Reading Food Labels in the UAE: What the Rules Require on the Pack

Every pre-packaged food sold in the UAE must carry its label in Arabic only, or in Arabic and English, and its production and expiry dates must be printed on the manufacturer's original label. Those two rules, set out in the US International Trade Administration's UAE guide updated in August 2025, explain most of what you see on a supermarket shelf in Dubai.

The language rule

Arabic is the official language for checking label information; other languages are treated as translations, according to a Dubai labelling summary by law firm Al Tamimi & Co. Imported products may use an Arabic sticker instead of a printed Arabic label, but stickers need prior approval from UAE authorities and must be applied before the goods are exported to the UAE, not on arrival. As a minimum, the Arabic label or sticker must give the product name, ingredients, country of origin, and storage conditions, instructions for use and nutritional information where these apply.

Reading the dates

A UAE food label carries a production date and an expiry date, and only one set of dates is permitted. The format depends on shelf life:

Shelf lifeDate formatHow to read it Three months or lessDay/month/yearExpires on the date shown More than three monthsDay/month/year or month/yearIf only month/year is shown, the last day of that month is the expiry date

The month may be written in numbers or in letters. Production and expiry dates must be on the original manufacturer's label, so a date on a sticker alone does not meet the rule.

What else must be on the pack

Labels follow the Gulf standard for pre-packaged foods, GSO 9. Al Tamimi's summary lists these requirements:

• Product name that is specific and shows the product's true nature, not a generic description.
• Ingredients in descending order by weight or volume, so the first ingredient is the one used most.
• Allergens or ingredients that can cause hypersensitivity must be highlighted.
• Net weight, and the product name and net contents placed where you can see them at the point of sale.
• Storage and use instructions.
• Country of origin, named exactly; "EU" is not accepted as a country of origin.
• Manufacturer or packer name and address.
• Lot identification, in code or in clear form, linking the pack to its factory and batch.
• Nutritional information, given as a percentage by weight or per serving.
• Genetically modified ingredients: products that are or contain GM ingredients must say so.

Labels must be clear, legible and hard to remove, and not hidden by designs or graphics.

Front-of-pack grades

Some products in UAE supermarkets now carry Nutri-Mark, a front-of-pack grade from A (dark green, highest nutritional quality) to E (red, lowest). It was approved by Abu Dhabi's Quality and Conformity Council in 2025 and compares products within the same food category, based on fat, saturated fat, sugars, protein, fibre, salt and calories. FoodNavigator reported in June 2026 that it had not yet been made mandatory, and that shoppers can scan a Nutri-Mark QR code with the TAMM app at four major UAE retail chains. A lower grade does not mean a product is unsafe.

A quick label check

• Find the expiry date first; if it reads month/year only, the product is good until the end of that month.
• Read the ingredients from the top: the first one listed is used in the largest amount.
• Look for highlighted allergens if anyone in your household needs to avoid them.
• Check the country of origin and, where shown, any GM declaration.

For general information. Details can change; check with the official source before relying on them.