I am meeting with the Agriculture and Marketing person in order to get my license to sell at markets and shows.I understand most aspects of writing the ingredient label (list ingredients in the order of amount etc.) Here lies my problem: In doing an assorted box of six different flavors, the list gets so long it barely can fit on my label. Also, I make handmade chocolates with fine ingredients and no preservatives but when the label is complete, it looks like a "tome".This is how I would like the label to look:Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, white chocolate, fresh purees, buttertoasted nuts, colored cocoa butterDo I need to do this:Dark chocolate (cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter,soy lecitthin, vanilla); milk chocolate(sugar, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, skimmed milk powder, soya lecithin, vanilla)white chocolate( pure cane sugar, cocoa butter, full cream milk, lactose, soya lecithin, vanilla beans).......and the same for each other ingredient.I would appreciate any advice aon this.I am in NYS, I produce in a rented commercial kitchen and will sell via internet, flea markets and possibly wholesale.Thanks,Carol LangCibelli Chocolates
updated by @carol: 04/23/15 03:47:58

Unfortunately you have to list every single ingredient that goes into the chocolates. The reason is quite important though. Many people have severe allergies to odd ingredients that are not covered under the main 8 common allergies that you must also list separately after the ingredient list.I feel your second example is a good way to do it but you only have to list an ingredient once; Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, soya lecithin, vanilla, skimmed milk powder, full cream milk powder, lactose... if space is your issue then this might be a better way to go. http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/GuidanceDocuments/FoodLabelingNutrition/FoodLabelingGuide/default.htm "Do ingredients of standardized foods have to be listed when the standardized food is an ingredient in a non-standardized food?The ingredients of the standardized food may be declared parenthetically following the name of the standardized ingredient or may be declared by dispersing each ingredient in its order of predominance in the ingredient statement without naming the standardized food."Aren't the many FDA rules fun?Andrea

Thank you very much Andrea

Carol:On a separate but related note, I am pretty sure you qualify as a "small business" so you can take advantage of the small business exemption that applies to nutrition labeling .:: Clay


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clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/

Thank you very much for this information Clay, it is a big help.Carol