"Sugar free", "no sugar" and "zero sugar" mean a food has less than 0.5 gram of sugars per reference amount and per labeled serving. It can't contain an ingredient that is or contains sugar, unless that ingredient is marked with an asterisk saying it "adds a trivial amount of sugar". And because shoppers read "sugar free" as low in calories, the claim has to come with either a "low calorie" or "reduced calorie" claim the food really meets, or the statement "not a low calorie food", "not a reduced calorie food" or "not for weight control", every time the claim appears. "No sugar added" is a different claim: nothing with sugar added in the making, for a food that normally has added sugar, with a statement pointing to the nutrition panel. In the example below, a Dallas candy maker labels a sugar-free line.
The short version
- Sugar free: less than 0.5 g of sugars per reference amount and per serving.
- No sugar-containing ingredients, unless marked as adding a trivial amount.
- Add "not a low calorie food" unless the food meets a low or reduced calorie claim.
- Low calorie: 40 calories or less per reference amount, and per 50 g for small ones.
- "No sugar added" is a different claim with its own conditions.
- A claim takes away the small business exemption from nutrition labeling.
- TaroStack keeps each recipe by weight, so the sugars in a batch are on record. More below.
Sugar free or not
| The food | Can it say sugar free? |
|---|---|
| Under 0.5 g of sugars per reference amount, no sugar ingredients, meets "low calorie" | Yes, with "low calorie" |
| Under 0.5 g of sugars, no sugar ingredients, not low calorie | Yes, with "not a low calorie food" each time |
| Under 0.5 g, but a sugar-containing ingredient in it | Only with an asterisk: "adds a trivial amount of sugar" |
| 0.5 g of sugars or more | No; perhaps "no sugar added" if its conditions are met |
"No sugar added" in full is in no added sugar label, and "low calorie" in low calorie claim.
The rules
| Rule | Where |
|---|---|
| Sugar free | Less than 0.5 g of sugars per reference amount and per labeled serving; no sugar ingredient unless asterisked as adding a trivial amount (21 CFR 101.60(c)(1)) |
| The calorie statement | A low or reduced calorie claim the food meets, or "not a reduced calorie food", "not a low calorie food" or "not for weight control" each time the claim is used (101.60(c)(1)(iii)) |
| Low calorie | 40 calories or less per reference amount; for reference amounts of 30 g or less, also per 50 g (101.60(b)(2)) |
| No sugar added | No sugars or sugar-containing ingredients added; it substitutes for a food that normally has added sugars; a statement that it isn't low or reduced calorie, pointing to the nutrition panel (101.60(c)(2)) |
This is general information, not legal advice.
An example: a sugar-free line
Bluebonnet Toffee Co., the made-up candy maker in Dallas, Texas, I use in these examples, added sugar-free candies to its line and checked each label. Hard candies have a 15-gram reference amount:
| Candy | Sugars per reference amount | Calories | On the label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peppermint drops, isomalt and stevia | 0 g | 30 per 15 g; 100 per 50 g | "Sugar free" with "not a low calorie food" |
| Lemon drops, isomalt, a little lemon juice concentrate | 0.2 g | 30 per 15 g | "Sugar free", the concentrate asterisked "adds a trivial amount of sugar", and "not a low calorie food" |
| Milk chocolate squares with maltitol | 3 g, from the milk | Not sugar free; considered for "no sugar added" with its statement | |
| Classic toffee | 20 g | No sugar claim |
The peppermints have 30 calories per 15-gram reference amount, under 40, but 100 per 50 grams, so they aren't "low calorie", and every "sugar free" on the bag carries "not a low calorie food". The chocolate has 3 grams of sugars from its milk, over the line, so it can't say sugar free at all. The claim also means the line needs a Nutrition Facts panel, since a claim takes away the small business exemption. Packaging the line is in how to package candy for sale.
Get the checker
Download the sugar free claim checker. One sheet: each product, its sugars per reference amount, any sugar-containing ingredient, its calories per reference amount and per 50 g, and its reference amount; whether it can say sugar free and what goes with it fill in. It's an ordinary Excel file with no macros, and it works in Google Sheets, LibreOffice and Numbers.
Where this stops working
The checker sorts the claims. Whether every batch stays under half a gram depends on the recipe the batch followed; a lemon drop made with a heavier hand on the concentrate can cross the line.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack keeps each candy as a recipe and each batch as a lot, so what's in a package, and who got it, is on record.
Recipes by weight. Each candy is a recipe with its ingredients by weight, so a recipe change shows which labels it touches.
Batches by lot. Each batch records the recipe and ingredient lots it used, and lot labels print for the cases.
Recalls. If a batch went out with the wrong label, one report shows every customer who got it.
| The job | Notebook | In TaroStack |
|---|---|---|
| Which recipe a batch followed | Remembered | Each batch from its recipe |
| Which batch a package came from | Written on it | The lot on its label |
| Who got a mislabeled batch | Invoices | One recall report |
Recipes, batches, lots and recalls are on every plan, from $49 a month. The first 30 days are free, with no credit card. If you'd like a hand setting up, ask, and we'll do it with you.