Information labeled
General
- Foods must be labeled according to the following categories (Article 4(1) of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods and Articles 3(1) and 3(2) of the Enforcement Rule thereof).
1. Food, food additives or livestock products
· Product name, content and raw material
· Name and location of business
· Precautions for consumer safety
· Date of manufacture, use-by-date or quality maintenance period
· Food type and item report number
· Ingredient name and content
· Material of container and packaging
· Irradiation treatment indication (mark)
· Storage or handling method
· Type of meat, part name, grade and slaughterhouse name
· Date of packing, dateof production, or laying date
2. Utensils or containers/packaging
· Material
· Name and location of business
· Precautions for consumer safety
· The word "food" or the design indicating food utensil
Labeling precautions for consumer safety (common)
- If the foods include raw materials that can cause allergies, the name of the raw materials must be labeled, and the allergens, items that require labeling, and labeling methods are as follows (Article 5-(1) and Attached Table 2, I. Common item No. 1 of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labelling and Advertising of Foods).
1. Allergens
· Eggs (poultry only), milk, buckwheat, peanuts, soybeans, wheat, mackerel, crab, shrimp, pork, peaches, tomatoes, sulfites (Only when, by adding this, the final product contains at least 10 milligrams of sulfur dioxide per kilogram), walnut, chicken, beef, squid, shellfish (including oysters, abalone, and mussels), and pine nuts
2. Items that require labeling
1) Foods using the allergens in 1) above as raw materials
2) Foods using ingredients obtained by methods such as extraction, from the foods of 1), as raw materials
3) Foods using, as ingredients, the foods containing those in 1) and 2) above
3. Labeling method
· Allergen label should be provided in the vicinity of the raw material name column to distinguish it from the background color, and all allergens used as raw materials should be labeled regardless of the amount of allergens in the product. However, if product name of the food manufactured or processed with a single raw material or the packaged/imported meat is the same as that of the raw material causing allergies, the label for allergens can be omitted
(Examples) Contains egg, milk, shrimp, sulfur dioxide, and shellfish (oysters)
- If there is a risk of inevitable mixing between products that use allergens and those that do not due to production undergoing the same manufacturing process (all manufacturing processes including workers, appliances, manufacturing lines, and raw material storage), cautionary statements such as “This product is manufactured in the same manufacturing facility as a product that uses buckwheat that may be allergic," “May have been mixed with buckwheat,” or “Possible buckwheat mixing” have to be indicated. However, if the raw material of the product is an allergen, no indication is needed. (Attached Table 2, Ⅰ. Common item No. 2 of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods).
- “Gluten-free” label can be used if it falls under any of the following (Attached Table 2, Ⅰ. Common item No. 3 of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods)
1. Foods with a total gluten content of less than 20 milligrams per kilogram without using wheat, rye, barley, oats or their hybrids as raw materials
2. Foods with a total gluten content of less than 20 milligrams per kilogram by using raw materials (gluten-free wheat, rye, barley, oats, or hybrids thereof)
- Food, etc. high in caffeine shall be labeled, and the labeling object, method, etc. are as follows (Common matters no. 4 of Attached Table 2 of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods):
1. Object to Label
· Liquid food products containing more than 0.15 milligrams (mg) of caffeine per 1milliliter.
2. How to Label
· Mark notices of “high-caffeinated drink” and “contains 000mg of caffeine in total” on the main labeled side (referring to the side containing trademarks, logos, etc. and generally shown on the display shelf for sale).
· Mark a notice indicating, “We recommend children, pregnant women, and caffeine-sensitive people to be careful when drinking this.”
3. Tolerance of total caffeine content: The actual total caffeine content shall range from 90 to 110% of the marked content (however, coffee, tea, or liquid food products containing coffee or tea shall have below 120% of the total caffeine content marked on the main labeled side).
Labeling precautions for consumer safety (For foods)
- Precautions for consumer safety must be indicated on foods as follows (Article 5(1) and Attached Table 2, Ⅱ (Precautions for foods) of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods.
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Object
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Labeling method
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Food and livestock products
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√ On frozen products, use labels such as “Do not freeze again after thawing as it has already been frozen.” √ For products with a high risk of decay and deterioration after opening such as fruit/vegetable drinks or milk, use labels such as "After opening, please keep refrigerated or eat as soon as possible." √ Add labels such as "Excessive drinking harms health" for products that use labels such as "Consumed before and after drinking, it will help hangovers" √ For products using aspartame (sweetener), use labels such as "Contains Phenylalanine" √ For products containing sugar-alcohol as the main raw material, state the contained sugar-alcohol type, content, and a phrase, such as "Overconsumption of this beverage may cause diarrhea,” etc. √ In the freshness preservatives separately packaged, use labels such as "Moisture-preventing agent" or "Moisture-removing agent" so that consumers can easily see their purpose, and also use precautions such as "Do not eat." If difficult to mark the labels or precautions above on the information display surface (the surface on the container or package that is highly visible for consumers), it can be done directly on the freshness preservatives √ So that complaints about food and livestock products or consumer damages can be promptly reported, use labels such as “Call 1399 (no area code) to Report illegal or defective food” √ If nitrogen gas or the like is filled in a container or packaging to improve preservation, indicate the fact with languages such as “nitrogen gas filling.” √ Label "Be careful when opening, storing, and disposing of cans. Can cuts are sharp,” or in one-touch canned products (opened in one operation) √ For products using flaxseed (except flaxseed oil) as a raw material, use labels such as “Daily flaxseed intake should not exceed 16 grams, and not exceed 4 grams per serving”
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Food additives
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√ Label precautions for handling such as "Keep it out of reach of children," “Do not eat or drink it directly” or “If it touches your eyes or skin or you drink it, it can cause fatal damage to your body,” in ammonium hydroxide, acetic acid, glacial acetic acid, hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, sodium hypochlorite, calcium hypochlorite, liquid nitrogen, liquid carbon dioxide, dry ice, nitrous oxide, and sodium nitrite.
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Utensils or containers/packaging
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√ When using food packaging wrap, label it to be used only under 100℃ √ Label food packaging wrap not to be used in direct contact with food with high fat content and with alcoholic beverages √ Label "Do not use for purposes other than intended" on glass heating utensils, and "Do not use for food heating" on non-heating utensils
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Labeling method for foods
Labeling method
- The labeling method for foods, such as font size and labeling place, is as follows. (Article 5(2) and Attached Table 3 of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods)
1. In the container or packaging for the minimum sales unit of products sold to consumers, information from Articles 4 to 6 of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods shall be displayed. However, as for candies, chewing gums, chocolates and jams, among packaged confectioneries, if the largest surface area of the minimum sales unit is 30 square meters or less and multiple minimum sales units are packaged so that they can be displayed and sold in one container/package. labeling can be on the container/package instead.
2. In principle, labeling must be in Korean, but Chinese characters or foreign languages can be used in parallel or in mixture. The font size of Chinese characters or foreign languages must be same as or smaller than that of Korean, except for the following.
A. When labeling in Chinese characters or foreign languages can be bigger than that in Korean
1) Imported foods under Article 2, subparagraph 1 of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control (However, the font size of Chinese characters or foreign language marked on imported OEM (original equipment manufacturing) food products under Article 18(2) of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control must be identical in size or smaller than Korean letters.)
2) If the trademark and liquor name had been registered according to the Trademark Act
B. When labeling in Korean can be omitted
1) When information under Attached Table 1, Attached Table 1 of the Enforcement Rule of the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Foods are displayed in English or the language of the exporting country, in the food imported for the purpose of manufacturing and processing by a company under the foregoing clause
2) Foods imported as raw materials or products for foreign exchange earnings under Articles 2-6 or 2-8 (Subparagraphs 6 and 8) of the Enforcement Decree of the Foreign Trade Act (excluding foods imported for tourism business under Article 26(1)-3 thereof)
3) Imported livestock products, in the state of bulk storage (in ship tanks or large boxes, not packaged in sales units) that cannot be labeled, such as carcasses [head, internal organs, or feet removed from the body], beef tallow (steamed oil), or pork oil
4) If the imported food product is used in research or studies specified under Attached Table 9, subparagraph 2, item A (3) of the Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Control
3. So that consumers can easily recognize, the main display surface and the information display surface should be distinguished by using a color contrasting with the background color. However, in order to prevent alteration of certain information labeled such as expiration date on bottle caps that are collected and reused, etc., functional health foods that have been engraved or stamped to allow the contents to be recognized may be displayed in a color that does not contrast with the background color.
4. When labeling, you must use indelible ink, engraving, or stamp (stamping after heating up the stamp). However, if doing so is difficult due to nature of the product or container/packaging, it can be done according to the "Labeling Standards for Foods" (Announced by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety).
5. The font size shall be at least 10 points. However, for detailed nutritional contents, labeling of inspection-passing meat,labeling on an egg shell, or if the space is insufficient in size to label, follow the Labeling Standards for Foods.
6. Letters following the instructions of "5." above should be displayed on the information-displaying surface, with a letter scale of 90% or higher and a letter spacing of -5% or higher. However, if the area of such surface is less than 100 square centimeters, they can be displayed with a letter scale of 50% or higher and a letter spacing of -5% or higher.