When you have a long ingredient list it can feel overwhelming and off-putting to consumers.

The good news is that FDA regulations allow certain ingredients to be grouped or aggregated in specific ways. When done correctly, this can make your ingredient statement clearer, easier to scan, and still fully compliant.

This guide explains what you can combine, what you can’t, and how to use ReciPal to create an optimized, FDA-compliant ingredient statement.

If you prefer to learn by watching, check out this video!

Why Ingredient Lists Get So Long

Long ingredient lists are often unavoidable, especially when products include prepacked or branded ingredients.

For example, if you use M&Ms in a cookie, FDA rules require you to list every subingredient that makes up the M&Ms—including colors, emulsifiers, and flavors.

While required ingredients can’t be removed, certain ingredients can be grouped together to save space.

FDA-Approved Ways to Group Ingredients

• Spices
• Natural and Artificial Flavors
• Artificial Colors

Spices

Spices are aromatic vegetable substances in the whole, broken, or ground form used primarily for seasoning, not nutrition.

Examples that MAY be grouped as “Spice”

• Cinnamon
• Black pepper
• Nutmeg
• Paprika
• Cloves

See full list of ingredients that may be declared collectively as “Spice.”

Examples that MAY NOT be grouped as “Spice”

• Salt (must be listed separately)
• Garlic powder or onion powder (classified as vegetables)
• Celery powder when used for curing or preservation

If a spice serves a technical function beyond flavoring, it generally must be listed individually. Spices that also add color—such as paprika, turmeric, or saffron—must be declared as “spice and coloring” unless listed by their common name.

We've built a simple tool that let's you paste your ingredient list and figure out if you have any spices that can be combined.

Try our Spice Aggregator

Natural Flavors

A natural flavor is derived from a natural source such as fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, dairy products, meat, or fermentation products, and is used primarily for flavoring.

Natural flavors are typically created through processes like distillation, fermentation, roasting, or enzymatic treatment. Unlike spices, natural flavors may contain only flavor compounds rather than recognizable pieces of the original ingredient.

Examples of natural flavor components include:

• Essential oils (orange oil, peppermint oil)
• Spice extracts and oleoresins (such as coffee extract)
• Cheese flavor derived from dairy fermentation

If all flavoring ingredients meet the FDA definition of natural flavor, they may be declared collectively as “Natural Flavor” or “Natural Flavors.”

Artificial Flavors

Artificial flavors are chemically synthesized flavoring substances that do not meet the FDA definition of natural flavor.

These may be declared as “Artificial Flavor” or “Artificial Flavors.” If both natural and artificial flavors are present, they may be listed together as “Natural and Artificial Flavors.”

What Cannot Be Grouped as Flavors

Flavoring ingredients may only be grouped if their sole function is flavor. Ingredients that also function as preservatives, emulsifiers, or stabilizers generally must be listed separately.

Artificial Colors

Color additives are regulated more strictly than spices or flavors. Certified colors must always be declared by name.

Some foods naturally contribute color and are not considered color additives. However, when a substance is deliberately used to add color—such as beet juice in pink lemonade—it is considered a color additive.

Examples of colors that must be declared individually

• FD&C Red No. 40
• FD&C Yellow No. 5
• FD&C Blue No. 1

Examples of colors that may be grouped

• Vegetable juice (for color)
• Beet powder
• Annatto

These may be declared as “Artificial Color” or “Color Additive,” where permitted. Keep in mind, as there is no "natural color" designation, in some cases you may prefer to leave the ingredient from which you are deriving the color to show your consumers it's a natural source.

Grouping Ingredients in ReciPal

ReciPal’s Ingredient Statement page includes a Spice/Flavor classification for each ingredient. When selected, ingredients are automatically grouped under categories such as spices, natural flavors, artificial flavors, artificial colors, or spice & coloring.

When multiple ingredients share the same classification, ReciPal automatically combines their weights and places the grouped term in the correct descending weight order. These classifications are dynamic, allowing you to update an ingredient once and apply changes across all recipes.

Separately, if your recipes include subrecipes, ReciPal’s combine ingredients from subrecipes feature reduces duplication while maintaining FDA compliance. For example, if three subrecipes all use sugar, this feature makes sure sugar is listed once vs. three times.

Considerations When Grouping Ingredients

Shorter ingredient lists aren’t always better. Ingredient statements also serve as trust and marketing tools.

Listing ingredients individually—such as organic ingredients—can help communicate quality and transparency. While grouping may save space, terms like “spices” or “natural flavors” can sometimes raise consumer questions.

When optimizing your ingredient list, consider whether grouping improves clarity or weakens consumer confidence.

Styling Tips for Long Ingredient Lists

Design choices can significantly improve readability.

• Long ingredient lists often look cleaner to the side of a vertical nutrition facts panel (as opposed to beneath it), as it lets you better optimize the layout.



• If you qualify to use a tabular nutrition facts panel, it naturally provides more horizontal space, making long lists feel less intimidating.

ReciPal allows you to export label components separately, making it easier to test different layouts during design.

Key Takeaways

• Required ingredients cannot be removed, but they can be optimized
• Spices, flavors, and some colors may be grouped when FDA criteria are met
• Certified colors and functional ingredients must be listed individually
• Thoughtful formatting and subingredient consolidation improve readability

Understanding FDA ingredient grouping rules helps you create ingredient statements that are both compliant and consumer-friendly. ReciPal provides the tools to make this process easier as formulations grow more complex.