New Nutrition Facts Label: FDA Changes for 2026–2028
Track FDA nutrition label changes through 2028, including the new Nutrition Facts label status, healthy claim deadline and proposed front-of-package rules.
No new mandatory Nutrition Facts label format takes effect in 2026. If you are looking for a new Nutrition Facts label, the major items behind current coverage are FDA's proposed front-of-package Nutrition Info box, the final but voluntary updated definition of the "healthy" claim, and voluntary sodium reduction targets. Of those, only the healthy claim carries a specific compliance deadline.
This page tracks the FDA nutrition label changes manufacturers need to understand from 2026 through 2028, separating requirements that are final and dated from proposals and voluntary guidance. That distinction matters: some changes are binding with hard deadlines, one high-profile change remains proposed, and several widely reported "changes" are not labeling requirements at all.
For the mechanics of the current label rather than the regulatory calendar, start with the Nutrition Facts label requirements guide. For detailed deadline planning, see the 2028 compliance guide. Everything below is current as of 28 September 2026.
FDA nutrition label changes for 2026 at a glance
Read the status column before the date column. A projected date attached to a proposed rule is not a compliance deadline, and several dates reported in trade coverage are projections rather than FDA commitments.
| Change | Status | Dates that matter |
|---|---|---|
| Nutrition Facts format, added sugars, updated Daily Values, updated serving sizes | FINAL and already required | 2016 rules; compliance passed 1 Jan 2020 (firms with $10 million or more in annual food sales) and 1 Jan 2021 (smaller firms) |
| Sesame as the ninth major allergen | FINAL (statute, FASTER Act) | In force since 1 Jan 2023 |
| Updated "healthy" nutrient content claim | FINAL rule, voluntary claim | Published 27 Dec 2024; effective 28 Apr 2025 after a delay; compliance 25 Feb 2028 |
| FD&C Red No. 3 revocation | FINAL | Foods and dietary supplements must stop using it by 15 Jan 2027; ingested drugs by 18 Jan 2028 |
| Uniform compliance date for labeling rules published 1 Jan 2025 through 31 Dec 2026 | FINAL | 1 Jan 2028, for any such rule that does not set its own date |
| Front-of-package "Nutrition Info" box | PROPOSED, not binding | Proposed 16 Jan 2025; comments closed 15 Jul 2025; under reassessment since March 2026; no final rule exists; the proposed 3-year and 4-year compliance clocks have not started |
| "Low added sugars" nutrient content claim | PROPOSED RULE PENDING, nothing published | Unified Agenda projects a proposed rule in Dec 2026 |
| Federal ultra-processed food definition | IN DEVELOPMENT, not a labeling rule | Request for information Jul 2025; whitepaper sent to OMB 3 Aug 2026 and announced 10 Aug 2026; criteria not public |
| Voluntary "healthy" symbol; draft Q&A guidance on the healthy claim | NOT ISSUED | Symbol still exploratory; the draft "Questions and Answers Regarding Use of the 'Healthy' Claim" guidance was added to the 2026 agenda on 29 Jun 2026 and has not been issued |
| Federal definition of "natural" | DOES NOT EXIST | Informal FDA policy only; no rulemaking pending |
| Mandatory ultra-processed food warning | DOES NOT EXIST | No proposal, no rule |
| Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2026 | INTRODUCED ONLY, not law | H.R. 8385 introduced 20 Apr 2026; Senate companion 29 Jul 2026 |
Why the new Nutrition Facts label picture remains uncertain
The uncertainty is important to understand rather than guess around.
FDA Commissioner Marty Makary resigned in May 2026, and Kyle Diamantas, previously Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods, became Acting Commissioner. In March 2026, Makary said publicly that current leadership "did not like the front-of-package plan that we inherited," while Diamantas told Bloomberg Law that "everything is on the table" and that meaningful changes could require re-proposing the rule through another notice-and-comment process.
The front-of-package proposal has therefore been under reassessment since March 2026 while remaining part of FDA's regulatory activity. An earlier projected May 2026 final-rule date passed without a final rule being published.
Treat any front-of-package timeline you see, including projected dates discussed here, as a planning assumption rather than a compliance schedule.
Front-of-package nutrition label changes: proposed, not required
The proposed front-of-package label is what much of the coverage describing a new nutrition facts label or new FDA food label is actually referring to.
FDA published "Food Labeling: Front-of-Package Nutrition Information" in the Federal Register on 16 January 2025 at 90 FR 5426, under Docket No. FDA-2024-N-2910.
The proposal would create a new 21 CFR 101.6 requiring a black-and-white "Nutrition Info" box in the upper third of the principal display panel. It would show three nutrients, in this order:
- Saturated fat.
- Sodium.
- Added sugars.
Each nutrient would show its %DV and an interpretive word.
| Band | %DV per serving | Saturated fat | Sodium | Added sugars |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low | 5% or less | 1 g or less | 115 mg or less | 2.5 g or less |
| Med | 6% to 19% | above Low, below High | above Low, below High | above Low, below High |
| High | 20% or more | 4 g or more | 460 mg or more | 10 g or more |
The gram and milligram amounts derive from the adult Daily Values of 20 g saturated fat, 2,300 mg sodium and 50 g added sugars. The proposal itself defines the Low, Med and High bands using %DV.
Calories are not included in the proposed box.
If finalized, compliance would begin 3 years after the effective date for businesses with $10 million or more in annual food sales and 4 years after the effective date for smaller businesses.
Those clocks have not started. No packaged food sold in the United States is currently required to carry this front-of-package box.
The full proposal is explained in the front-of-package guide, while its design, placement, exemptions and intermediate-package provisions are covered in the front-of-package label requirements.
The "healthy" claim: final, with a 2028 compliance deadline
The updated definition of "healthy" is a final rule, but using the claim remains voluntary.
The updated definition was published at 89 FR 106064 on 27 December 2024. Its effective date was delayed to 28 April 2025, while the compliance date remains 25 February 2028.
Any product using "healthy" or a derivative such as "healthful" or "healthier" in a nutritional context must meet the updated criteria by that date.
The new test is structural rather than cosmetic.
A food must contain a minimum food group equivalent, such as 1/2 cup-eq of vegetables or 3/4 oz-eq of whole grain, and stay within limits for added sugars, sodium and saturated fat.
For most individual foods, that means 230 mg sodium, or 10% DV, 1 g added sugars, or 2% DV, and 1 g or 2 g saturated fat depending on the category.
The previous 1994 rule limited total fat and cholesterol and required 10% DV of a nutrient to encourage. The updated rule removes both fat tests and roughly halves the sodium ceiling.
As a result, salmon, nuts, olive oil, avocados and plain water can qualify, while sweetened yogurt, sweetened cereal and fortified white bread generally do not.
Recordkeeping is also part of the rule. Written verification of food group equivalent content must be kept for at least 2 years unless that content is evident from the label.
The category-specific criteria are covered in the healthy claim guide.
Added sugars: already required, with another claim rule in development
Added sugars are not a 2026 Nutrition Facts label change.
The line has been mandatory under 21 CFR 101.9(c)(6)(iii) since 1 January 2020 for larger firms and 1 January 2021 for smaller firms. It appears as "Includes Xg Added Sugars" indented beneath Total Sugars and uses a Daily Value of 50 g.
If your current Nutrition Facts panel does not include the required declaration, you are not waiting for a new rule. The existing requirement has already been in effect for years.
What remains open is nutrient content claims.
There is currently no defined "low added sugars" or "reduced added sugars" claim. FDA's Unified Agenda entry RIN 0910-AJ20 lists a proposed rule on nutrient content claims for added sugars, with a projected proposed-rule date of December 2026.
Nothing has been published yet, so there is no defined standard for either phrase today.
See the added sugars guide for the definition, juice concentrate exclusions, and the enforcement discretion applying to honey and maple syrup.
Sodium: voluntary targets, binding labeling claims
Two separate FDA actions are often confused.
FDA's sodium reduction targets are voluntary guidance. Phase I was finalized in October 2021 and aims to move average intake from about 3,400 mg to 3,000 mg per day across 163 food subcategories.
Phase II, targeting about 2,750 mg, was issued as draft guidance on 15 August 2024 and remains draft. A product is not out of compliance simply because it misses one of these voluntary targets.
Sodium nutrient content claims are different. They are binding under 21 CFR 101.61.
"Low sodium" means 140 mg or less per RACC. "Very low sodium" means 35 mg or less. "Sodium free" means less than 5 mg.
The front-of-package proposal would tighten "low sodium" to 115 mg per RACC to align it with the proposed 5% DV band. That change is proposed only. The current 140 mg threshold remains the number to use.
Details are covered in the sodium guide.
Daily Values and serving sizes have not changed
The 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans were released on 7 January 2026 with several new numbers, including no more than 10 g of added sugars per meal and avoiding added sugars for children until age 10.
Those Dietary Guidelines are guidance, not Nutrition Facts labeling regulations.
The Daily Values established in 21 CFR 101.9 remain unchanged:
- Calories: 2,000.
- Total fat: 78 g.
- Saturated fat: 20 g.
- Sodium: 2,300 mg.
- Total carbohydrate: 275 g.
- Dietary fiber: 28 g.
- Added sugars: 50 g.
- Vitamin D: 20 mcg.
- Calcium: 1,300 mg.
- Iron: 18 mg.
- Potassium: 4,700 mg.
Changing those Daily Values would require rulemaking, and no such change has been proposed.
The full tables, including separate values for infants and children 1 through 3, are available in the Daily Values guide.
Serving sizes are also unchanged.
The 2016 rule at 81 FR 34000 updated RACCs where consumption data had changed. Ice cream increased from 1/2 cup to 2/3 cup, beverages from 8 fl oz to 12 fl oz, yogurt decreased from 225 g to 170 g, and bagels and muffins increased from 55 g to 110 g.
The same rule established the package rules still in effect today. An individually sold package containing less than 200% of the RACC is one serving, while packages containing 200% through 300% require dual columns.
See the serving size guide and the RACC lookup tool for those calculations.
FDA nutrition label changes and deadlines through 2028
| Date | What happens | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 15 Jan 2027 | FD&C Red No. 3 may no longer be used in foods or dietary supplements | FINAL |
| 1 Jan 2028 | Uniform compliance date for food labeling rules published from 1 Jan 2025 through 31 Dec 2026 that do not set their own date | FINAL |
| 18 Jan 2028 | FD&C Red No. 3 out of ingested drugs | FINAL |
| 25 Feb 2028 | Any product bearing "healthy" must meet the 2024 definition | FINAL |
That is the complete federal list.
States have introduced additional requirements and deadlines. One of them, Texas SB 25, is partly blocked by a preliminary injunction. The year-by-year breakdown, including the state layer, is covered in the 2027 changes article.
What manufacturers should do between now and 2028
A practical sequence is:
- Confirm your current label already meets the 2016 rules. Check that the Added Sugars line is present, vitamin D and potassium appear in actual amounts and %DV, Calories from Fat has been removed, current Daily Values are being used, the correct RACC determines serving size, and dual columns appear where a package contains 200% through 300% of the RACC. These are current requirements, not future changes.
- Inventory every "healthy" and derivative claim across your portfolio. Include websites and secondary packaging. For each product, apply the appropriate food group equivalent requirement and the category limits for added sugars, sodium and saturated fat. Products that fail will need reformulation or claim removal before 25 February 2028.
- Establish the recordkeeping required by the healthy rule. Keep recipes, formulations, database analyses or batch records supporting food group equivalent content for at least 2 years after the food enters commerce.
- Check formulations for FD&C Red No. 3 now and plan artwork for 15 January 2027. Replacing a color changes the ingredient statement, so this becomes a labeling and artwork project as well as a procurement change.
- Model the proposed front-of-package box without printing it. Calculate the proposed Low, Med and High classifications for saturated fat, sodium and added sugars on your major products. The %DV calculator handles the arithmetic. This shows which products would display "High" if a rule is eventually finalized.
- Do not redesign packaging around proposed or in-development requirements yet. The design could change, the proposal could be re-proposed, and its compliance clocks would not begin unless and until a final rule takes effect.
Before printing, run the completed artwork through the FDA label checklist, and check anything that functions as a nutrient content claim with the claim validator.
New Nutrition Facts label: frequently asked questions
Is there a new Nutrition Facts label in 2026?
No. The Nutrition Facts panel itself is not changing in 2026. Its format, nutrient declarations, Daily Values and serving-size framework remain based on the 2016 rules, whose compliance dates were 1 January 2020 and 1 January 2021. Current nutrition label changes coverage usually refers to the proposed front-of-package box or the final but voluntary updated "healthy" claim.
Do I have to add the proposed front-of-package box to my product?
No. The proposal published on 16 January 2025 has not been finalized, so no current FDA requirement makes packaged foods carry the Nutrition Info box. Under the proposal, compliance would begin 3 years after the effective date for businesses with at least $10 million in annual food sales and 4 years later for smaller businesses. Those clocks have not started.
Will there be an ultra-processed food warning label?
There is no proposed or final rule requiring an ultra-processed food warning label. FDA and USDA issued a request for information in July 2025, and a document titled "Proposed Definition of Ultra-Processed Food" was sent to OMB for review on 3 August 2026 and announced on 10 August 2026. It is a definition and research effort, not a labeling requirement. Any labeling requirement would need separate rulemaking.
Can I call my product "natural"?
There is still no federal regulatory definition of "natural" for food. FDA's longstanding informal policy is that nothing artificial or synthetic, including added color, has been included that would not normally be expected in the food. FDA requested comments in 2015 and 2016, the comment period closed in May 2016, and no rule has been proposed since. Nothing on the 2026 agenda changes that.
Did the new Dietary Guidelines change the Daily Values on my label?
No. The 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans are dietary guidance. The Daily Values used for Nutrition Facts %DV calculations are established in 21 CFR 101.9 and remain unchanged. FDA has said it will assess whether the updated "healthy" criteria need alignment with the new guidelines, but no corresponding Daily Value change has been proposed.
When is the FDA healthy claim deadline?
The compliance date is 25 February 2028. The updated definition was published at 89 FR 106064 on 27 December 2024, and its effective date was delayed to 28 April 2025 without moving the compliance date. The claim remains voluntary, so products that do not use "healthy" or a qualifying derivative are not required to add it.
What are the FDA sodium reduction targets?
They are voluntary guidance, not mandatory labeling requirements. Phase I, finalized in October 2021, targets average intake of about 3,000 mg per day across 163 food subcategories. Phase II, issued as draft guidance on 15 August 2024, targets about 2,750 mg and remains draft. Missing those targets does not by itself put a product out of compliance.
Whether you are auditing products for the 25 February 2028 healthy claim deadline or simply need a panel that meets the requirements already in force, build it in the nutrition label generator, which applies current Daily Values, RACC-based serving sizes and 21 CFR 101.9 rounding automatically. Bookmark this page: it is updated as each item moves from proposed to final.
