The Ministry of Health has issued Circular No. 30/2026/TT-BYT, establishing new standards for food manufacturers regarding nutrition labeling on packaging. This policy requires all distributed food products to include at least five crucial nutritional components: energy, protein, carbohydrates, fat, and sodium.
This step was taken to standardize access to information for consumers, making it easier for the public to compare and choose products aligned with their health needs. In addition to the five basic components, certain food categories such as soft drinks, dairy products with added sugar, and fried processed foods are required to list total sugar and saturated fat levels to minimize the risk of non-communicable diseases such as obesity and hypertension.
Under these regulations, nutritional values must be consistently stated per 100 grams, 100 milliliters, or per serving size. The use of measurement units such as kilocalories (kcal) for energy, grams (g) for protein and fat, and milligrams (mg) for sodium is standardized across the industry. The Ministry emphasized that all displayed information must be accurate, non-misleading, and clearly legible throughout the product's shelf life.
However, these rules do not apply to all food products. Single-ingredient raw materials, mineral water, plain tea/coffee, health supplements, alcoholic beverages, and products from small-scale industries are exempt from these specific labeling requirements. This ensures the policy remains proportionate to the characteristics of products available on the market.
On the other hand, this regulatory strengthening coincides with the government's intensified food safety supervision. During the 2026 Food Safety Action Month, relevant authorities inspected thousands of business establishments and cracked down on thousands of violators caught distributing products unfit for consumption. This law enforcement effort is expected to heighten business operators' accountability in offering products that are not only informative, but also safe for the general public.
