Statement of identity: naming the food on a US label

The short answer

The statement of identity is the common or usual name of the food on the principal display panel. “Cookies”, “apple butter”, “hot sauce” — not only a brand joke. If a standard of identity exists (milk, chocolate, peanut butter), you either meet it or you do not use that name.

Where this shows up in a real kitchen

Craft brands lead with “Cloud Chews” and never say they are marshmallows. Customers with allergens search for marshmallows. FDA searches for a usual name. Both groups bounce off a name that is only a vibe.

The US rule

21 CFR 101.3 requires the identity in bold type reasonably related to the most prominent printed matter on the PDP. Standards of identity in other parts of 21 CFR (and USDA standards) restrict certain names. Imitation foods must say imitation if they do not meet the standard and are nutritionally inferior as defined.

How to apply it

Ask what a grocer would shelf it under. Use that name on the front, then the fancier name as a brand. If you call it peanut butter, it has to be peanut butter. If it is a sunflower-seed spread, say so — and still declare sunflower, not peanut, as the ingredient.

1. Write the name a dietitian would use in a sentence.
2. Check whether FDA or USDA has a standard of identity for that name.
3. Put that name on the PDP in prominent type.
4. Align the ingredients list with the name — almond butter contains almonds.

Worked example

A jar branded “Monday Gold” that is almond butter: the PDP identity is “almond butter”, with “Monday Gold” as the brand. Contains: almond. Calling it peanut butter because shoppers know that aisle is a standard-of-identity and allergen failure.

Using only a trademark as the identity

If the pack disappeared from the shelf, a shopper should still be able to tell a new employee what to reorder. “The purple pouch” is not a statement of identity.

Questions