Energy Terms:

Diet, Dietetic

Term used to indicate that a food is either a low-calorie or a reduced-calorie food.

Low calorie

containing no more than 40 calories per serving

Reduced calorie

Containing 25 percent fewer calories per serving than a "regular" product

Fat Terms (meat and poulty products)

Extra lean

Contains not more than 5 grams of fat, no more than 2 grams of saturated fat, and not more than 95 mg of cholesterol per serving

Lean

Contains not more than 10 grams of fat, not more than 4.5 grams of saturated fat, and less than 95 mg of cholesterol per serving

Fat and Cholesterol Terms (all products)

Fat free

Containing 0.5 grams or less of fat per serving

Low cholesterol

Containing fewer than 20 mg of cholesterol per serving and fewer than 2 grams of saturated fat per serving

Low fat

Containing 3 grams or less of fat per serving

Percent fat free

May be used only if the product meets the definition of low fat or fat free. Requires disclosure of grams of fat per 100 gram food

Reduced saturated fat

Containing 25 percent or less of the saturated fat in the comparison food and reduced by more than 1 gram per serving

Saturated fat free

Containing 0.5 grams or less of saturated fat and 0.5 grams or less of trans-fatty acids

Sodium Terms

Low sodium

Containing 140 mg or fewer sodium per serving

Very low sodium

Containing 35 mg or less sodium per serving

Other Terms

Free, without, no, zero

Containing no amount or a trivial amount. Calorie-free means containing fewer than 5 calories per serving; sugar-free or fat-free means containing less than half a gram per serving

Fresh

Raw, unprocessed or minimally processed with no added preservatives

Good source

Provides 10 to 19 percent of the Daily Value per serving

Healthy

A term allowable in food names, so long as the food is low in fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium

High

Provides 20 percent or more of the Daily Value per serving

Imitation food

This term must be used to describe a food intended to replace a standard food, if the replacement food lacks one or more nutrients provided by the original food. For example, imitation cheese for pizza lacks the calcium of real mozzarella cheese

Less, fewer

Provides 25 percent less of a nutrient or calories than a reference food. This may occur naturally or as a result of altering the food. For example, pretzels, which are usually low in fat, can claim to provide less fat than potatoe chips, a comparable food

Light

This descriptor has 3 meanings on labels: (1) a serving provides one-third fewer calories or half the fat of the regular product. (2) a serving of a low-calorie, low-fat food provides half the sodium normally present. (3) the product is light in color and texture, so long as the label makes this intent clear, as in "light brown sugar"

More

Contains 10 percent more of the Daily Value than a comparable food. The nutrient may be added or may occur naturally

Reduced

Altered to provide 25 percent less of a nutrient or calories than a "regular" product