Health Food Labeling Terminology Standard
JHFC-A-002 Enacted: 3 September 2026 / Effective: the same day
Japan Certified Health Food Council (JHFC) — English translation of the standard. In case of discrepancy the Japanese text prevails. Japanese original
Japan Certified Health Food Council (JHFC)
Enacted: 3 September 2026 / Effective: the same day
Preamble (Rationale for Enactment)
In health food labeling, terms indicating raw materials, formulation, analysis, manufacturing controls or status under a scheme are sometimes presented in abbreviated form without definitions or an indication of their subject. Even the same term has different meanings when applied to raw materials or finished products, internal or external verification, or notification or accreditation. When the impression conveyed by a term takes precedence, purchasers cannot correctly understand the scope of the quality information. This Standard is established to link labeling terminology to facts, subjects and supporting evidence and to ensure its consistent use across media.
Article 1 (Purpose)
The purpose of this Standard is to ensure that the meanings of quality-related and scheme-related terms used for health foods are specified, supporting evidence is presented and labeling is consistent across media, and to assess whether third parties can verify the labeling content.
Article 2 (Scope)
This Standard applies to labeling on containers and packaging, package inserts, websites, electronic commerce pages, product literature and other labeling controlled by the business operator. Where legislation or an official scheme specifies terminology, labeling placement or methods of presentation, those provisions shall take precedence.
Article 3 (Terms and Definitions)
- 1. Qualifier: A term that limits the subject, process, point in time or verifying entity and clarifies the scope to which a term applies.
- 2. Generalized claim: A claim, such as "verified" or "high quality," for which the scope of verification cannot be determined unless a specific subject or supporting evidence is provided.
- 3. Scheme-related term: A term indicating procedural status with a public body or third-party body, including notification, permission, certification or accreditation.
- 4. Terminology register: A record linking adopted terms, definitions, permitted media, supporting documentation, approvers and revision histories.
- 5. Proximate labeling: Presentation of a principal term and an explanation limiting its meaning within the same field of view or at an easily accessible location.
Article 4 (Requirements)
- 1. For each principal term indicating quality, the business operator shall specify what was verified, at which stage and by whom, and shall present the term together with a qualifier. Test results for a raw material shall not be extended to descriptions of the finished product as a whole. Verification shall be conducted using the terminology register and the corresponding test records or process records.
- 2. Terms indicating origin or manufacturing method, including "natural," "naturally derived," "synthetic" and "fermented," shall be used on the basis of documentation that identifies the starting point of the raw material, processing steps and component concerned. Where multiple raw materials are included, proximate labeling shall indicate whether the term refers to the entire product or to a specific raw material. This shall be verified against raw material specifications and formulation records.
- 3. Terms indicating absence, such as "no added" or "not used," shall clearly identify the substance or category claimed to be absent, the process concerned and the scope of verification. The fact that a substance has not been intentionally incorporated shall be distinguished from analytical non-detection, including consideration of possible contamination. Verification shall be conducted using formulation documents, supplier information or records of the adopted test method.
- 4. Test-related terms, such as "tested" or "third-party tested," shall be linked to whether the sample is a raw material or a finished product, the test items, the lot concerned and the entity conducting the tests. The required information in the certificate of analysis shall be accessible from the summary labeling, and consistency with the original records shall be verified in accordance with JHFC-A-003.
- 5. Scheme-related terms, such as "GMP," "accreditation," "certification" and "notification," shall state the scheme name, entity concerned, scope and validity without conflation. Accreditation of a manufacturing site shall not be presented as accreditation of the seller or the product itself. Verification shall be conducted using public databases, accreditation certificates or inquiries to the issuing body.
- 6. Content, purity, amount incorporated and raw material quantity shall not be used interchangeably and shall be presented with units, the basis of calculation and the component concerned. For terms relating to content, JHFC-A-005 and JHFC-A-001 shall be consulted, and verification shall be conducted by cross-checking formulation records, test results and labeling copy.
- 7. Even where abbreviated expressions are established for individual media, their meaning shall not be changed. The business operator shall maintain version control of labeling copy and shall periodically cross-check terminology on containers and packaging, sales pages and literature. Where an inconsistency is identified, the affected media shall be identified, and records of corrections, replacements and measures to prevent recurrence shall be retained.
Article 5 (Assessment Categories)
- Conformity: Principal labeling terms are linked to definitions, limits of scope and supporting evidence, and expressions are consistent across media.
- Partial conformity: There are no inconsistencies that misrepresent meaning, but some elements of the terminology register, proximate labeling or revision records are insufficient, and a corrective action plan is documented.
- Nonconformity: There are generalized claims whose subjects cannot be identified, conflation of status under schemes, terms inconsistent with supporting documentation or uncontrolled media.
Article 6 (Implementation)
The business operator may conduct a self-assessment using the terminology register and labeling copy and may declare its conformity status. Upon application, the Council may verify the correspondence between public labeling and the documentation presented. This Standard and the register shall be reviewed whenever legislation, schemes or the general understanding of terminology changes, and otherwise at regular intervals.
Supplementary Provisions
This Standard shall take effect on 3 September 2026.
Note: This Standard provides assessment criteria for information disclosure and quality management practices and does not guarantee the efficacy, effects or safety of individual products.