EIT Food online course: Understanding Food Labels

Learn how to interpret food labels so you can make informed food choices and buy food that supports your health and wellbeing.

Get the facts you need to put your trust in the food system.

Huge amounts of information are provided on food product labels, but surveys have shown that we’re often unsure of its meaning.

Join the course for free

On this course, you’ll learn how to make sense of the regulations, data, and logos on packaging so that you can make more informed food choices.

You’ll become more aware of what’s in the food you’re buying, the reference intakes for different people, and the nutritional value and environmental sustainability of different foods.

You’ll also gain a better understanding of food labelling regulations, as well as the claims food producers are allowed to make.

What topics will you cover?

• How to navigate a typical food label - become familiar with the categories of information labels contain and why they are important.
• The limitations of food labels - what they don’t tell you.
• Decoding ingredients lists and discovering your recommended daily allowances.
• Differentiating between trustworthy health claims and those inspired by marketeers.
• How to resist the power of branding and gather reliable information to base your buying decisions on.
• The complexities of labelling food according to production values such as sustainability and animal welfare.