Nutrition Facts Exemption for Small Packages
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.
On the package
- About 5 sq in
- To print on, under 12
- No claims
- Or other nutrition information, on the label, in labeling or ads
- No panel
- A contact line instead
Why this format
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.
§ 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)An invented product, for illustration.
The label, part by part
For nutrition information, call 1-202-555-0150
No Nutrition Facts panel. The line stands in for it.
A 0.5 oz square of chocolate in foil. An invented product.
Whole panel
What the package prints instead of a panel.
No panel. One short line of text.
- The line An address or phone number for nutrition information
- If you add a panel later Every required item 6 pt, or all capitals 1/16 in tall
If you add a panel later
Every required item 6 pt or larger, or all capitals 1/16 in tall
Rule text § 101.9(j)(13)(i)(B)
In words
No panel. One short line of text.
Heading
The title at the top of the panel.
Not on this label.
Serving
How many servings the package holds, and how big one is.
Not on this label.
Calories
The calories in one serving.
Not on this label.
Nutrients
Fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrate and protein, with the %DV where there is one.
Not on this label.
Vitamins and minerals
Vitamin D, calcium, iron and potassium, plus any others you list.
Not on this label.
Footnote
The note at the bottom that says what %DV means.
Not on this label.
?
Rule text
From FDA’s sample
BetterMenu’s choice
Do I need this?
These pages are for conventional foods and drinks, not dietary supplements or medical foods.
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. Open Studio
In detail
How to measure your package
- Count every face that can carry printing: top, bottom and every side, not only the front. § 101.9(j)(13)(i)
- 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. § 101.9(j)(13)(i)
- Exactly 12 sq in or more is not under 12. The panel stays, in a smaller format if it must. § 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.
What still must appear
- An address or phone number a shopper can use to get the nutrition information. § 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. § 101.9(j)(13)(i)
- The one exception is what 21 CFR 101.8(c) allows. § 101.9(j)(13)(i)
Common mistakes
-
Wrong: Printing “low fat” or “10 g protein” on the package, or on its website, and still skipping the panel.
Right: With any claim, print the panel.
§ 101.9(j)(13)(i) -
Wrong: Skipping the panel on a food for infants or children 1 through 3 without checking first.
Right: Check before you skip the panel.
§ 101.9(j)(5)(i) -
Wrong: Leaving off the address or phone number.
Right: Print a phone number or address.
§ 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)
Rule text and sources
“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).”
“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”).”
“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).”
“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.”
“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.”
… “whose labels, labeling, and advertising do not provide nutrition information or make a nutrient content or health claim.”
“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” …
… “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:”
“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.”
- The rule: FDA, 21 CFR 101.9, eCFR as of 2026-02-12
- The same facts as data: Small-package exemption as JSON
- Paragraphs cited on this page § 101.9(j)(13)(i)§ 101.9(j)(13)(i)(A)§ 101.9(j)(13)(i)(B)§ 101.9(j)(5)(i)§ 101.9(j)(1)(i)§ 101.9(j)(18)§ 101.9(j)(18)(ii)§ 101.9(j)(18)(iv)§ 101.9(j)(10)§ 101.9(j)
Related formats
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.
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.
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.
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”.
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.
Every label format, and which one you need
For information only. Check the sources before printing a label.