Product Labels: Make the Important Information Easy to Find

Updated 7 October 2026

A product label must help customers identify, choose and use the product. Build the information hierarchy before adding decorative details.

Start with the required content

Confirm the rules for your product category and market before designing. Food, cosmetics and other regulated products have different requirements. For food, use the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s industry labelling tools to check the information, language, placement and legibility that apply. A designer should work from approved copy rather than guess at compliance.

For prepackaged non-food products, start with the Competition Bureau’s packaging and labelling requirements. Cosmetics also have Health Canada labelling requirements. Check the current rules for the product and where you sell it before approving the artwork.

Give the label a clear reading order

Make the product name, variant and key decision information easy to distinguish. Use consistent positions across a product range. Reserve enough room for ingredients, instructions, warnings or other required content instead of squeezing them into leftover space.

Test it on the container

Print a full-size proof and wrap it around the actual package. Check curved surfaces, seams, moisture, refrigeration and handling. Ask your printer about suitable stock and adhesive. Scan the barcode and check the smallest text before approving production.

Make the product work online, too

Check the label in a small product photograph as well as on the shelf. Customers should be able to distinguish the product and variant without zooming in. Keep essential product details as readable text on the product page, rather than relying on the package photograph alone.

Your next move

Bring the container, approved wording and expected use conditions to ITG. A label that works on screen still needs a real-world proof.

Further reading: CFIA food labelling for industry.