Labeling & Packaging Requirements
Packaged goods sold in South Dakota must clearly state a product’s identity; the responsible distributor, packer, or manufacturer; and the product’s net quantity on the label.
These items must be printed in conspicuous, easily legible and contrasting type. They must be generally parallel to the base on which the package is designed to rest when the product is displayed and be positioned so that the declaration can be readily seen and understood by consumers.
When packaging and labeling your own food product, there are several simple rules to follow:
- List ingredients in the product from the largest to the smallest
- Weight or volume of the product
- Name and address where the product is produced
- If you claim a nutritional value on the label, contact the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for further information.
Declaration of Product Identity
A packaged product’s labeling must clearly and conspicuously identify the product contained in that package. The declaration of identity must:
- Identify the commodity by its common name, by its legally required name when applicable, or by a generic name or description understood by consumers.
- Appear as a principal feature on the principal display panel. The principal display panel is the part of a package most likely to be displayed to or examined by a consumer under normal conditions of retail sale.
- Not be false, deceptive or misleading. Ingredients or components that are not present in the product in substantial or significantly effective amounts may not be featured in the declaration of identity.
Declaration of Responsibility
If a packaged product is sold at a location other than where it was packaged, the product’s labeling must clearly and conspicuously identify the party responsible for the product, including all of the following:
- Name of responsible person. This is the name of the manufacturer, packer or distributor who is responsible for introducing the commodity into commerce in package form. If the responsible person is a corporation, the label must list the legal name of that corporation. If the responsible person is not a corporation, the label must specify the correct name under which that person does business.
- Business address. The business address of the responsible person listed above, including the street address, city, state and ZIP code. The street address may be omitted if it is listed in a readily accessible and publicly available source, such as a printed directory or website. If a person manufactures, packs or distributes a consumer commodity at a place of business other than the person’s principal place of business, the label may disclose the address of that principal place of business rather than the actual place of manufacture, packing or distribution, provided that the substitute disclosure is not deceptive or misleading.
- Connection to commodity. If the responsible person is not the person who manufactured or produced the consumer commodity, the responsible person’s name shall be qualified by a phrase, such as “Manufactured for and packed by ______” or “Distributed by ______,” that indicates the responsible person’s connection to the consumer commodity.
Declaration of Net Quality
Labels on packaged products must include a declaration of net quantity. For details, see NIST Handbook 133 – Checking the Net Contents of Packaged Goods.
Required Combination Declarations
- Weight declaration, combined with weight or count. If a declaration of net quantity is expressed in terms of weight, the weight declaration must be combined with an appropriate declaration of measure or count, unless the weight declaration alone is fully informative.
- Declaration of measure, combined with weight or count. If a declaration of net quantity is expressed in terms of measure, the declaration of measure must be combined with an appropriate declaration of weight or count, unless the declaration of measure alone is fully informative.
- Declaration of count, combined with weight or measure. If a declaration of net quantity is expressed in terms of count, the declaration of count must be combined with an appropriate declaration of weight or measure, unless the declaration of count alone is fully informative.
If a declaration of net quantity includes any declaration of count, either as a primary or supplementary declaration, it must also specify the size of the individual counted units unless the declaration of count is fully informative without a declaration of size.
Combination declarations required under this subsection shall be included as part of the principal declaration of net quantity on the principal display panel of the package.
Products not requiring a Declaration of Net Quantity
- Commodities sold by count if the package contains only one unit of that commodity, or a small combination of items that are customarily sold together as a single unit and understood by consumers as constituting a single unit.
- Commodities sold by count if the package contains six or fewer units and the number of units can be easily counted by consumers without opening the package.
- Random packages of a commodity sold at wholesale, for weighing and labeling at the point of resale sale, provided that the random packages are contained in a wholesale container that is labeled to show the combined net weight of the contents of those random packages. This exemption does not apply to a random package when sold at retail.
Resources
These codified state laws fall under the purview of multiple state departments. More information on applicable South Dakota laws can be found at these links:
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
You can also contact the FDA in Sioux Falls at (605) 330-4383.
NIST Handbooks
NIST Handbook 44 – liquid and dry measures
NIST Handbook 130 – packaging and labeling, unit pricing, commodity method
NIST Handbook 133 – testing procedures
