Transparency
Every threshold, classification and safety reference on BetterBite traces to a published standard. Here is each one — what we use it for, and a direct link to the authoritative source. Nothing here is invented.
Every fact we show about a product is transcribed from the manufacturer's own physical pack. We do not invent or infer facts.
The traffic-light rating on each nutrient is computed from the label's own per-100 g values against these published thresholds.
UK FSA front-of-pack thresholds
The low / moderate / high cut-offs for fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt per 100 g.
WHO — Guideline: Sugars intake for adults and children (2015)
The free-sugars ceiling (below 10% of daily energy) behind the added-sugar assessment.
WHO — Salt / sodium reduction
The daily sodium reference (< 2000 mg) used for the sodium assessment.
WHO — Trans fat (REPLACE)
The basis for treating any trans fat as a concern.
The % Daily Value bars on each product, and the daily-intake dashboard, divide the label's per-100 g values (scaled to a serving) by these published average-adult daily references. Nothing is stored per product — the % is recomputed from the reference table (lib/dailyValues.ts) so a revised standard updates every product at once.
FSSAI — Food Safety and Standards (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020
Reg. 5(3): the mandatory per-serve %RDA column and its fixed average-adult figures — 2000 kcal energy, 67 g total fat, 22 g saturated fat, 2 g trans fat, 50 g added sugars, 2000 mg sodium.
FSSAI — Direction on the declaration of RDA on labels (2022)
How the RDA statement and per-serve % must be presented.
ICMR-NIN — Nutrient Requirements for Indians (RDA, 2020)
Adult references for protein, fibre, minerals and vitamins (iron, calcium, zinc, folate, B12, vitamin C, vitamin D…), including the sex-specific values behind personalised targets.
WHO — Healthy diet fact sheet & population nutrient intake goals
Energy-share caps used for personal targets: carbohydrates 55%, total fat 30%, saturated fat 10%, free sugars 10% (added sugars 5%), trans fat 1% of energy; fibre 14 g per 1000 kcal.
US FDA — Daily Values for nutrition labels (21 CFR 101.9)
Fallback daily values for vitamins and trace minerals that FSSAI/ICMR publish no single label figure for (vitamins A, E, K, B-group, iodine, selenium, copper, manganese, chromium).
The NOVA 1–4 processing level is assigned from the ingredient list using the published criteria.
“What your body actually gets” multiplies the label amount by published absorbed-fraction ranges from these references.
ICMR-NIN — Nutrient Requirements for Indians (RDA, 2020)
Indian reference intakes underpinning the absorption ranges.
WHO/FAO — Vitamin and Mineral Requirements in Human Nutrition (2nd ed.)
Micronutrient requirement and absorption references.
EFSA — Dietary Reference Values
European reference values used to cross-check the ranges.
Hurrell & Egli (2010) — Iron bioavailabilityCitation search
Non-heme iron absorption and the vitamin-C / tannin / phytate modifiers.
Weaver et al. — Calcium bioavailabilityCitation search
Calcium absorption fraction and the oxalate modifier.
FAO — Food energy: methods of analysis and conversion factors (Atwater)
Macronutrient digestibility coefficients used for carbs, fat and protein.
Each additive's permitted status, INS identity and any intake limit is taken from these regulators — never from memory.
FSSAI (India) — Food Safety & Standards Regulations
Permitted additives, INS approvals and food-product standards for India.
FDA (USA) — Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS)
U.S. GRAS status and additive regulations.
EFSA (Europe) — Food additives
Scientific opinions and re-evaluations of food additives.
Codex Alimentarius — General Standard for Food Additives (INS system)
The International Numbering System (INS) identities for additives.
JECFA (FAO/WHO) — Acceptable Daily Intakes
ADI values and additive safety evaluations.
Health-claim context and long-term-pattern statements are grounded in peer-reviewed research.
About these links
Every link points to an authoritative organization or database. Where a specific document may move over time, we give its exact title above so the current version stays findable.
Links marked “Citation search” open a search on the source database (e.g. PubMed) for the cited work rather than a single fixed article. We do this deliberately for references where we could not verify a stable, permanent identifier — pointing you at a search for the exact citation is honest, whereas guessing a specific article ID risks linking the wrong paper. The full citation is always given so you can confirm you've found the right one.
This page lists the sources behind our methodology; it is informational and not medical advice. See How We Score Products for how these standards are applied.