Guide
How to label salad boxes
Sealed salad boxes packed before selection are usually PPDS. Dressings, croutons, cheese and seeds drive most allergens — list every component in the box, not only the leaves.
Reviewed against official guidance.SourcesNot legal advice.
The short answer
Sealed salad boxes packed before selection are usually PPDS. Dressings, croutons, cheese and seeds drive most allergens — list every component in the box, not only the leaves.
Decide PPDS using the FSA packing-before-selection test, then put name and ingredients with allergen emphasis on packs that meet it.
How to apply it
Sealed salad boxes packed before selection are usually PPDS. Dressings, croutons, cheese and seeds drive most allergens — list every component in the box, not only the leaves. Decide PPDS using the FSA packing-before-selection test, then put name and ingredients with allergen emphasis on packs that meet it. Walk the product in front of you against the checklist below before you print. The mistake to refuse is: Customers need the full ingredients, including the dressing sachet if packed inside.
- List base, protein, mix-ins and dressing
- Break out mayonnaise and pesto
- Name seeds and nuts accurately
- Keep the lid label readable
Worked example
Worked example for “How to label salad boxes”: take one real SKU you sell this week. Apply the first check — list base, protein, mix-ins and dressing. Then contrast it with break out mayonnaise and pesto. Write the name of the food and the full ingredients list from today’s recipe and supplier specs, emphasise every Annex II allergen each time it appears, and only then print. If the pack in your hand does not match that list, it is not ready for sale. (Sealed salad boxes packed before selection are usually PPDS.)
Checklist before you print
| Check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| List base, protein, mix-ins and dressing | For “How to label salad boxes”, “List base, protein, mix-ins and dressing” is the check that stops the pack drifting from what you actually sell. |
| Break out mayonnaise and pesto | For “How to label salad boxes”, “Break out mayonnaise and pesto” is the check that stops the pack drifting from what you actually sell. |
| Name seeds and nuts accurately | For “How to label salad boxes”, “Name seeds and nuts accurately” is the check that stops the pack drifting from what you actually sell. |
| Keep the lid label readable | For “How to label salad boxes”, “Keep the lid label readable” is the check that stops the pack drifting from what you actually sell. |
Labelling the salad as “mixed leaves” only
Customers need the full ingredients, including the dressing sachet if packed inside.
Go deeper
Next: Caesar salad box example. Fish, egg, milk and wheat in one pack. Then paste your ingredients into the free generator and confirm allergens before you print.
Questions
Does a dressing sachet need its own label?
What about make-your-own salad bars?
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.
- Introduction to allergen labelling for PPDS foodFood Standards Agency / GOV.UK
- Labelling guidance for prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food productsFood Standards Agency / GOV.UK
- Food allergen labelling and information requirements technical guidanceFood Standards Agency / GOV.UK
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