Food labelling in Germany: what must the pack show?

What the law requires

Germany applies the EU food information rules and adds national requirements on top.

Date marking. The LMIDV implements Reg (EU) 1169/2011 Art. 24 and Annex X. Dates use DD.MM.YYYY, for example 25.02.2026.

• Best-before: "mindestens haltbar bis".
• Best-before with only month and year: "mindestens haltbar bis Ende".
• Use-by: "zu verbrauchen bis".
• Lot codes are typically preceded by "Los-Nr." or "L".

Product name. The Deutsches Lebensmittelbuch contains Leitsätze, which are composition and naming standards for common food categories (LFGB §15-18). They are not legally binding. Courts and food safety authorities treat them as quasi-mandatory. Your Verkehrsbezeichnung must match the Leitsatz for your category. "Fruchtjoghurt" and "Joghurt mit Fruchtzubereitung", for example, need different minimum fruit contents.

Ingredients. If added water makes up more than 5% of the finished product, list it in weight order (Reg (EU) 1169/2011 Art. 18(4)(b), Annex VII).

Animal-origin products. Meat, dairy, fish and eggs carry the oval health mark. It shows the country code, the establishment number and "EC" or "CE". It must be legible and indelible (Reg (EC) 853/2004 Annex II Section I).

Beverage packaging. All beverage packaging sold at retail must show "EINWEG" (single-use) or "MEHRWEG" (reusable). The text must be at least as large as the price label (VerpackG §32(3)). This is separate from the deposit symbol and applies even to deposit-exempt drinks.

Single-use containers from 100 ml to 3 L need the DPG deposit mark. This covers plastic bottles and cans for water, soft drinks, juices and milk drinks. They also need a DE-specific GTIN barcode printed in certified DPG security ink. The deposit is €0.25 per container (VerpackG §31). The DPG system has included milk drinks in single-use plastic bottles since January 2024.

Category rules. EU rules add mandatory wording for some products:

• Eggs: farming method, producer code, weight class and class A or B (Reg (EC) 589/2008).
• Fish: commercial and Latin name, production method, catch area or farming country (Reg (EU) 1379/2013 Art. 35).
• Energy drinks above 150 mg/L caffeine: a high-caffeine warning and mg per 100 ml.
• Infant formula: a statement that breastfeeding is best (Del. Reg (EU) 2016/127).

What to change on your label

1. Check date wording and format against the list above.
2. Compare your product name with the relevant Leitsatz.
3. Add EINWEG or MEHRWEG to every beverage pack, sized to match the price label.
4. For deposit containers, add the DPG mark and the DPG-ink GTIN barcode.
5. Register in the LUCID Packaging Register and contract a dual-system operator before you sell. Marketplaces verify LUCID registration. Failure to register can mean fines up to €200,000 and a distribution ban (VerpackG §7, §9, §19, §33).
6. Decide which voluntary marks you will use:
   • Bio-Siegel. Use it only if the product meets German organic standards under the Öko-Kennzeichengesetz. It sits alongside the mandatory EU organic leaf (BMEL).
   • Nutri-Score. It is voluntary. If you use it, register with Santé publique France and apply the 2024 algorithm (BMEL).
   • Ohne GenTechnik. This VLOG scheme applies stricter criteria than the EU GMO-free rules (VLOG).

For wider EU rules, see EU Packaging & Labeling Regulations 2026. For a drinks example in another market, see Juice Labeling in Slovenia.

Brands like Frank, which sells juice cleanses (Saftkur), manage their labels in CoLabel. Its barcode generation and checking helps you keep deposit-container GTINs consistent across label versions.