The rounding rules, nutrient by nutrient

The number you calculate is almost never the number you print. The FDA sets a rounding increment for every nutrient, and it is not a single rule: it changes with the size of the value. A sodium figure of 138 mg rounds to 140, while 142 mg rounds to 140 as well, because the increment changes at exactly 140.

Getting these wrong is the most common reason a technically accurate panel is still not a compliant one.

Calories

• Below 5 calories: may be declared as 0.
• 5 through 50: round to the nearest 5.
• Above 50: round to the nearest 10.

So 47 becomes 45, 52 becomes 50, and 138 becomes 140. Note the increment changes at 50, not at 100.

Fats: total, saturated, trans, polyunsaturated, monounsaturated

• Below 0.5 g: declare 0.
• 0.5 g up to 5 g: round to the nearest 0.5 g.
• 5 g and above: round to the nearest 1 g.

This is the rule behind the “zero trans fat” product that still contains some. Anything under half a gram per serving is declared as zero, legitimately.

Cholesterol

• Below 2 mg: not required at all (absent a fat or cholesterol claim), or may be declared as 0.
• 2 to 5 mg: declare “Less than 5 mg”.
• Above 5 mg: round to the nearest 5 mg.

Sodium and potassium

• Below 5 mg: declare 0.
• 5 through 140 mg: round to the nearest 5 mg.
• Above 140 mg: round to the nearest 10 mg.

Carbohydrate group: total carbohydrate, fiber, total sugars, added sugars, sugar alcohol

• Below 0.5 g: declare 0.
• 0.5 g up to 1 g: declare “Less than 1 g”.
• 1 g and above: round to the nearest 1 g.

Protein

Protein uses the same increments as the carbohydrate group above.

Percent Daily Value

%DV rounds differently from the amounts, and differently again depending on whether the nutrient is a macronutrient or a vitamin or mineral.

• Macronutrient %DV (fat, sodium, carbohydrate and so on): round to the nearest whole percent.
• Vitamin and mineral %DV: nearest 2% up to and including 10%, nearest 5% from above 10% through 50%, and nearest 10% above 50%.

That is why you see 8% and 10% on labels but never 9%, and why a vitamin at 63% of the Daily Value prints as 60%.

Two things people get wrong

• Round once, from the unrounded value. Do not round an intermediate figure and then round again. Rounding twice can shift the declared amount by a full increment.
• The %DV may be worked out either way — but pick one. 21 CFR 101.9(d)(7)(ii) says the percent “shall be calculated by dividing either the amount declared on the label for each nutrient or the actual amount of each nutrient (i.e., before rounding) by the DRV”. Both are permitted, and they can differ by a percentage point, so be consistent across the panel. Panelry uses the unrounded amount throughout.