Guides
The FoodFact guide library: in-depth, source-based explanations of food labels, nutrition information, ingredients and food additives — so you can make informed choices when you shop.
Nutrition Guides
Nutrition Guide
Traffic-Light Food Labels Explained
How the UK front-of-pack traffic-light label works: the red, amber and green cut-offs per 100 g, the portion rule, %RI and what the colours leave out.
Nutrition Guide
How to Read a UK Nutrition Label
A line-by-line guide to the nutrition table on UK food packs: per 100 g vs per portion, reference intakes (%RI), sugars, salt and the ingredient list.
Nutrition Guide
Salt and Sodium on Food Labels: How to Read Them
Why UK labels show salt rather than sodium, how to convert between them, the NHS 6 g a day limit, what counts as high or low, and what "low salt" means.
Nutrition Guide
Sugars on Food Labels: Total Sugars vs Free Sugars
Why the "of which sugars" line includes milk and fruit sugars, what counts as free sugars, the 5 g and 22.5 g per 100 g bands, and how to spot added sugar.
Nutrition Guide
Food Additives and E Numbers in the UK
What E numbers mean, how additives are authorised in Great Britain after Brexit, how they appear in ingredient lists and the six-colour warning.
Nutrition Guide
HFSS Rules: Which "Less Healthy" Foods Are Restricted and Why
What HFSS means, how the Nutrient Profiling Model scores food and drink, the 13 product categories, and the promotion and advertising rules now in force.
Product Rankings
Yoghurt
10 Yoghurts with the Most Protein
Protein bar
10 Protein Bars with the Most Protein
Breakfast cereal
10 Breakfast Cereals with the Least Sugar
Bread
10 Breads with the Most Fibre
Crisps
10 Lightly Salted and Unsalted Crisps with the Least Salt
Ready meal
10 Ready Meals with the Fewest Calories
Savoury snack
10 Savoury Snacks with the Most Protein
Soft drink
10 Soft Drinks with the Least Sugar
Snack
10 Snacks Scoring Four Green Traffic Lights (Our Calculation)
Non-HFSS breakfast cereal
10 Non-HFSS Breakfast Cereals with the Most Fibre
Buying guides
Kitchen scales
Buying guide
How to Choose a Kitchen Scale for Tracking Food
What to check before buying kitchen scales in the UK: capacity, 1 g or 0.1 g steps, tare, units, what the law checks and who should ask a GP first.
Buying guide
Weighing Food for Calorie and Macro Tracking
How to weigh food for tracking: the tare method, per 100 g sums, raw against cooked weights with UK data, batches and cautions.
Buying guide
Kitchen Scale Accuracy, Resolution and Calibration
1 g or 0.1 g? What the spec words mean, what the law checks, a home accuracy check using UK coins, and weighing supplement scoops safely.
Buying guide
Kitchen Scale or Eyeballing Portions?
When a scale beats judging by eye: BNF hand measures, NHS portion sizes, what the research says about estimating, and foods that need weighing.
Smart scales
Buying guide
How to Choose a Body-Composition Scale
What to check before buying a smart scale in the UK: capacity, step size, how it estimates body fat, who should not use it, and your data.
Buying guide
What Bioimpedance Scales Can and Cannot Measure
How smart scales estimate body fat, what changes the reading, and how they compare with DEXA scans in the studies we read.
Buying guide
How to Weigh Yourself for Useful Trends
Set-up, timing, frequency and reading the pattern on a home scale, with what the research says about weekly weight rhythms.
Buying guide
BMI, Waist and Body-Fat Numbers Explained
What NICE and the NHS say about BMI and waist-to-height ratio, how to measure them, and why body-fat percentages are harder to interpret.
Meal prep
Buying guide
How to Choose Meal-Prep Containers and Portion Tools
What to check before buying meal-prep containers and portion tools in the UK: care marks, size, freezer use, lids and who needs extra care.
Buying guide
Batch Cooking and Food Safety: Cool, Store, Reheat
How to cool, store, freeze and reheat batch-cooked food in the UK, from FSA guidance: the 48-hour fridge limit, rice, defrosting and reheating once.
Buying guide
Portion Control Without Counting: Plates, Hands and Containers
Judge portions without counting calories: the Eatwell Guide plate, 80 g fruit and veg portions, hand estimates and divided containers.
Buying guide
Packing a Lunch That Keeps: Insulated Bags and Ice Packs
How to pack a lunch that stays cold and safe: insulated bags, ice packs, FSA temperature and time limits, hot flasks and reheating at work.
Protein powder
Buying guide
How to Choose a Protein Powder
What to check before buying protein powder in the UK: the protein source, protein per scoop, label checks, independent testing and cautions.
Buying guide
How Much Protein Do You Need? UK Guidance and Sport Research
UK protein figures for adults, what BDA and ISSN suggest for people who train, what a 2018 meta-analysis found and the authorised protein claims.
Buying guide
Whey vs Casein vs Plant Protein
Whey, casein, pea and soya compared: what the ISSN position stand and two 2021 papers say, which claims are not allowed and allergy points.
Buying guide
How to Read a Protein Powder Label
Protein per 100 g vs per serving, how protein is measured, sweeteners, salt, allergens and testing logos on a UK protein powder label.
Creatine
Buying guide
How to Choose a Creatine Supplement
What to check before buying creatine in the UK: the form, creatine per serving, batch testing, label rules and who should ask a doctor first.
Buying guide
What Creatine Does: The Evidence and the Authorised Claims
What creatine is, what the research covers and the two health claims authorised in Great Britain, with the 3 g condition and what is not allowed.
Buying guide
How to Take Creatine: Dose, Loading and Timing
How much creatine to take: the label first, the 3 g condition in the authorised claims, what loading is, timing, and who should ask a doctor.
Buying guide
Creatine Monohydrate vs Other Forms
Monohydrate, hydrochloride, buffered, ethyl ester: what position statements and a 2022 review say about creatine forms, and how to read the label.
Vitamin D
Buying guide
How to Choose a Vitamin D Supplement
What to check before buying vitamin D in the UK: micrograms per portion, D3 or D2, tablets or drops, vegan sources, claims and who should ask first.
Buying guide
Who Needs a Vitamin D Supplement in the UK?
What the NHS and SACN advise on vitamin D: autumn and winter for most adults, all year for some groups, why UK sunlight matters and where food falls short.
Buying guide
Vitamin D Dose and Upper Limits: Micrograms, IU and Ceilings
How much vitamin D the NHS advises, how micrograms convert to IU, the 100 microgram ceiling for adults, lower ceilings for children and signs of too much.
Buying guide
Vitamin D3 vs D2, Drops vs Tablets and Vegan Options
What the evidence says on vitamin D3 versus D2, how drops, tablets, sprays and gummies compare, and how to find a vegan source on a UK label.
Omega-3
Buying guide
How to Choose an Omega-3 Supplement
What to check before buying omega-3 in the UK: EPA and DHA per serving, the source, freshness, label claims and who should ask a doctor first.
Buying guide
What EPA and DHA Do: The Evidence and the Authorised Claims
The omega-3 fats EPA and DHA, the health claims authorised in Great Britain with their doses, what is not allowed and what NICE and EFSA say.
Buying guide
Fish Oil vs Algae Oil: How the Sources Differ
Fish oil, liver oil, krill oil, algae oil and plant oils compared: what each supplies, what a DHA trial found, allergens and suitability.
Buying guide
Omega-3 Quality: Oxidation, Mercury and Reading the Label
How fish oil goes off, what UK law and the NHS say about mercury and pollutants, and a checklist for reading an omega-3 supplement label.