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Guide

How to build an ingredient library for labels

An ingredient library is a verified list of every ingredient and compound mix you use, with allergens already mapped. Build it once from supplier specs, then assemble PPDS labels by recipe instead of re-reading bags every morning.

Reviewed against official guidance.SourcesNot legal advice.

Why libraries beat scraps of paper

Most labelling errors are copy errors under time pressure. A library turns “check the chocolate bag” into “pick Belgian dark compound — allergens already known”.

Build order

  1. Photograph or file every supplier label and spec sheet
  2. Enter each item with its sub-ingredients and of the 14 allergens present
  3. Mark compounds that must always be broken out (pesto, chocolate, mayo)
  4. Attach ingredients to recipes and generate pack lists from recipes
  5. Lock edits so only a named person can change allergen flags

LabelClear

The product workflow is built around reusable ingredients and recipes so PPDS labels stay consistent.

Questions

How granular should entries be?
One entry per purchasable SKU. If you switch from brand A butter to brand B, create or update the entry — do not assume identical allergens.
What about water and salt?
Include them when they are ingredients. They rarely carry Annex II allergens but belong in a full list.

Official sources

Everything on this page traces back to these. Where they and we disagree, they are right — tell us and we'll fix it.

Read next

How LabelClear works

Save ingredients once and reuse them across products.

Try it

See how LabelClear works

Ingredients → recipes → labels.

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