4. Labeling Requirements

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4. Labeling Requirements

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Nutritional Milk Powder and UHT Milk
Singapore

This section provides information on labeling requirements and the label approval process.

4.1 Mandatory Labeling Parameters

General Foods

- Product name: The common name, or a description sufficient to indicate the true nature of the food.

- Ingredients list: A specific name or description or a generic name or description of every ingredient contained in the formula. The appropriate designation of each ingredient in the case of food consisting of two or more ingredients and unless the quantity or proportion of each ingredient is specified, the ingredients shall be specified in descending order of the proportions by weight in which they are present. Where a food contains an ingredient that is made from two or more constituents, the appropriate designations of those constituents shall be so specified and it shall not be necessary to specify the appropriate designation of that ingredient. It is not necessary to state that the food contains water. In the case of food that contains the synthetic coloring tartrazine, declare (i) tartrazine or (ii) color (102) or (iii) color (FD&C Yellow #5) or other equivalent terms in the ingredients list.

- Foods and ingredients known to cause hypersensitivity:

cereals containing gluten, i.e. wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, or their hybridized strains and their products;
crustacea and crustacean products;
eggs and egg products;
fish and fish products;
peanuts, soybeans, and their products;
milk and milk products (including lactose);
tree nuts and nut products; and
sulfites in concentrations of 10 mg/kg or more.

- Date marking of validity of prepacked food: The date mark shall be shown clearly and the size of the letters shall not be less than 3 mm in height. The expiry dates of prepacked food products may be declared in one of the following ways:

“USE BY (here insert the day, month, and year)”;
“SELL BY (here insert the day, month, and year)”;
“EXPIRY DATE (here insert the day, month, and year)”; or
“BEST BEFORE (here insert the day, month, and year)”.

- Storage direction of the food where the validity of the date mark of any prepacked food is dependent on its storage

- Net quantity

- In the case of nutrition claim(s) made, a nutrition information panel in the form specified in the Twelfth Schedule or in such other similar form as may be acceptable to the Director-General, specifying the energy value, the amounts of protein, carbohydrate, fat and the amount of any other nutrients for which a nutrition claim is made in respect of the food. Refer to the format of the nutrition information panel in the Twelfth Schedule.

- Manufacturer or Importer name and address and Country of Origin: The name and address of the manufacturer, packer, or local vendor in the case of a food of local origin; and the name and address of the local importer, distributor or agent and the name of the country of origin of the food in the case of an imported food. A telegraphic or code address or an address at a post office shall not be sufficient.

- The following words or any other words to the same effect in the case of any food containing aspartame: “PHENYLKETONURICS: CONTAINS PHENYLALANINE.”

Product

1) Milk Powder

There are no requirements specific to milk powder. It should comply with the requirements for General Foods described above.

2) Ultra Heat Treated Milk

There are no requirements specific to UHT milk. It should comply with the requirements for General Foods described above.

4.2 Languages

General Foods

English [1]

Product

1) Milk Powder

English [1]

2) Ultra Heat Treated Milk

English [1]

4.3 Mandatory Information on Stickers

General Foods

The use of sticker labels to incorporate the mandatory labeling information in English on the labels of your food product is acceptable as long as the sticker label used is firmly attached to the product at all times, and does not cover other essential information required under the Food Regulations.

The information made available on the sticker labels should not contradict those declared on the original label. Please note that tampering of date marking (i.e. expiry date) declared on the original label is prohibited under the Food Regulations [2].

Product

1) Milk Powder

There are no requirements specific to milk powder. It should comply with the requirements for General Foods described above.

2) Ultra Heat Treated Milk

There are no requirements specific to UHT milk. It should comply with the requirements for General Foods described above.

4.4 Product Legal Name

Product

1) Milk Powder [1]

Dried milk or milk powder or dried whole milk or dried full cream milk or full cream milk powder;
Dried half-cream milk; or
Dried skimmed milk or skimmed milk powder, as appropriate.

2) Ultra Heat Treated Milk [1]

UHT milk; or
UHT reconstituted milk or UHT recombined milk; or
UHT flavored milk (followed by or immediately preceded by the name of the flavor), as appropriate.

4.5 Product-specific Labeling Statements

Category

Milk Products [1,3]

Regulation 184A defines “Nutri-Grade beverage” as any beverage (including any powder or concentrate meant to be reconstituted or diluted with fluids before consumption as a beverage) other than the following:

A beverage that contains more than 0.5% (v/v) alcohol at 20°C
A beverage that is any special purpose food meeting any of the criteria stated in Regulation 184A(2)

According to the requirements set out in Regulation 184B [9], Nutri-Grade beverages sold in Singapore shall be graded (“A”, “B”, “C” or “D”) based on the sugar and saturated fat content according to the grading system shown in the table below. Note that the grade of a Nutri-Grade beverage is the poorer of the sugar content grade and the saturated fat content grade. In addition, the sugar content of a beverage is determined by its total sugar content, minus the amount of lactose and/or galactose that is declared on the Nutrition Information Panel (NIP).

The Nutri-Grade Mark must be applied on the Front-of-Pack (FOP) surface of pre-packaged beverages if they are graded “C” or “D”. The Nutri-Grade mark consists of two key pieces of information about the beverage (i.e. its grade and its percentage of sugar content per 100ml rounded to the nearest whole number (see below figure)).

According to Regulation 184C of the Food Regulations, a nutrition information panel is mandatory for Nutri-grade beverages in the form specified in the Twelfth Schedule and, additionally, to declare the amount of total sugar and saturated fat, unless the product contains no carbohydrate or no fat, respectively. Refer to Industry Guidance in [4] for more details.

1) Milk Powder [1]

For Dried full-cream milk:

Every tin or other receptacle containing dried milk or milk powder or dried whole milk or dried full cream milk or full cream milk powder shall bear a label on which shall be printed the following:

DRIED MILK (OR MILK POWDER OR DRIED WHOLE MILK OR DRIED FULL CREAM MILK

OR FULL CREAM MILK POWDER)

This tin/receptacle contains the equivalent of

................ liters of milk

The labeling shall be completed by inserting the nearest number of liters in words and figures. The number of liters shall be such as to ensure that the equivalent quantity is accurately expressed in terms of milk containing not less than 3.25% (w/w) milk fat and 8.5% (w/w) non-fat milk solids.

For Dried half-cream milk:

Every tin or other receptacle containing dried half cream milk shall bear a label on which shall be printed the following:

DRIED HALF CREAM MILK

This tin/receptacle contains the equivalent of

……… liters of half cream milk

The labeling shall be completed by inserting the nearest number of liters in words and figures. The number of liters shall be such as to ensure that the equivalent quantity is accurately expressed in terms of half cream milk containing not less than 1.6% (w/w) milk fat and 8.5% (w/w) non-fat milk solids.
Every tin or other receptacle containing dried half cream milk shall also be labeled with the words “GUARANTEED 14% BUTTER FAT” which shall be printed in red in letters, not less than 6 mm in height.

For Dried skimmed milk:

Every tin or other receptacle containing dried skimmed milk shall bear a label on which shall be printed the following:

SKIMMED MILK POWDER

UNFIT (or UNSUITABLE) FOR BABIES (or INFANTS)

This tin/receptacle contains the equivalent of

……… liters of skimmed milk

The labeling shall be completed by inserting the nearest number of liters in words and figures. The number of liters shall be such as to ensure that the equivalent quantity is accurately expressed in terms of skimmed milk containing not less than 9% (w/w) non-fat milk solids.

NOTES:
The labeling of above content shall be printed in dark block type upon a light-colored background or in light block type upon a dark background.
The type to be used for the labeling above content stating the equivalent quantities of various types of milk shall not be less than 3 mm in height (or if the gross weight of the tin or receptacle does not exceed 330 g, 1.5 mm in height).
The type to be used for the labellng above content, other than that stating the equivalent quantities of various types of milk, shall not be less than 6 mm in height (or if the gross weight of the tin or other receptacle does not exceed 330 g, 3 mm in height).

4.6 Authority Approval

Product

1) Milk Powder [2]

No authority approval is required.

2) Ultra Heat Treated Milk [2]

No authority approval is required.

4.7 Additional Notes on Labeling

General Foods

The common name of the product, the statement of ingredients, and the net quantity must be printed with letters not less than 1.5 mm in height.

A recipe, suggestion, or pictorial illustration on how to serve the food must not be included on any label unless it is either immediately preceded or followed or closely accompanied by the expression “Recipe” or “Serving Suggestion”, as the case may be, in printed letters of a minimum of 1.5 mm in height.

Product

1) Milk Powder [1]

The label shall be securely attached to the tin or other receptacle so as to be clearly visible.

The use of the word “milk” alone on any label shall be reserved exclusively for describing milk complying with the standards laid down for milk. Any built-up product shall be so labeled as to make it clear to the purchaser or consumer that the product is artificial and is not made solely from milk, and in no case shall the word “milk” be larger than any other word, descriptive of the product, on the label.

2) Ultra Heat Treated Milk [1]

The label shall be securely attached to the tin or other receptacle so as to be clearly visible.