How to Read Package Labels – Dairy-Free Edition

When following a dairy-free diet, it’s important to carefully read nutrition labels and ingredient lists on all food products before consuming. Some ingredients and foods may be more obvious than others, but there are some tricky names for ingredients and foods that contain or may contain dairy.

Use this label reading guide to help make informed food choices for you and your family.

More Obvious Sources of Dairy on Nutrition Labels

Some ingredients and foods are a bit more obvious to pick out than others because of their use of common dairy words, such as milk, yogurt and cream. However, it’s still important to recognize these words and read each label before purchasing food items.

A list of ingredients and foods that contain dairy, that are a bit more obvious:

• Milk (whole or full-fat, skim or fat-free, 1% or low-fat, 2% or reduced-fat, flavored milk, A2 milk and acidophilus milk)
• Lactose-free milk, Lactaid® brand milk
• Goat’s milk, sheep’s milk and buffalo milk
• Dry milk, dry milk solids and dry milk powder
• Evaporated and condensed milk
• Half-and-half
• Yogurt, Greek yogurt, skyr and kefir
• Buttermilk, buttermilk blend, buttermilk solids and buttermilk powder
• Ice cream, ice milk, sherbet and frozen yogurt
• Custard and pudding
• Sour cream, sour cream solids and imitation sour cream
• Cream cheese, cottage cheese and ricotta cheese
• Cheese (all types, in all forms) and cheese dips
• Quark and curd
• Whipped cream, heavy whipping cream, whipping cream and heavy cream
• Half-and-half
• Crème fraîche
• Malted milk
• Milk chocolate, nougat made with milk chocolate and some chocolate products
• Butter and ghee (butter, artificial butter, artificial butter flavor, butter extract, butter fat, butter flavored oil, butter solids, dairy butter, natural butter, natural butter flavor, whipped butter)
• Casein (ammonium caseinate, calcium caseinate, hydrolyzed casein, iron caseinate, magnesium caseinate, potassium caseinate, sodium caseinate, zinc caseinate)
• Whey (acid whey, cured whey, delactosed whey, demineralized whey, hydrolyzed whey, powdered whey, reduced mineral whey, sweet dairy whey, whey protein, whey protein concentrate, whey powder, whey solids)
• Dairy product solids
• Milk derivative(s)
• Milk solids and milk solid paste
• Sour milk and sour milk solids
• Milk minerals, milk fat and anhydrous milk fat

Less Obvious Sources of Dairy on Nutrition Labels

Some dairy-containing ingredients and words are less obvious because they don’t use the words “dairy” or “milk”. Therefore, it’s important to learn all dairy-containing words so you’re able to read labels with confidence.

Ingredients containing dairy that may be less obvious include:

• Casein and caseinates (ammonium caseinate, calcium caseinate, hydrolyzed casein, iron caseinate, magnesium caseinate, potassium caseinate, sodium caseinate, zinc caseinate)
• Whey (acid whey, cured whey, delactosed whey, demineralized whey, hydrolyzed whey, powdered whey, reduced mineral whey, sweet dairy whey, whey protein, whey protein concentrate, whey powder, whey solids)
• Hydrolysates (casein hydrolysate, milk protein hydrolysate, protein hydrolysate, whey hydrolysate, whey protein hydrolysate)
• Animal-free dairy, animal-free dairy protein, non-animal whey protein and animal-free milk
• Lactose
• Lactalbumin and lactalbumin phosphate
• Lactoglobulin
• Lactulose
• Lactoferrin
• Lactitol monohydrate
• Lactate solids
• Lactic acid starter culture
• Rennet and rennet casein
• Recaldent
• Colostrum
• Galactose

Sneaky Sources of Dairy on Nutrition Labels

Some foods products may seem like they’re dairy-free or are marketed as dairy-free foods but sneakily contain dairy or milk products.

Dairy may be sneakily found in some food products, such as:

• Coffee creamer
• Cooking oils
• Margarine and butter spreads
• Sauces, gravies and marinades (dry packets or bottled liquids)
• Packaged soups and stews
• Salad dressings
• Seasonings (dry or bottled liquids)
• Snack foods (snack or granola bars, chips, crackers, etc.)
• Cereals and porridges
• Prepared baked goods (muffins, cakes, cookies, biscuits, prepared desserts, breads, tortillas, English muffins, bagels, etc.)
• Pancake, waffle, brownie, cake and muffin mixes
• Chocolates, candies and sweet treats
• Lunch meats, sausages, hot dogs and other processed meats
• Frozen vegetables, prepared side dishes and prepared meals

Tip: Dairy-containing ingredients can sometimes be found in non-food products, like toiletry items (toothpaste, lotions, soaps, makeup), vitamins and medications, glue, dustless chalk, some latex products, toys, and pet food. It’s important to also read ingredient labels on these types of products or contact the manufacturer to verify they are dairy-free before purchasing.

Gray Area Sources of Dairy on Nutrition Labels

Some food products and ingredients may or may not contain dairy-containing ingredients. Their names don’t specifically make you think of dairy or milk products, and the way they’re indicated on the label can be confusing. For these products, it’s recommended to contact the manufacturer to find out if these products do or do not contain dairy.

Dairy may also be found in some of these ingredients or food products:

• Artificial or natural flavors
• Caramel or brown sugar flavoring
• Nisin
• Diacetyl
• Starter distillate
• Simplesse (fat replacer)
• Non-dairy products or plant-based products/foods
• Rice cheese and soy cheese
• Some vegan foods (may contain an animal-free milk protein)
• High protein flour

Tip: If a food product you’re interested in choosing contains an ingredient you’re unsure of, contact the manufacturer to find out if it contains dairy.

Safe (But Confusing) Findings on Nutrition Labels

A handful of ingredients may sound like they contain dairy because of their word similarities to dairy-containing ingredients, but do not actually contain dairy. Those ingredients are:

• Lactate
• Lactic acid
• Lactic acid bacteria and fermented lactic acid
• Lactylate
• Tagatose
• Note: Lactitol, a sugar substitute, is sometimes used in medications and supplements. Check with your health care provider before consuming products containing lactitol.

Are “Dairy-free” and “Non-dairy” Designations Regulated?

The term “dairy-free” is not regulated by the FDA, but the term “non-dairy” is regulated by the FDA.

Dairy-Free: Because of the lack of regulation on the term “dairy-free”, food products can be marketed as dairy-free, but contain dairy or dairy derivatives.

Non-Dairy: Even though the term ”non-dairy” is regulated, it can still contain casein or caseinates, which we know are milk proteins and should not be consumed on a dairy-free diet. This can confuse consumers who are not trained to read food labels and ingredient lists. One of the most notorious examples is non-dairy coffee creamer; many varieties contain casein or caseinate. Consumers may walk down the coffee creamer aisle, see a product labeled as “non-dairy coffee creamer”, grab it and consume it without realizing it contains dairy.

The confusion surrounding “dairy-free” and “non-dairy” labeling solidifies the importance of reading food labels and ingredient lists on all food products before consuming. All ingredients used in formulation of the food product must be disclosed on the ingredient list.

Ready to head to the grocery store? Check out our Dairy-Free Alternatives: The Ultimate Family Guide to get a head start on making your grocery list.