Our Methodology
Food allergies and diet decisions are real health matters, so we want to be fully transparent about where our product data comes from, how we process it, and what it can and cannot tell you. IngredIPeek is an information tool, not a medical reference — but the information should still be trustworthy.
Primary source: Open Food Facts
Our product catalog is built on top of Open Food Facts, the world's largest open, collaborative food products database. Open Food Facts is structured like Wikipedia: volunteers worldwide scan barcodes, photograph labels, and transcribe ingredient lists, allergens, and nutrition facts directly from packaging. The database is released under an Open Database License (ODbL).
For each product on IngredIPeek we pull:
- name, brand, and barcode,
- full ingredients text as it appears on the label,
- the declared allergens (milk, gluten, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, eggs, fish, shellfish, sesame),
- dietary suitability flags (vegan, vegetarian, halal, organic, gluten-free, dairy-free, lactose-free, nut-free),
- nutrition facts per 100 g (calories, fat, saturated fat, carbs, sugars, protein, salt, fiber),
- Nutri-Score and NOVA group classifications.
Nutri-Score (what the letter actually means)
Nutri-Score is a nutritional rating system developed by Santé publique France and widely used across Europe. It assigns a letter A through E based on a formula that weighs less-desirable elements (calories, saturated fat, sugar, sodium) against more-desirable elements (fiber, protein, fruits/vegetables/legumes). It is a rough comparative scale, not a verdict on any one food — context matters (portion size, frequency, overall diet).
NOVA food-processing classification
The NOVA classification is an academic framework developed at the University of São Paulo that groups foods by the extent of industrial processing:
- NOVA 1— unprocessed or minimally processed (fresh fruit, milk, plain rice).
- NOVA 2— processed culinary ingredients (sugar, oil, salt).
- NOVA 3— processed foods (canned vegetables, cheese, fresh bread).
- NOVA 4— ultra-processed foods (industrial formulations with additives, flavorings, and multiple processing steps).
US research including work at the NIH Metabolic Clinical Research Unit has linked higher ultra-processed (NOVA 4) intake with higher calorie consumption. We surface the NOVA group so you can factor it into your decision, not as a judgment.
Allergen labeling and the US regulatory standard
US food packaging is governed by the FDA Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA). FALCPA mandated clear declaration of 8 major allergens, and the FASTER Act of 2021 (effective January 2023) added sesame as the 9th. Our allergen badges reflect the presence or absence of these 9 allergens as declared in Open Food Facts from packaging.
Important safety note.An absence of a major allergen in our badges means the product's Open Food Facts entry does not declare that allergen. It does notguarantee the product is safe for someone with a diagnosed allergy. “May contain” cross-contamination warnings, production line changes, and formulation updates can change the allergen profile of a product without changing its barcode or name. Always read the actual current packaging and consult your allergist for clinical decisions.
Cross-reference and verification
Each product page links out to authoritative references so you can verify anything that matters for a health decision:
- Open Food Facts — the primary community database (every product links to its OFF page).
- USDA FoodData Central — the US government's authoritative nutrition database for generic foods and branded products.
- FDA Food Allergies page — the official US consumer-facing guidance on the 9 major allergens.
- The actual product packaging — the only fully authoritative source for a specific batch.
Update frequency
Open Food Facts is updated continuously by contributors worldwide. We refresh our cached snapshot regularly and immediately when we receive a correction that identifies a material labeling change for a specific product.
Limitations you should know about
- Crowdsourced data. Open Food Facts entries are added by volunteers. Most entries are accurate, but transcription errors happen. Always verify critical allergen information against the physical packaging.
- Snapshot in time. We refresh periodically, so a product may have changed its ingredients since we last synced. The packaging is the source of truth.
- No “may contain” modeling. Our allergen badges reflect declared allergens in the ingredient list. Cross-contamination risk from shared facilities is not in the structured data.
- Coverage varies by region.Open Food Facts has deeper coverage for European products than for some US regional brands. If a product isn't in our database, it likely isn't in Open Food Facts yet.
- Not medical advice. Nothing on IngredIPeek should be used as a substitute for advice from a licensed allergist, dietitian, or physician. For clinical decisions, consult a qualified professional.
Corrections and feedback
If you find a product with incorrect allergen, ingredient, or nutrition information, please contribute the fix directly to Open Food Facts — that's the fastest path to correcting it at the source, which then flows through to us on the next refresh. You can also contact us directly and we will escalate.
This methodology page was last reviewed in March 2026. Material changes to how we source or compute the data will be reflected here before they reach production pages.