# Nutrition Facts Exemption for Small Packages

No panel. The label gives an address or phone number for nutrition information.

A package with less than 12 square inches to print on may leave the panel off if it carries no nutrition claims or other nutrition information. It must print an address or phone number for nutrition information.

**URL:** https://bettermenu.live/tools/label-formats/small-package-exemption/
**Provider:** BetterMenu (https://bettermenu.live)
**Rule:** Allowed under 12 sq in, with no nutrition claims or information. [21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)), [21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(A))
**Source:** FDA 21 CFR 101.9, eCFR as of 2026-02-12
**In BetterMenu Studio:** Studio works out the per-serving and per-package numbers from your recipe today. It exports the standard vertical panel. Small-package exemption export is not available yet.

These pages are for conventional foods and drinks, not dietary supplements or medical foods.

## Do I need this?

Allowed if the package has under 12 sq in to print on and carries no nutrition claims or other nutrition information anywhere.

The page asks one question at a time, only while the answer can still change the result:

- How much of the package can carry printing? (Under 12 sq in / 12 to 40 sq in / Over 40 sq in) Add up every side you can print on, in square inches. See “How to measure”.
- Does it make nutrition claims or show nutrition information anywhere? (Yes / No) Including the website or ads.
- Who is the food made for? (Everyone 4 and older / Infants through 12 months / Children 1 through 3 / Infants and children 1 through 3 / Pregnant or lactating women)

Decision rules, from the same logic as the page:

- If printable area is “Under 12 sq in” and nutrition claims is “Yes”, then: Not this format. Use Small-package tabular.
- If printable area is “Under 12 sq in” and nutrition claims is “No” and who it is for is “Everyone 4 and older” or “Pregnant or lactating women”, then: You may use this format. Print an address or phone number instead.
- If printable area is “Under 12 sq in” and nutrition claims is “No” and who it is for is “Infants through 12 months” or “Children 1 through 3” or “Infants and children 1 through 3”, then: FDA doesn’t settle this. Infant and toddler foods “shall bear nutrition labeling”. The rule does not say if this exemption still applies to them.
- If printable area is “12 to 40 sq in” or “Over 40 sq in”, then: Not this format. Use Standard vertical.

Next steps once it applies: Print a phone number or address for nutrition information. Check the website and ads for nutrition claims too.

## How to measure your package

1. Count every face that can carry printing: top, bottom and every side, not only the front. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)))
2. Add them up in square inches. Under 12 sq in, the package may skip the panel if it carries no nutrition claims or other nutrition information. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)))
3. Exactly 12 sq in or more is not under 12. The panel stays, in a smaller format if it must. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(ii)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(ii)))

Example: A flat wrapper 2 in by 3 in has two faces, front and back, so 2 × 2 × 3 = 12 sq in. That is not under 12 sq in, so it needs a panel. A wrapper 1.5 in by 2.5 in has 2 × 1.5 × 2.5 = 7.5 sq in, which is under 12.

## How it differs from standard vertical

There is no panel. One line gives an address or phone number for nutrition information. A nutrition claim, or nutrition information on the label, website or ads, brings the panel back.

1. No Nutrition Facts panel ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)))
2. Phone number or address line ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)))

## For your designer

Space: No panel. One short line of text.

| Part | Value | Source | Citation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| The line | An address or phone number for nutrition information | Rule text | [21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)) |
| If you add a panel later | Every required item 6 pt or larger, or all capitals 1/16 in tall | Rule text | [21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(B)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(B)) |

“From FDA’s sample” means the value was measured from FDA’s sample label, not stated in the rule text. “BetterMenu’s choice” is our own value where the rule text is silent.

## What still must appear

- An address or phone number a shopper can use to get the nutrition information. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)))
- No nutrition claims or other nutrition information on the label, in labeling or in ads. Any of these brings the panel back. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)))
- The one exception is what 21 CFR 101.8(c) allows. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)))

## Common mistakes

- Printing “low fat” or “10 g protein” on the package, or on its website, and still skipping the panel. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)))
- Skipping the panel on a food for infants or children 1 through 3 without checking first. Those foods “shall bear nutrition labeling”, and the rule does not say if this exemption still applies to them. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(5)(i)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(5)(i)))
- Leaving off the address or phone number. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)))

## Example: A single 0.5 oz chocolate square in foil

The square is 1.25 in by 1.25 in and 0.4 in deep. Counting every face of the foil, it has about 5 sq in to print on, and the brand makes no nutrition claims and gives no other nutrition information. It may skip the panel and print “For nutrition information, call” with a phone number. ([21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/section-101.9#p-101.9(j)(13)(i)(A))) An invented product, for illustration.

## Related formats

- [Small-package tabular](https://bettermenu.live/tools/label-formats/small-package-tabular/)
- [Linear](https://bettermenu.live/tools/label-formats/linear/)
- [Simplified](https://bettermenu.live/tools/label-formats/simplified/)

## Rule text

> “Foods in small packages that have a total surface area available to bear labeling of less than 12 square inches, Provided, That the labels for these foods bear no nutrition claims or other nutrition information in any context on the label or in labeling or advertising, except as provided in § 101.8(c).”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> “The manufacturer, packer, or distributor shall provide on the label of packages that qualify for and use this exemption an address or telephone number that a consumer can use to obtain the required nutrition information (e.g., “For nutrition information, call 1-800-123-4567”).”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> “When such products bear nutrition labeling, either voluntarily or because nutrition claims or other nutrition information is provided, all required information shall be in type size no smaller than 6 point or all upper-case type of 1/16 inches minimum height, except that individual serving-size packages of food served with meals in restaurants, institutions, and on board passenger carriers, and not intended for sale at retail, may comply with § 101.2(c)(2).”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(B), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> “Foods, other than infant formula, represented or purported to be specifically for infants through 12 months of age and children 1 through 3 years of age shall bear nutrition labeling.”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(5)(i), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> “Food offered for sale by a person who makes direct sales to consumers (e.g., a retailer) who has annual gross sales made or business done in sales to consumers that is not more than $500,000 or has annual gross sales made or business done in sales of food to consumers of not more than $50,000, Provided, That the food bears no nutrition claims or other nutrition information in any context on the label or in labeling or advertising.”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(1)(i), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> … “whose labels, labeling, and advertising do not provide nutrition information or make a nutrient content or health claim.”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> “For all other food products, the product shall be eligible for an exemption for any 12-month period if, for the preceding 12 months, the person claiming the exemption employed fewer than an average of 100 full-time equivalent employees and fewer than 100,000 units of that product were sold in the United States” …
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18)(ii), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> … “if the person is not an importer and has fewer than 10 full-time equivalent employees, that person does not have to file a notice for any food product with annual sales of fewer than 10,000 total units:”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18)(iv), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

> “This exemption is contingent on the food bearing no nutrition claims or other nutrition information in any context on the label or in labeling or advertising.”
> 21 CFR 101.9(j)(10), eCFR as of 2026-02-12

## Frequently asked questions

### Does the 12 square inch limit count only the front?

No. It counts the total surface area that can carry labeling, every side you can print on.

Sources: 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)

### Can a food for infants or toddlers skip the panel?

That is unsettled. The rule says those foods “shall bear nutrition labeling”, and it does not say if the small-package exemption still applies.

Sources: 21 CFR 101.9(j)(5)(i), 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)

### What brings the Nutrition Facts panel back?

A nutrition claim, or other nutrition information, on the label, in labeling or in ads. Then the food must carry nutrition labeling.

Sources: 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)

### What do I print instead of the panel?

An address or phone number where people can get the nutrition information, for example “For nutrition information, call 1-800-123-4567”.

Sources: 21 CFR 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)

### Are there other Nutrition Facts exemptions?

Yes. 21 CFR 101.9(j) lists others. A retailer selling $500,000 a year or less to consumers, or $50,000 or less in food, is exempt. So is a low-volume product from a firm with fewer than 100 full-time equivalent employees selling fewer than 100,000 units in 12 months, with a notice filed with FDA unless it has fewer than 10 employees, is not an importer and sells fewer than 10,000 units. Raw fruits, vegetables and fish are exempt too. Each needs no nutrition claims or other nutrition information anywhere, and a nutrient content or health claim ends the small business exemption.

Sources: 21 CFR 101.9(j), 21 CFR 101.9(j)(1)(i), 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18), 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18)(ii), 21 CFR 101.9(j)(18)(iv), 21 CFR 101.9(j)(10)

## Machine-readable data

This page as JSON: https://bettermenu.live/tools/label-formats/small-package-exemption/data.json
Every format: https://bettermenu.live/tools/label-formats/data.json