More about ingredients lists

An ingredient list is required by law, to be on all food packages. By looking at the ingredients list you will get a wealth of facts about how healthy a product is and whether it is suitable or not.

The ingredients listed must be in order of quantity with ingredients used in the greatest amount listed first and the ingredients used in the smallest amount at the end of the list.

If a type of fat such as animal fat, vegetable oil etc, or a type of sugar such as corn syrup or sucrose etc, appears as one of the first three ingredients on the list, then the product is most likely to be high in fat, or sugar, or both.
Also note that all fats are high in calories whether saturated, polysaturated or monounsaturated.

When looking at ingredients on a food product, be aware of added fat, sugar and salt and look for products higher in fibre.

Beware when it comes to looking for fat, sugar and salt, as they may appear by different names. They may be listed in their various “forms” low on the list to reflect a smaller quantity.

For example: other common names for 'fat' include:

Beef fat	Beef tallow
Animal or vegetable oil	Animal, vegetable or butter fat
Shortening	Milk
Solids	Copha
Lard	Coconut oil
Cream	Dripping
Palm oil	Toasted

To learn more about other common names for sugar and salt, see the 'Australian Healthy Shopping Guide .'