).
My recommendation is to review label claims throughout the label design process, so you don’t unintentionally take your product into a completely different regulatory area.
Country of origin
Most food offered for retail sale in Australia needs country-of-origin information, but the format depends on the product and supply chain.
The rules vary depending on whether the food is priority or non-priority and whether it was grown, produced, made or packed in Australia or overseas. Priority foods made, grown or produced in Australia commonly use the kangaroo symbol, bar chart and explanatory text, while other foods can require different standard marks or text statements (ACCC country-of-origin food labelling).
Do not choose the statement based on where the business office is located.
And please do not casually redraw the kangaroo or make your own version of the bar chart because it fits the brand better.
The origin statement comes from the product and its ingredients first. Then we design around the correct mark.
Directions for use and storage
This is another part of the label that can sometimes look optional, but depending on the product, it may actually be required.
If your food needs to be prepared, used or stored in a particular way for health or safety reasons, those directions need to be provided on the label.
Where those directions are needed for safe use or storage, that might include instructions such as:
- keep refrigerated
- refrigerate after opening
- store below a particular temperature
- cook thoroughly before consumption
- prepare using a specific method before eating
Other products may also include practical preparation or serving directions, such as a scoop-to-water ratio, even where those instructions are not required specifically for food safety.
Storage instructions are particularly important when they are necessary for the product to remain safe for its stated shelf life. For example, if a product needs refrigeration in order to remain safe through to its use-by date, that storage condition needs to be communicated to the consumer. (FSANZ – Use-by and best-before dates)
Directions for use can also become mandatory where the consumer needs those instructions to use the food safely. Standard 1.2.6 of the Food Standards Code deals specifically with these requirements. (FSANZ – Food Standards Code)
If the information is important for the safe use or storage of the product, make sure it has a clear and deliberate place on the label.
Design, Information & Hierarchy
Once all the information is accurate, we finally get to the fun part, and that’s the look and visual feel.
But even here, good packaging design is not just that. A strong label guides the customer through information in the order of…
- What is it?
- Why should I care?
- Is it suitable for me?
- How do I use it?
- Can I trust it?
That hierarchy changes slightly by product, but the principle stays the same.
Below are some notes on what to include on the front/back panel. Of course, this can differ slightly per product, so it’s always best to consult with a graphic designer to ensure what you have on these areas fit your consumer!
The front panel
The front panel does not need to carry the whole product story.
It needs to get the customer interested enough to keep reading, grab their attention, and sell it to them!
Normally that means a clear brand, product name or description, variant or flavour, net quantity and a small number of useful, supportable selling points.
If we try to put twelve benefits, six icons, three badges, a giant logo and a paragraph of copy on the front, nothing feels important anymore.
A label can technically contain all the right information and still make the buying decision harder.
The back panel
Once somebody turns the pack around, they are normally looking for proof and further detail.
Ingredients. Allergens. Directions. Nutrition. Origin. Warnings. Suitability. Contact information.
This is where spacing, typography and grouping make a huge difference.
The customer should not need to hunt through one giant wall of text to find the allergen statement or directions for use.
They may also be on the end of conversion, but need that extra little bit of detail to make them buy.
Good hierarchy makes complicated information feel simpler.
Barcodes and QR codes
A retail barcode is usually a commercial or retailer requirement rather than a standard FSANZ label element, but for most retail products it becomes a practical necessity.
Before final artwork, confirm the correct GTIN, use the proper barcode artwork, maintain the required quiet zones and check the final printed code—not only the PDF.
A QR code can also be useful for recipes, product education, batch information or a deeper brand story.
Just remember, a QR code does not automatically replace information that is legally required on the physical label.
Design for the physical pack and ecommerce
This is something I talk about a lot in packaging work.
We do not design labels only for the physical shelf anymore!
The same pack may appear in a supermarket, a clinic, a Shopify product grid, an Amazon listing, a social ad and a tiny mobile thumbnail.
So test the label always across various formats, and then test it again. What’s even better, you can use AI these days to make a pretty good mockup…then test again!
Can we still identify the product? Can we see the variant? Does the branding hold up? Does it look like the price point it is asking for?
I covered more of this sales side in Packaging Design That Sells: More Than Just a Pretty Label.
My Quick Food Label Checklist
I would rather spend a little more time getting the information right at the beginning than spend twice as much time rebuilding artwork at the end.
Some lists below are no comprehensive, but gives you a general checklist of what to consider!
My general food label start-to-finish checklist
- Classify the product. Confirm what regulatory category it sits under.
- Lock the formula. Use final recipes and current ingredient specifications.
- Confirm the pack. Final size, dieline, template fill quantity, print process and coding areas.
- Prepare the compliance copy. Ingredients, allergens, NIP, warnings, dates, storage, supplier information and origin.
- Review the claims. Ensure you know what claims you can say, and what you can’t.
- Quick regulatory check. Is your product actually a food item? Or is it TGA regulated?
- Build the hierarchy. Decide what the customer needs to see first, second and third.
- Add retail requirements. Barcode, retailer data, QR code or other channel-specific elements.
- Proofread the final artwork. Preferably more than once and by more than one person.
- Run prepress checks. This usually involves doing a trial run to check the label.
- Check a physical proof or production sample. Because screens can lie.
A pre-artwork checklist
Before sending a food label to a designer, try to have most ready:
- final product name and description
- final formula
- ingredient specifications
- allergen declarations
- Nutrition Information Panel data
- Other specific product information or copy
- net quantity
- lot and date coding requirements
- storage and usage directions
- country-of-origin information
- approved claims
- dieline/template
- printer specifications
Look i’m not going to lie, you don’t actually need all of these, but try and at least have the product detail, NIP data, dieline/template, and really a general idea of what else you want on the label.
This saves my time, and can also save you money if you go over billable design hours!
The Takeaway
A good food label makes a complicated product feel simple to buy.
Behind that simplicity is a fair amount of work.
The formula needs to match the ingredients. Allergens need to be obvious. Claims need support. The Nutrition Information Panel needs space. The country-of-origin mark needs to be correct. The date code and barcode need to work in the real production environment.
And then we still need to make the whole thing look like a brand somebody wants to pick up.
That is why food packaging design works best when compliance and design happen together rather than treating compliance as the annoying text we squeeze in at the end.
If you are developing a food, supplement or wellness product and already have your product information together, I can help turn it into clear, professional packaging that works both visually and practically. You can also read more about my broader packaging design process or get in touch for a free, no-obligation discussion about your product.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What information usually needs to be on a food label in Australia?
Most packaged retail foods need a combination of product identification, net quantity, ingredient information, allergen declarations, nutrition information, supplier and traceability details, date marking, storage directions and country-of-origin information. Exact requirements depend on the food and how it is sold.
Do all packaged foods need a Nutrition Information Panel?
Most do, but there are exemptions for some foods and situations. A claim can also trigger nutrition information requirements that would not otherwise apply. Check the current Food Standards Code for your specific product.
Do allergens need to be bold in Australia?
Under the current Plain English Allergen Labelling requirements, prescribed allergen names are declared in bold in the ingredient list and a separate bold Contains summary statement is provided near it.
Can I design the label before the recipe is final?
You can start exploring brand direction and layout, but I would avoid finalising compliance sections until the production formula is locked. Recipe changes can affect ingredients, allergens, nutrition data and claims.
Can a QR code replace information on the physical food label?
Not automatically. QR codes are useful for additional information, but mandatory information that is required on the physical label generally still needs to appear there.
Who is responsible for checking whether a food label is compliant?
The food business remains responsible for its product and label information. A designer can organise the content, protect legibility and flag obvious issues, but specialised products may need review by a food technologist, regulatory consultant, laboratory, lawyer or relevant authority.
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