DEAS 803 : 2022 
ICS 67.230  
 
© EA C 2022                                                                                                                         Second  Edition 20 22  
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  
Nutrition labelling ― Requirements  
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  DEAS 803 : 2022  
ii © EAC 20 22– All rights r eserv ed 
 Copyright notice  
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Reproduction for sales purposes may be subject to royalty payments or a licensing agreement. 
Violators may be pr osecuted . DEA S 803 : 2022 
© EAC 20 22 – All rights reserved  iii 
 Contents  Page 
1 Scope  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  1 
2 Normative references  ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  1 
3 Terms and definitions  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  1 
4 Guiding principles for nutrition labelling  ................................ ................................ ............................  3 
5 Requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  3 
6 Principles and criteria for legibility of nutrition labelling  ................................ ................................ .. 8 
7 Supplementary nutrition information  ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 8 
 DEAS 803 : 2022  
iv © EAC 20 22– All rights r eserv ed 
 Foreword  
 
Develo pment of the East African Standard has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing  requirements 
governing q uality of products and services in the East African Community. It is  envisaged that through 
harmonized standardization, trade barriers which are en countered whe n goods and services are exchanged 
within th e Community will be removed.  
In order to ac hieve thi s objective, the Community established an East African Standards Committee mandated  
to develop and issue East African Standards.  
The Committee is c omposed of re presentatives of the National Standards Bodies in Partner States, together  
with the repr esentati ves from the private sectors and consumer organizations. Draft East African Standards  
are circulated to stakeholders through the National Standards  Bodies in th e Partner States. The comments  
received are discussed and incorporated before finalizati on of st andards, in accordance with the procedures  
of the Community.  
East African Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances . Users of th e East  
African Standards are therefore expected to ensure that they always have the late st versi ons of the standards  
they are implementing.  
This East African Standard, DEAS 803 :2022, was prepared by the Technical Committee EASC/TC 018,  
Nutritio n and foods f or special dietary uses. The Technical Committee is composed of representati ves from 
National  Standards Bodies, regulators, academia, the private sector and consumer organizations in Partner 
States.  
This East African Standard is based on CAC/GL 2 -1985 (Amended 2013), Guidelines on nutrition labelling’  
This second edition ( DEAS 803: 2022) cance ls and  replaces the first edition ( EAS 803: 201 4), which has been 
technically revised.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 DEA S 803 : 2022 
© EAC 20 22 – All rights reserved  v 
 Introduction  
 
The purpose of  this st andard is to ensure that:  
a) nutrition labelling is effective  in: 
i. providing the consumer with information abo ut a food so tha t a wi se choice of food can be  made;  
ii. providing means for conveying information of the nutrient content of a food on the l abel;  
iii. encouraging the use of sound nutrition principl es in the formulation of foods which would  benefit 
public health; and 
iv. providing su ppleme ntary nutrition infor mation on the label;  
b) nutrition labelling does not describe a product or present informati on about  it which is in any way  
false, misleadin g, deceptive or insignificant in any manner; and  
c) no nutritional claims are m ade without nutr ition labelling.  DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  DEAS 803 : 2014  
 
© EAC 2019 – All rights r eserved  1 
 Nutrition labelling — Requirement s 
1 Scope  
This Draft East African Standard specifies requirements for the nutrition labelling of  pre-packaged food s. 
Other specific East Africa Standards may provide additional nutrition information such as the standard for 
labelling of foods for special dietary uses . 
 2 Normative references  
The following documents are referred to in the text i n such a way that some or all of their conten t constitutes  
requirements  of this document . For dat ed references, only the edition cited applies. For undated refer ences, 
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
EAS 38 , Labelling of pre -packaged foods — General requi rements  
EAS 805, Use o f nutrition and health cla ims — Requirements  
3 Terms and definitions  
For the purposes of this  standard the following  terms and definitions shall a pply:  
3.1 
dietary  fibre  
carbohydrate polymers  with ten or more monomeric units,  which are not hydrolysed by  the endogenous 
enzyme s in the small intestine of hum ans and belong to the following categories : edible carbohydrate 
polymers naturally occurring in the food as cons umed ; carbohydrate polymers, whic h have been obtained 
from food raw material by phys ical, enzymatic or  chemical means and which have been shown to have a 
physiological effect of benefit to health as  demonstrated by generally accepted scientific evidence  to 
competent authorities ; synthet ic carbohydrate polymers which have been shown to have a physiological effect 
of benefit to  health as demonstrate d by generally accepted scientific evidence to competent authorities  
 
.3.2 
food 
any substance, whether  processed, semi -processed or raw, which i s intended for human consumption, and  
includes drinks , chewing gum and any su bstance which has been used in the manufacture, preparation or  
treatment of “food” but does not include cosmetics or tobacco  or substance s used only as drugs  
 
3.3 
nutrient  
substance present in foods when consumed provides energy or materials for growth, developm ent and  
maintenance of life, a deficit /excess  of which will cause characteristic bio -chemical or physiological changes to 
occur. Example; ca rbohydrates, proteins, lipids/fats, vitamins and minerals etc,   
2 © EAC 20 22– All rights r eserv ed 
 3.4 
nutri ent declaration  
standardized statement or listing of the nutrient content  of a pre-packaged food on a label 
 
3.5 
nutrition claim  
any representation which states, suggests o r implies that a food has part icular nutritional properties including 
but not limited to the energy value and to the content of  protein, fat and carbohydrate s, as well as  the content 
of vitamins and minerals. The following do not constitute nutrition claim s: the mention of substances i n the list 
of ingredients;  the mention of nutrients as a mandatory part of nutrition labelling; a nd quantitative or qualitative  
declaration of certain nutrients or ingredients on the label.  
3.6 
nutrition labelling  
description intended to inform the consumer of nutritional properties of a food and consists of two 
components : nutrient decla ration; and  supplementary nutrition informa tion 
3.7 
Nutrient Referenc e Value s (NRVs)  
set of numerical values that are based on scientific data for purposes of nutrition labelling and relevant cl aims.  
They comp rise the following two types of NRVs: Nutrient Reference Values - Requirements (NRVs -R) refer to 
NRVs that are based  on lev els of  nutrients associated with nutrient requirements; and  Nutrient Reference 
Values - Non-communicable Disease  (NRVs -NCD) refer to NRVs that are based  on levels of nutrients 
associated with the reduction in the risk o f diet-related non -communicabl e disea ses (DRNCDs ) not including 
nutrient defici ency diseases or disorders.  
 
3.8 
portion  
amount of food an individual eats for a meal such  as lunch or other ea ting occasion. A portion can be bigger  
or smaller  than a serving and is  affected by many factors such as the ind ividual’s age, gender, activ ity level  
and appetite and where and when the food is obtained and eaten  
 
3.9 
polyunsat urated f atty acids  
 fatty aci ds with cis -cis methylene interrupted double bonds  
 
3.10 
serving  
 a uni t of measure  for specific amount of food that contains the quanti ty of nutrients listed on t he nut rition label 
and is n ormally  expressed in household measures such as cups, or piece s as well as in grams and generally 
reflect the  amount an individual might reasonably consume each eating occasion.  
 
3.11 
sugars  
all mono -saccharides and di -saccharides present  in food  
 
3.12 
trans fatty acids  
all the geometrical isomers of monounsaturated and polyu nsatur ated fatty acids havi ng non -conjugated,  
interrupted by at l east one methylene group, carbon -carbon double bonds in the trans configuration  
 
3.13 
front -of-pack 
main display area of a package, being the total area of the surface (or surfaces) that is d isplayed or visible 
under c ustomary conditions of retail sale or use 
Note 1 to entry: This is the same area of vision where the brand name is displayed on a label  
 
  
© EAC 20 22 – All rights reserved  3 
 3.14 
‘front -of-pack nutrition labelling (FOPNL)  
a form of supplementary nutrition info rmation that presents simplifi ed, nutrition information on the front -of-pack 
of pre -packaged foods. It can include symbols /graphics,colour, text or a combination thereof that provide 
information on the overall nutrient composition of the food and/or on nut rients included in the FOPNL.  
3.15 
Front -of-pack  warning labeling   
a simple, practical and effective tool to inform the public about produc ts that can harm health and he lp guide 
purchasing decisions.   
4 Guiding principles for nutrit ion labelling  
4.1 The information for nutrient declaration supplied is for the purpose of prov iding consu mers with a  
suitable profile of nutrients contained in the food and consi dered to b e of nu tritional importance. The  
information is meant only to convey an und erstanding of the quantity of nutrients contained in the product.  
There is no exact qua ntitative k nowledge of what individuals should eat in order to maintain health. A mo re 
exact q uantita tive delin eation for indiv iduals is not valid because there is no me aningful way in which  
knowledge about individual requirements can be used in labelling.  
4.2 The co ntent of supplementary nutrition information will vary from one target po pulation g roup to  another 
according [to the  national health policy and guidelines  and shall  comply with the requirements of any 
applicable East African or national laws, re gulati ons] 
4.3 Nutrition labell ing shall not  deliberately imply that a food which carries such labelling has  necessarily 
any nutritional advantage over a food which is not labelled  as so. 
5 Requir ements  
5.1 Nutrient declara tion 
5.1.1 Application of nutrie nt declaration  
5.1.1 .1  Nutrient declaration  shall be mandatory for al l pre -packaged foods except where the label cannot 
carry the information as exempted in EAS 38.  
5.1.1.2  Pre-packaged foods of low nutriti onal or dietary significance such as spices and condiments  as 
exempted in specific East Af rica Standard may not decl are their nutritional content  
5.2 Listing of nutrien ts 
5.2.1  Pre-packaged food products shall declare on their label the following nutr ients : 
a) energy value;  
b) the amounts of protein, availabl e carbohydrate (that is, dieta ry carbohydrate excluding dietary fibre),  
fat, saturated fat, trans fatty acids , sodium and  total sugars;  
c) the amount o f any other nutrient for which a nutrition claim is made; and  
d) the amoun t of any other nutrient considered to  be relevant for maintaining a good nutritional status, as  
required by national legislation.  
 
5.2.2  Where a claim is made regarding the amount and/o r the t ype of carbohydrate, the amount of total  
sugars shall be listed in addition to the requirements in  5.2.1. The amounts of starch and/or oth er 
carbohydrate constituen t(s) may also be listed. Where a claim is made regarding the dietary fibre content, t he 
amou nt of dietary fibre shall be declared.   
4 © EAC 20 22– All rights r eserv ed 
 5.2.3  Where a claim is made regarding the amount and/or typ e of fatty acids or the amount of choles terol, 
the amounts of satu rated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids and  
cholester ol should be declared, . 
5.2.4 In addition to th e mandatory declaration under 5.2.1, 5.2.2 and  5.2.3, vitamins and minerals may be  
listed in accor dance with the following criteria:  
a) only vitamins and minerals for  which recommended intakes ha ve been established and/or which are  
of nutritional importance i n the country concerned may be declared; and  
b) when nutr ient declaration is applied, vitamins and mi nerals which are present in amounts les s than 5  
% of the Nutrient  Reference Value or of the off icially recognized guidelines of the competent authority  
per 10 0 g or 100 mL or per serving as quantified on the labe l should not be declared.  
5.3 Calcul ation of nutrients  
5.3.1 Calculation of energy  
The amount o f energy to be listed shall be calculated by usin g the following conversion factors : 
Amount of energy   
a) 1 g of carbohydrates  is equivalent to  4 kcal or 17 kJ;  
b) 1 g of protein  is equivalent to  4 kcal or 17 kJ;  
c) 1 g of fat is equivalent to  9 kcal or 37 kJ  
d) 1 g of alcohol (ethanol ) is equivalent to  7 kcal or 29 kJ;  
e) 1 g of organic acid  is equivalent  to  3 kcal or 13 kJ.  
 
5.3.2  Calculation of prot ein 
The amount of pro tein to be listed shall be calculated using the formula:  
Protein = Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen x 6.25  
unless a differen t factor is given in an East African or National Standard or in the method of an alysis for that  
food. 
5.4 Presentation o f nutrient content  
5.4.1  The declaration of nutrient content shall be numerical. Additional means of presentation may be 
used.  
5.4.2 Information on energy value shall be expressed in kilojoules and kilocalories per 1 00 grams or per  
100 mililitres. In addit ion, this information may be given per serving as quantified on the label, per package if  
the package contains only a single por tion or per portion provided that the number of portions contained in the  
package is sta ted. 
5.4.3  Informati on on the amounts of  protein, carbohydrate and fat in the food shall be expressed in grams  
per 100 grams or per 100 mililitres. In additio n, this in formatio n may be given per serving as quantified on the  
label, per package if the packag e contains only a si ngle portion or per portion provided that the number of  
portions contained in the package is stated.   
© EAC 20 22 – All rights reserved  5 
 5.4.4  Numerical information on vitamins and minerals sh all be expressed in metric units  and/or as  
percentage of th e NRV per 100 grams or per 100 mililitres or per package if the package contains only a  
single por tion. In addition, t his information may be given per serving as quantified on the label or per por tion 
provided that the number of portions conta ined in the p ackage is stated.  
In addition, information on protein and additi onal nutrients may also be express ed as percentages of  the NRV  
where an NR V has been established.  
The following NRVs are for the gen eral population identified as individuals older  than 36 mont hs. They s hall 
be used for labelling purposes to help consumers make choices that contribute to an  overall healthful d ietary  
intake.  
They comprise two types of NRVs: Nutrient Reference Values -Requ irements (NRVs -R) shown in Table 1 and  
Nutrient Reference Va lues – Non-communicable Disease (NRVs -NCD).  
Table 1 ― NRVs -R for  the general population  
Vitamins  (Maximum limits)  
Vitamin A (μg)  800* 
Vitamin D (μg)  5-15 
Vitamin C (μg)  100 
Vitamin K (μg)  60 
Vitamin E  (mg) 9 
Thiamin (mg)  1.2 
Riboflavin (mg)  1.2 
Niacin (mg NE)  15 
Vitamin B6 (mg)  1.3 
Folate (μ g DFE)  400 
Vitamin B12 (μg)   2.4 
Pantothenate (mg)  5 
Biotin (μg)  30 
Minerals  
Calcium (mg)  1,000  
Magnesium (mg)   310 
Iron (mg)  14 (15% dietary absorption; Diversified diets,  
rich in meat fish, poultry, and/o r rich in fruit  
and ve getables)  
22 (10% dietary  absorption; Diets rich in  cereals, roots or 
tubers, with some meat,  fish, poultry and/or containing 
some fruit and  vegetables)  
Zinc (mg)  11 (30% dietary absorption; Mixed diets,  
and lac to-ovo vegetarian di ets that are not  
based  on unrefined cereal grain s or high  
extraction rate (>90%) flours)  
14 (22% dietary absorption; Cereal -based  diets, with 
>50% energy intake from cereal  grains or legumes and 
negligible intake of  animal protein)  
Iodine (μg)  150 
Copper μg  900  
6 © EAC 20 22– All rights r eserv ed 
 Selenium  μg  60 
Manganese  mg 3 
Molybdenum  μg 45 
Phosphor ous mg 700 
Other  
Protein (g) 50 
* For the declaration of β-carotene (Provitamin A) the  conversion factor should be  used: 1 μg retinol = 6 β -carotene  
The conversio n factors seen in T able 2 for vitamin equivalents in Table 1 provide supporting information for  
national authorities to enable national authoritie s to determine the application of  NRVs at national level.  
Table 2 ― Conversion fac tors for niacin and folate e quivalents  
Vitamin  Dietary equivalents  
Niacin  1 mg niacin equival ents (NE) =  1 mg niacin  
60 mg tryptophan  
Folate  1 μg dietary folate equivale nts (DFE) =  1 μg food folate  
0.6 μg folic acid added to fo od or as  
supplement consumed with food  
0.5 μg fol ic acid as supplement taken  
on an empty stomach  
 
The list below shows the NRVs -NCD:  
Table  3 ―NRVs -NCD  
NRVs -NCD  Maximum limits  
Saturated fatty acids  20 g 
Sodium  2 000 mg  
Potassiu ma 3500 mg  
a Intake levels to achieve  
 
5.4.5  Where serving s izes are normal ly used, th e information required by 5.4 .2, 5.4.3 and 5.4.4 may be  
given per serving only as quantified on the label or per portion provided that the number of  portions contai ned 
in the package is stated.  
5.4.6  The presence of available carb ohydrates shall  be declare d on the label as "carbohydra tes". Where  
the type of carbohydrate is declared, this declaration shall follow immediately the declaration of the tota l 
carbohydrate c ontent in the following format:  
"Carbohydrate ... g, of which suga rs ... g".  
This may be fol lowed by the following: "x" . .. g, where "x" represents the specific name of any other  
carbohydrate constituent.  
5.4.7  Where the amount and/or type of fatty acids o r the amount of cholesterol is declared, this declaration  
shall fo llow immediatel y the declaration of the total fat in ac cordance with 5.4.3.   
© EAC 20 22 – All rights reserved  7 
 The following format shall be used:  
Total Fat   … g 
of which  saturated fatty acid s … g 
trans fa tty acids  … g 
monounsaturated fatty  
acids  … g 
polyunsaturated fatty  
acids  … g 
Cholesterol   …  mg 
 
5.5 Tolerances and compliance  
5.5.1 Tolerance limits shall be set in relation to public health concerns, shelf -life, accuracy of analysis,  
processing v ariability and i nherent liability and variability of the nutrient in the product, and, ac cording to 
whether the nutrient has been added o r is naturally occurring in the product.  
5.5.2  The values used in nutrient declaration shall be weighted average values  derived from da ta 
specifically obtained from analyses of products which are repre sentative of th e product being labelled.  
5.5.3  In those  cases where a product is subject to an East African or National Standard, requirements for  
tolerances for nutrient dec laration establi shed by the standard shall take precedence over this standard.  
5.5.4 When a nutri ent is subject to a standard or has been  specifically highlighted by a claim, five sample  
units shall be drawn at random and analyzed as a composite or separat ely. If the five  samples are analysed  
separately, the test results will be average d to give a mea n result.  
5.5.5  The lot will be deemed  to be out of compliance if the result of the analysis is less than the  minimum 
required value. The lot will also be ou t of compliance if the result of the analysis is less than 90 % of  the 
declared va lue, or if any on e sample has less than 30 % of the dec lared value.  
5.5.6  The lot will be deemed to be out of compliance if the result of the analysis is greater than the  
maximum value pr escri bed. The lot will also be out of compliance if the result of the analysis is more  than 
110% of the declared value, o r if any one sample has  more than 170 % of the declared value.  
5.5.7 When a nutrient is present naturally in the food a nd there is no r egula ted minimum or maximum 12  
sample units shall be drawn at rand om and then combined  to make a composite to be analyzed . 
5.5.8 For vitamin, mineral, protein, carbohydrate, dietary fibre, polyunsaturated fatty acids,  
monounsaturated fatt y acids, or pota ssium , the nutrient content of the composite must be at least equa l to 80  
% of the value  declared on the label.  
5.5.9 For energy, sugars, fat, saturated fatty acids, cholesterol or sodium, the lot is deemed to be  
unsatisfactory if the res ult exceeds 120 % of the declared value.   
8 © EAC 20 22– All rights r eserv ed 
 6 Principles and criteria for legibility of nutrition labelling  
6.1 General principles  
In the ca se of nutrition labelling, the principles of 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 7.1.3 and 7.2 of EAS 38 should be applied.  
7.1.1, 7.1.2 and 7.1.3 should be applie d to any supplementary nutrition labels.  
6.2 Specific featur es of presentation  
6.2.1  Nutrient content shall be decl ared in a numerical, tabular format. Where there is insufficient space for  
a tabular format, nutrient declaration may b e presented in a  linea r format.  
6.2.2  Nutrients shall be declared in a specific or der developed by compete nt authorities and shall be  
consistent across food products.  
6.2.3  The font type, style and a minimum font size as well as the use of upper and lower case letters sho uld 
be considered by competent authorities to ensure legibility of  nutrition labelling.  
6.2.4  A significant contrast shal l be maintained between the text and background so as to be that the  
nutrition information is clearly legible.  
6.2.5  The numerical pres entation of nutrient content shall be in accordance with the provi sions of 5.4.  
7 Supple mentary nutrition information  
7.1 Supplementary nutrition information, when used shall be consistent wi th [national health policy , 
guidelines , laws or regulations ] 
7.2 The use of supplementary nutrition information on food la bels may only be given in addit ion to, and not  
in place of, the nutrient declaration. Foo d group symbols or oth er pictor ial or colour presentations  as 
supplementary nutrition information  may be  used in addition to nutrient declaration on front of pack nutrition 
labelling for target popu lations who have a high illiteracy level and/ or little  knowled ge of nutrition   
7.3 Supplementary nutrition information on labels shoul d be  accompanied by co nsumer education 
programmes  to increase consumer understanding and use of the informat ion. 
7.4 Suppl ementary nutrition  information is intended to increase the consumer’s understanding of the 
nutritional value of their food and to assist i n interpreting the  nutrient declaration. There are a number of ways 
of presenting such information that may be suitabl e for use on food labels  
7.5 Supplementary nutrition information on labels may also include front -of-pack  warning labelling  
information represented by colour codes’  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 DEAS 803 : 2022   
 
© EAC 20 22– All rights reserved