The 60-second answer
- One nutrition panel will not serve five markets, and translation is not the constraint. Five variables differ: the mandatory nutrient list (Hong Kong 1+7, Malaysia four plus total sugars), the reference basis (per 100 g or per serving), the reference values (Chinese NRV, Thai RDI, Indonesian %AKG), the language rule (a bilingual Hong Kong label needs a bilingual panel), and front-of-pack schemes (Singapore Nutri-Grade, Indonesia Nutri-Level).
- In Hong Kong, start with surface area. Under 200 cm² total surface area a linear format is allowed; under 100 cm² the product is exempt from nutrition labelling; under 30,000 units a year with no nutrition claim you can apply for a small volume exemption. Those three thresholds decide whether you need a panel and how dense it must be.
- Hong Kong's "7" is a fixed seven. Protein, carbohydrates, total fat, saturated fatty acids, trans fatty acids, sodium and sugars — plus any nutrient you claim, and cholesterol where a claim concerns a type of fat.
- Per 100 g and per serving are not alternatives. Malaysia's Regulation 18B wants per 100 g or 100 mL and per serving. Hong Kong accepts per 100 g alone, but if you use per serving you must quantify the serving and state servings per pack.
- Singapore and Indonesia are front-of-pack battlegrounds. Singapore requires Nutri-Grade C and D on the front of beverages, and D cannot be advertised in most media. Indonesia requires Nutri-Level on the front of ready-to-drink, powdered and concentrated beverages by 17 June 2028. Reserve that space at design stage, not at prepress.
- Layout is where panels fail. Single black, consistent rule weight, aligned decimal points, a legible minimum type size — and keep the block off shrink zones, out of heavy varnish, and off metallic stock without a white backing.
1. Why one universal panel does not work
The usual request is "same pack for Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta — one set of plates". The formulation and the key visual genuinely can be shared. The nutrition block usually cannot, because five variables move independently:
| Variable | What it changes | Cost of ignoring it |
|---|---|---|
| Mandatory list | Number of rows: eight or more in Hong Kong, energy plus four in Malaysia | A missing row means the label fails and the batch cannot be listed |
| Basis | Column heading: per 100 g, per serving, or both | Values cannot be checked; relabelling |
| Reference values | Every percentage: %NRV, %RDI, %AKG | A wrong percentage is worse than none: mislabelling |
| Language | Field names and units | A bilingual Hong Kong pack with a Chinese-only panel is non-compliant |
| Front-of-pack | Reserved space: Nutri-Grade block, Nutri-Level scale | Discovered late, it means new artwork and sometimes a new die |
So save plates on the key visual and the die, never on the regulatory block. The workable method is to design the nutrition area as a separate module with 2–3 mm of clear space around it, so a market change swaps one block and leaves everything else untouched.
2. Hong Kong: 1+7, three formats, three area thresholds
Hong Kong's scheme sits in the Food and Drugs (Composition and Labelling) Regulations (Cap. 132W), with the detail in the Centre for Food Safety's Technical Guidance Notes. The core is "1+7": energy plus protein, carbohydrates, total fat, saturated fatty acids, trans fatty acids, sodium and sugars. Nutrients you make a claim for must appear; where a claim concerns a type of fat, cholesterol must also be declared.
| Total surface area | What is allowed | Practical note |
|---|---|---|
| Under 100 cm² | General exemption under Schedule 6 — no nutrition label | Exempt from the panel, not from ingredients, durability or manufacturer details |
| 100 – 200 cm² | Required, but a linear format may be used | Small bottles, sachets and samples land here most often |
| Over 200 cm² | Tabular format, in a conspicuous position | "Conspicuous" means readable without turning the pack or opening a flap |
Two further thresholds get missed. Language: English, Chinese or both are all acceptable, but if the label is bilingual the nutrition label must be bilingual too. Small volume exemption: where annual sales of the same version do not exceed 30,000 units and neither the label nor any advertisement carries a nutrition claim, an exemption can be applied for from the CFS.
| Item | Hong Kong position |
|---|---|
| Energy unit | kcal or kJ, or both side by side (1 kcal is about 4.2 kJ) |
| Rounding | kcal, kJ, mg and % to the nearest 1; grams to 0.1 (guidance, not mandatory) |
| Definition of zero (per 100 g/mL) | Energy ≤4 kcal (17 kJ); protein, carbohydrate, fat, saturated fat ≤0.5 g; trans fat ≤0.3 g |
| Tolerance | Testing generally applies a ±20% tolerance, with nutrient-specific exceptions; a label must not diverge substantially from the food |
| Legibility | Typeface, size and contrast must be clearly readable; a separate trade guideline covers legible labelling |
One warning for small packs: 200 cm² is total surface area, not front-panel area. Add up every visible face, both sides of a pouch. Many 100 mL sample bottles sit at 150–180 cm², where the linear format saves half the height — but the linear format still has to carry all of 1+7, not just energy.
3. Malaysia: Regulation 18B wants per 100 g and per serving
Malaysia's Food Regulations 1985, Regulation 18B, is written differently from Hong Kong: energy in kcal or kJ (or both) per 100 g or per 100 mL, with per-serving values as well. The main declarations are protein, available carbohydrate (carbohydrate excluding dietary fibre), fat and total sugars; sodium is required for specified categories or where a claim is made.
"Available carbohydrate" is the most common transcription error in this region. Hong Kong accepts total or available carbohydrate as long as you say which; Malaysia specifies available. The same laboratory report can differ by 1–3 g between the two, so keep the dietary fibre column on file — that is what lets you convert per market instead of guessing.
| Energy conversion (Malaysia) | kcal/g | kJ/g |
|---|---|---|
| Carbohydrate | 4 | 17 |
| Protein | 4 | 17 |
| Fat | 9 | 37 |
| Ethanol | 7 | 29 |
| Organic acid | 3 | 13 |
| Dietary fibre | 2 | 8.5 |
4. Singapore: Nutri-Grade is a front-of-pack mark, not a panel
Singapore's nutrition table follows the Food Regulations, but what actually changes the artwork is Nutri-Grade. Since 30 December 2022, pre-packaged beverages and non-customisable automated beverage dispensers are graded A–D on sugar and saturated fat; C and D must carry the mark on the front of the pack, and grade D is prohibited from advertising in most media. From 30 December 2023 the scheme extends to freshly prepared beverages, including physical menus and delivery platforms. In 2028 it extends again to salt, sauces, seasonings, instant noodles and cooking oils (SSSIO).
The design consequence is blunt: the front panel needs a reserved block. The usual failure is a full-bleed key visual with the logo jammed into a corner, discovered at labelling stage to have no clean background — so the mark ends up somewhere low-contrast, which is the same as not having it. Reserve at least a 20 × 20 mm flat area, separate from the brand colour field.
5. Thailand and Indonesia: different reference values, different timelines
Thailand is regulated by the Thai FDA. The nutrition label is expressed per serving with %Thai RDI; front-of-pack GDA (percentage daily guidance for sugar, fat, sodium and energy) and the Healthier Choice logo are voluntary. The trap here is copying Hong Kong %NRV across: the reference values differ, so every percentage is wrong.
Indonesia requires an NIP (Informasi Nilai Gizi) on packaged food, with percentages against %AKG. The front of pack is changing now: Ministry of Health Decree HK.01.07/MENKES/301/2026 (14 April 2026) requires retail ready-to-drink beverages — bubble tea, milk tea, coffee — to display Nutri-Level on menus, packaging and promotional material; BPOM Regulation No. 10/2026 requires ready-to-drink, powdered and concentrated beverages to carry Nutri-Level on the front of pack by 17 June 2028.
| Nutri-Level thresholds (Indonesia, BPOM 10/2026) | A | B | C | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar (g) | ≤0.5 | >0.5 – ≤6.0 | >6.0 – ≤12.5 | >12.5 |
| Salt (mg) | ≤5 | >5 – ≤120 | >120 – ≤500 | >500 |
| Total fat (g) | ≤0.5 | >0.5 – ≤3.0 | >3.0 – ≤17 | >17 |
| Nutrient | Lowest | Low | Moderate | Highest |
Note that grading runs nutrient by nutrient rather than as one average, so a product can be A on sugar and D on salt. That kind of presentation needs more reserved columns than a single-score scheme, and the layout has to survive the worst case before you approve the artwork.
6. The five-market comparison
| Hong Kong | Malaysia | Singapore | Thailand | Indonesia | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instrument | Cap. 132W plus CFS guidance | Food Regulations 1985, Reg 18B | Food Regulations plus Nutri-Grade | Thai FDA notifications | BPOM regulations, NIP |
| Core fields | 1+7 (energy plus seven) | Energy, protein, available carbohydrate, fat, total sugars | Nutrition table plus beverage grade | NIP items | NIP items |
| Basis | Per 100 g/mL, or per serving (quantified) | Per 100 g/mL and per serving | Per 100 mL and per serving | Per serving (plus per 100 g) | Per serving (plus per 100 g) |
| Reference values | %NRV (optional) | %NRV | %NRV | %Thai RDI | %AKG |
| Language | English, Chinese or both; bilingual label means bilingual panel | Malay or English | English | Thai (English permitted) | Indonesian |
| Front-of-pack | Not mandatory | Not mandatory | Nutri-Grade (C/D mandatory) | GDA / HCL (voluntary) | Nutri-Level (beverages, by 17 June 2028) |
| Small packs | Under 200 cm² linear format; under 100 cm² exempt | Handled by label area | Per regulations | Per regulations | Per regulations |
The Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia each have their own NIP format and reference values. They are not detailed here, but send the full market list with the enquiry and we will lay out one artwork with all the columns, rather than rediscovering each market one at a time.
7. Print-side layout: six places nutrition panels fail
A compliant panel that cannot be read is not compliant in practice. These six come up repeatedly on labels and flexible packaging:
| Item | Do this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Colour | Set the panel in 100% K, not a four-colour black | Built black fringes on small type with any registration drift, and reads as blur |
| Type size | Body text no smaller than about 1.2 mm cap height (roughly 3.5 pt); reassess below 100 cm² | Dot gain on flexo and digital closes up small type into a grey block |
| Rules | 0.15–0.25 mm; either all equal or hairline horizontal with heavier verticals | Below 0.1 mm rules break up on flexo and look like a print fault |
| Substrate | Print white under black type on clear film; same on silver | Without white backing, contents show through and contrast collapses |
| Varnish | Keep spot varnish or heavy matte off the panel | Over-varnished type loses contrast and disappears at an angle |
| Shrink and application | Avoid high-shrink zones and the tightest curvature | Type stretches after shrinking; on a curved surface the reading angle is poor |
One habit worth changing: right-align the numbers, left-align the units. A panel exists to be compared, and unaligned decimal points make both shoppers and inspectors hunt for the digit. Fix the decimal places per column and give the unit its own column.
8. The five reasons panels get rejected
- Missing rows: trans fat or sugars omitted for Hong Kong; total carbohydrate declared where Malaysia asks for available carbohydrate.
- Basis confusion: per serving only, with no per 100 g for Malaysia; or per serving with no serving weight and no servings per pack for Hong Kong.
- Wrong reference values: Hong Kong %NRV pasted onto a Thai panel, or Malaysian NRV used for Indonesia.
- Language gap: a bilingual Hong Kong pack carrying a Chinese-only panel.
- Unreadable: type too small, four-colour black, or the panel sitting under varnish or in a shrink zone.
Those five account for the great majority of rejections we see, and every one of them can be caught with a checklist before proofing rather than at the port.
9. Six things to send with an enquiry
- The full market list (Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, others) in one go.
- Product category (beverage, snack, sauce, supplement, cosmetic) — this decides whether a front-of-pack mark applies.
- Laboratory report including dietary fibre, sugars, saturated and trans fat and sodium; if there is none, say so and we will estimate from the formulation and mark it as an estimate.
- Pack dimensions and total surface area, which decides tabular versus linear format.
- Label language (single or bilingual) and any format already specified by your importer.
- Die and application position, to confirm the panel clears shrink zones and the tightest curvature.
Regulations change: the figures here were checked in November 2026 and are a starting point for layout, not legal advice. The written confirmation of the local authority and your importer governs.
Related reading: Hong Kong food label requirements, Food labels for Southeast Asia, Macau food labelling, Thailand food labels, Allergen declaration, Specifying a roll of labels.
- Artwork: AI, PDF, EPS or PSD with fonts outlined or embedded; include the die line if you have one; 20MB per file. A photo or screenshot is fine if the design is not final.
- Finished size and shape (round, square, custom; a die-line file is ideal).
- Quantity: how many versions, how many per version, and whether it ships in rolls or cartons.
- Material and where the label sits: paper, synthetic paper, PE or PET; outside the pack or inside.
- Destination market and the standard to meet (Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, EU food-contact rules).
- Required delivery date: samples and digital work about 24 hours, small runs about one week, bulk about 15 days — confirmed against the actual schedule.
Your contacts: quotations Ms Zeng +86 180 1199 6161 | sales Mr Hong +86 189 2511 1128. We reply within the working day (Monday to Saturday); for urgent work please call.
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