Healthy eating - traffic light labelling

Food products with traffic light labels on the front of the pack show you at a glance if the food you are thinking about buying has high, medium or low amounts of fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt, helping you get a better balance for your family.

In addition to the traffic light colours you will also see the number of grams of fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt in what the manufacturer or retailer suggests as a 'serving' of the food.

Red

The red light means that you should avoid these foods as they have high levels of one or more of the nutrients. Red light foods should be 'treat' foods and not eaten on a regular basis.

Amber

The amber light means it is an ok choice. It is not high but it is not as good as a green choice.

Green

The green light means the food is low in that nutrient - the more foods you can eat with a green light, the better.

Many of the foods with traffic light colours will have a mixture of red, amber and greens. It also tells you how much of each nutrient is in a portion, so if two labels have similar colours you can compare these figures and choose the one that is lower to make a healthier choice.

See our resources page for posters, leaflets and activity sheets.