A food scientist’s checklist for FDA labeling, formulation and import
I’m an American food scientist living in London. I still say “chips” when I mean crisps, and I’ve stopped apologizing for it. My work sits right between the two markets, and lately more and more of the UK brands I work with are asking me the same question:
Can we take this to the US?
Usually, yes. But not by sticking a new barcode on a UK pack and hoping for the best.
FDA labeling and US formulation rules are different from what we work with day to day in the UK. Get them wrong and you’re looking at a delayed launch, a packaging reprint, or worse, product held at the border while you wait on a phone call nobody wants to make.
So here’s the practical version of what I walk founders through. It’s not legal advice, and a qualified regulatory specialist should always sign off your final artwork. But it’s the checklist I wish more brands started with.
The label: what actually changes
In the US, the FDA regulates most packaged food labels, through its Food Labeling Guide and the rules in 21 CFR Part 101. And here’s the first surprise for a lot of founders: a UK-compliant label is not automatically US-compliant.
The front of pack. You need a clear statement of identity, meaning what the food actually is, not just your brand name. You also need the net quantity in both US customary units and metric, in the bottom part of the front panel. UK packs love to lead with the brand and the marketing story. US labels care that the legal name and the amount in the pack are unambiguous.
The nutrition panel. This is where I see the most copy-and-paste mistakes. The US Nutrition Facts label follows a set format under 21 CFR 101.9. It is not a UK back-of-pack with different fonts.
Serving sizes are based on the Reference Amount Customarily Consumed (RACC), which is how much of that food people typically eat in one sitting. It isn’t whatever portion makes your claims look good. Added sugars have their own line. Vitamin D, calcium, iron and potassium are required. Please don’t paste your UK per-100 g nutrition into a US-looking box and call it done. I promise someone will notice.
Ingredients and allergens. You need an ingredient list in descending order by weight, plus the name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer or distributor.
The US has nine major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and, since January 1, 2023, sesame, added under the FASTER Act. You declare them either in parentheses after the ingredient or in a “Contains” statement next to the ingredient list. The FDA’s food allergies page has the details.
Claims. Words like “high in protein” or “low sugar” are defined terms in the US. You can’t invent your own thresholds. Which brings me back to something I say to every brand I work with: make sure your claims can survive scrutiny.
The formula: what might need to change
Here’s the thing most people don’t expect. A lot of labeling problems are really formulation problems in disguise.
In the US, an ingredient intentionally added to food is generally treated as a food additive unless it’s Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) for that use, or otherwise exempt. A UK or EU approval does not equal a US GRAS conclusion. The FDA’s GRAS overview is worth a read.
Colors are stricter still. There’s no GRAS route for color additives at all. If an ingredient is there to color your food, it has to be specifically listed for that use. The FDA explains this well on its color additives page.
The example I get asked about constantly is titanium dioxide. It’s still allowed in US food under the FDA’s listing, with conditions. In the EU and Northern Ireland, it’s no longer permitted in food manufacturing, as the Food Standards Agency’s guidance on approved additives sets out. Same ingredient, completely different answer depending on where you sell.
Flavors and emulsifiers can trip you up the same way. I’ve written before about what “natural flavors” actually means. For a US launch, though, the question is simpler: is this specific use lawful for FDA-regulated food?
My rule of thumb is to build the US formula for the US rulebook, then design the label around that formula. Never the other way around.
The admin: the bit everyone forgets
Even a perfect label fails if the import pathway is wrong.
Foreign facilities that make, process, pack or hold food for the US generally need to register with the FDA and renew every other year. Every shipment needs prior notice before it enters the US. And under the Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP) rule, the US importer has to verify that foreign suppliers meet an equivalent level of public health protection, allergen labeling included.
This is where I hear one sentence over and over: “Oh, our co-manufacturer handles FDA.”
Sometimes they handle parts of it. But you still need to know who your US importer is for FSVP, that your facility is registered, and that prior notice will actually be filed. If you can’t answer those three questions, you’re not ready to ship.
What this means for you
When consumer brands fail before they reach the shelf, I usually see the same pattern: packaging treated as a design problem, and food safety left until it’s too late. Crossing an ocean doesn’t change those mistakes. It just makes them more expensive.
So start with the rulebook, build the formula to fit it, and design the label last. Your future self, and your freight bill, will thank you.
What I ate this week that was delicious
Two things from @Fallow that I’m still thinking about.
The first was the corn ribs with a smoky rub. Crispy, sticky, a little charred at the edges, and gone far too quickly. The second was a chocolate mousse so light and fluffy it almost felt like eating a chocolate cloud. As a food scientist, I can’t help admiring how much air they’ve managed to hold in there. As a person, I just wanted a second one.
Pure heaven. If you’re in London, go.