Decreto 246/020 (EXCESO): Uruguay nutrition label
Decreto 246/020 (EXCESO), the Uruguayan nutrition label under Decreto 246/020 + Decreto 34/021, 7 mandatory nutrients, per 100 g or 100 ml and per serving, both columns required, Spanish on pack. Generate a compliant label free.
Reviewed against Decreto 246/020 + Decreto 34/021 · Page updated October 25, 2026
Nutrition labelling requirements in Uruguay
Packaged food sold in Uruguay must carry a nutrition declaration under Decreto 246/020 + Decreto 34/021. This page covers the Uruguay - Decreto 246/020 (EXCESO) format: Chile-style octagon warnings per PAHO NPM. A compliant Uruguayan nutrition label declares 7 mandatory nutrients: valor energético, carbohidratos, proteínas, grasas totales, grasas saturadas, azúcares and sodio. Values are declared per 100 g or 100 ml and per serving, both columns required, with energy in kcal, and sodium rather than salt. The scheme itself uses 2 colour bands, and is applied on pack. The panel is headed "Información Nutricional". Spanish is required on pack. Front-of-pack warnings apply. The required scheme is black octagon stop sign. NFL builds a print-ready Uruguayan nutrition label from your recipe, applying the rounding rules and reference intakes for Uruguay automatically, and exports it as PDF, PNG, SVG, JPG or EPS.
Official regulation
Key facts
Front-of-pack scheme: how it works in Uruguay
Uruguay food warning labels under Decreto 272/018
Uruguay's front-of-pack warning system is mandatory and in force. Decreto 272/018 added it to the national food regulations (Reglamento Bromatológico Nacional) for packaged foods that need nutrition labelling, have sodium, sugars or fats added during manufacture or through an ingredient, and exceed a nutrient criterion.
Some products are exempt: foods for medical use, meal replacements for weight control, dietary and sports supplements, formulas for infants and children up to 36 months, and tabletop sweeteners.
Manufacturers, importers and packers are responsible for the accuracy and legibility of the warnings, and the Ministerio de Salud Pública (MSP) enforces the system.
Source: Decreto N° 272/018, IMPO.
The EXCESO octagons
Each nutrient over its limit gets its own octagon, which is mandatory. The four warnings read "EXCESO GRASAS", "EXCESO GRASAS SATURADAS", "EXCESO AZÚCARES" and "EXCESO SODIO".
The octagon is black with white letters and carries the MSP identifier. It goes on the main front face of the pack and must be clear, legible, prominent and indelible. Adhesive warnings are allowed as long as they follow the set design, size and position.
Uruguay's wording differs from Chile's "ALTO EN" and Mexico's "EXCESO" plus a word: in Uruguay the octagon reads "EXCESO" followed directly by the nutrient. The MSP's front-of-pack labelling manual (Ordenanza 892/022) gives the design details.
Source: Decreto N° 272/018, Annex IV, and MSP, Ordenanza N° 892/022, Manual para Rotulado Frontal de Alimentos.
How the criteria changed in 2020 and 2021
Decreto 246/020 replaced the original nutrient criteria. It moved from a profile based mainly on each nutrient's share of energy to absolute limits per 100 g or 100 ml.
Before those limits took effect, Decreto 34/021 replaced the annex again, and the revised system came into force on 1 February 2021. Examples of the current limits for solid foods are 500 mg sodium, 13 g sugars, 13 g total fat and 6 g saturated fat per 100 g.
A warning is mandatory when a food exceeds at least one applicable limit, calculated on the food as consumed when prepared according to the manufacturer's instructions. These limits are less strict than the PAHO model used by several neighbouring countries.
Source: Decreto N° 246/020, and Decreto N° 34/021, IMPO.
Spanish labels, MERCOSUR rules and imported foods
General packaged-food labelling in Uruguay follows the MERCOSUR technical regulation, adopted by Decreto 117/006, in force. Mandatory information must be in Spanish for the Uruguayan market; other languages may be added.
Imported foods with labels in another language may use a complementary Spanish label, applied at origin or in Uruguay before sale.
Imports must also carry Uruguay's own warnings. The MSP has stated that front-of-pack schemes on products from Argentina or Brazil must be covered and replaced where needed with the Uruguayan octagons, and that non-compliant imports must be relabelled, re-exported or destroyed.
Source: Decreto N° 117/006, MERCOSUR labelling regulation, and MSP, DGS/208/2022 on front-of-pack labelling.
Sources
Primary documents this page was written from, checked 2026-10-04.
How NFL handles it
- Applies the correct rounding rules for every nutrient
- Uses the right Daily Value / Reference Intake table for this jurisdiction
- Renders the required front-of-pack warnings automatically when thresholds are hit
- Handles multilingual labels where required (bilingual EN/FR, EN/ES, Arabic + EN, etc.)
- Exports print-ready vector PDF, PNG, SVG, JPG, and EPS
Common questions
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