Ingredient List

What is an Ingredient List?

An ingredient list is a mandatory declaration on the label of most packaged foods, listing every ingredient in the food in descending order of ingoing weight — that is, the ingredient used in the greatest quantity is listed first. The requirements are set out in FSANZ Standard 1.2.4 of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

Ingredient List Requirements in Practice

When an ingredient list is required

An ingredient list is mandatory on most packaged foods. Exemptions apply to single-ingredient foods (e.g., a bag of plain flour — the ingredient is self-evident from the name), foods where the common name of the food describes all its ingredients (e.g., "orange juice"), and certain other categories listed in Standard 1.2.4. When in doubt, declare the ingredient list.

Order of ingredients

Ingredients must be listed in descending order of ingoing weight — the weight used before processing, not the weight in the finished product. This means that water used in cooking, or flour that absorbs moisture, is listed at its added weight, not its finished weight. For added water, the ingoing weight determines the position in the list.

Compound ingredients

If your product contains a compound ingredient — an ingredient that is itself made from multiple ingredients (e.g., a sauce, a seasoning blend, or a pre-made pastry) — you have two options:

1. Declare the compound ingredient by its common name, followed immediately by its components in brackets, in descending order of ingoing weight — e.g., "Pasta sauce (tomatoes, onions, olive oil, salt, garlic)".

2. If the compound ingredient constitutes less than 5% of the finished food, you are not required to list its sub-ingredients — unless any of those sub-ingredients are Schedule 9 allergens, in which case declaration is always required.

How to name ingredients

Standard 1.2.4 prescribes how ingredients must be named. Many ingredients must use their common or generic name rather than a trade name. Food additives must be declared by their class name (e.g., "Preservative", "Colour", "Emulsifier") followed by either the additive's name or its code number — for example, "Preservative (220)" for sulphur dioxide.

Allergens in the ingredient list

Allergens (as listed in Schedule 9 of Standard 1.2.3) must be declared in the ingredient list in bold type or a contrasting colour, or using a separate "Contains:" statement. This is mandatory regardless of the quantity of the allergen present.

Common mistakes

Using a trade name for an ingredient. Listing "Sunola" instead of "sunflower oil" or "Cremogen" instead of "modified starch" does not comply with Standard 1.2.4's requirement to use the common or generic name.

Incorrect order due to processing. Some foods change significantly during cooking — for example, a product where water is added and then evaporated. The order must be based on ingoing weight before cooking, not finished product composition.

Missing allergens from compound ingredients. Even if a compound ingredient is listed at less than 5%, if it contains a Schedule 9 allergen, that allergen must still be declared.

How Batchbase Handles Ingredient Lists

When you build a recipe in Batchbase, every ingredient is tracked with its ingoing quantity. Batchbase sorts ingredients in descending order of ingoing weight automatically, generates the ingredient list in the correct format, and flags any Schedule 9 allergens for bold declaration. Compound ingredients can be added with their own sub-ingredient lists, which Batchbase expands or collapses according to the 5% rule.

Related Standards and References

• FSANZ Standard 1.2.4 — Statement of ingredients
• FSANZ Standard 1.2.3 — Allergen declaration requirements
• Schedule 9, Standard 1.2.3 — Declared allergens
• FSANZ food standards code