Reading food labels means setting a healthier table. The food label is a reliable, accurate, user-friendly source of valuable nutrition information. The food label provides information on the nutrient content of foods. This allows the consumer to make wise food choices. Specifically the food label gives U.S. Dietary Goals about the information. It gives the caloric and fat content of a given food. In fact, the fat content of each food is even broken down into saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat categories. Knowing this, Americans can work toward lowering the total fat in their diets to less than 30 percent of total caloric intake while at the same time selecting the healthiest type of fat, which is monounsaturated fat. The label also provides important information regarding other healthy eating goals including the fiber content of the food as well as key nutrients such as cholesterol, calcium, vitamins A and C, iron, sodium and even sugar.

The "Nutrition Facts" label uses standardized portion sizes. It describes foods in commonly consumed amounts, this making the label easier to use.

The food label also uses adjectives to describe the nutritional value of a certain food per serving. This helps avoid confusion for the following terms:
* "fat free" means the food has less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving,
* "low fat" means less than 3 grams of fat,
* "cholesterol free" means less than 2 mg, while "low cholesterol" means less than 20 mg,
* "low sodium" means under 140 mg/serving;
* "low calorie" means less than 40 kcals;
* "sugar free" means less than 0.5 grams,
* "high" or "rich" mean the food contains more than 20 percent of the daily need for a specific nutrient, and
* "fortified" means the food provides more than 10 percent of the daily requirement for that nutrient.

Some labels will also contain health claims. However, in order to make a health claim it must first be approved by the Food and Drug Administration. An example of an acceptable food label might be for milk, "This product is rich in calcium and eating more calcium can reduce your risk for osteoporosis". Any claim must be based on sound scientific evidence.

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