Legal Requirements

There are many things to consider when labeling honey. The rules and regulations in the U.S. are set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to protect consumers. They are designed to prevent honey from being mislabeled or even misrepresented. We have summarized the most important points so that you know what information to provide when labeling your honey.

honeystickers_Labeling-Information-information_round-jar Jar of honey with a label showing mandatory and optional labeling information.

honeystickers_Labeling-Information-information_round-jar_mobile Jar of honey with a label detailing mandatory and optional labeling information.

Mandatory Labeling Information

1. Common Name:
This is what your honey is or does. The word “honey” must be visible on the Product Panel of your product and can’t be hidden in logos or stylized fonts. The floral origin may be used if it is the primary floral source for the honey.

2. Country of Origin:
If your honey is imported, the country of origin is mandatory (e.g., “Product of France”).

3. Net Weight:
The weight without packaging must be stated. The weight must appear on the bottom third of the label of the outer packaging, as well as on any inner packaging. Both U.S. (oz) and metric (g) units are required on the front label.

4. Declaration of Ingredients:
Not required for pure honey. If other ingredients (e.g. chili) have been added to your honey, you must list them in an ingredient list. The minimum font size is 1/16 inch.

5. Signature Line:
All honey labels must include the seller’s information, including the name of the manufacturer, packer, or distributor (e.g. “Packed for” or “Distributed by”). Website and phone are optional.

Optional Labeling Information

A) Brand Name:
The FDA does not require your brand to be on your label but if you want repeat sales, including your brand name on the Principal Display Panel is a good idea.

B) Floral Origin:
You may include the source where your honey came from such as “Clover Honey” but it must reflect the primary nectar source and be supported by sourcing or pollen analysis. Make sure any claims you make are truthful and not misleading.

C) Nutritional Information:
Nutrition Facts are not required if the honey is pure, sold directly to consumers, total sales are under $500k (or food sales under $50k), and the business has fewer than 100 employees and under 100,000 units/year.

D) U.S. Grade:
Adding the grade of your honey to your label can increase sales if you have a high grade. Grade is primarily assessing the moisture and color of your honey. If you use a grade, it must be accurate and must declare the country of origin.

In addition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture classifies honey into 7 color categories: Water White, Extra White, White, Extra Light Amber, Light Amber, Amber, Dark Amber.

E) Warnings:
You may include additional warnings on the front label or a separate sticker. While not required, adding a statement like “Do not feed to infants under one year of age” is recommended, as honey can contain Clostridium botulinum spores that may be harmful to infants.

F) Best Before Date (BBD):
If you wish, you can indicate the date until which your honey can be safely consumed.

G) Barcode:
Could be needed for retail stores and inventory systems.

❗Notes

Please note that even when using our online tool, you are still responsible for selecting the correct label. To help you choose the right label, we have created an overview of the sizes of our honey labels.

Our templates are designed for pure honey, where honey is the only ingredient. If your honey contains other ingredients, you are responsible for labeling them correctly and including a list of ingredients. You can simply load these into our online designer and add them to your label.

Our templates also do not take into account any local regulations that may apply in individual countries. If you have any questions about the legislation in your country, please contact the relevant authority in your country.

The Right Font Size for Your Honey Label

Please note that there are minimum font sizes that you must adhere to in order to ensure good legibility. We have adjusted all our templates to meet these requirements, but we urge you to keep them in mind when designing or modifying our templates.

We have already adjusted the minimum sizes in our pre-created designs. Please be sure to keep these minimum sizes when customizing our designs or when using our blank designs. To make sure you have the right size, we have included a ruler in our online designer.

Best Before Date Stamping

You can add a best before date in our honey label design tool, when you order your labels from us. Alternatively, you can choose to leave the space blank as your best-before date can be easily stamped later with a simple stamp. The Best Before Date (BBD) is the beekeeper's guarantee to the consumer that the honey will remain edible and retain its specific properties until this date. Of course, this requires proper storage: cool, dark and dry. Honey labels usually have a small field for stamping the best before date. The best before date can easily be stamped into this space. The date can be applied in a variety of ways:

1. Best Before Date less than three months: the best before date must be indicated to the day ("best before day/month/year").

2. Best Before Date more than three months but not more than 18 months: "best before end of month/year".

3. Best Before Date more than 18 months: the best before date may only be indicated with the year ("best before end of year").

Our Recommendation:

At honeystickers you have the choice between a smooth ‘Standard’ paper and a structured textured paper. Experience and practical tests lead us to recommend the stamping ink ‘NORIS #196’ for stamping the best before date. This ink is actually recommended by the manufacturer for plastics (PP and PE films), but in practice it is also ideal for papers and especially our textured paper. The stamping ink is water-resistant and quick-drying, so it is smudge-proof after about 12 seconds on the textured paper and 5 seconds on our standard paper.