Definitions of nutrients
The table includes the list of the nutrients in the Norwegian Food Composition Table, and information about the calculation of the nutrients.
The analytical methods refer to methods used in projects conducted by the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. Nutrient values borrowed from other food composition databases or other sources might be based on other methods.
| Nutrient | Definition/calculation method | EuroFIR component code | INFOODS component code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | The content of energy is given in kilojoules (kJ) and kilocalories (kcal). The energy content is calculated according to the Food Information Regulation, with these conversion factors: 1 g fat = 37 kJ or 9 kcal | ENERCJ/ENERCC | ENERC |
| Fat | Total fat C12:0 (lauric acid) The fat content usually consists of 90-95% of fatty acids, but in some foods the amount can be much lower. The rest of the fat consists of glycerol, some cholesterol, plant sterol and phospholipids. There may be a difference between the amount of total fat and the amount of fatty acids in a food. It is important to note that the published values for fatty acids are a selection of individual fatty acids in the foods, not a complete fatty acid profile. The sum of the individual fatty acids will be equal to or lower than the sum of the saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids or the sum of omega 3 / omega 6 fatty acids. Analytical method: Acid hydrolysis (total fat) and gas chromatography (fatty acids). | FAT FASAT FATRS FAMS FAPU FAN3 FAN6 F12:0 F14:0 F16:0 F18:0 F16:1 F18:1 F18:2CN6 F18:3N3 F20:3N3 F20:3N6 F20:4N3 F20:4N6 F20:5N3 F22:5N3 F22:6N3 | FAT FASAT FATRN FAMS FAPU FAPUN3 FAPUN6 F12D0 F14D0 F16D0 F18D0 F16D1 F18D1 F18D2CN6 F18D3N3 F20D3N3 F20D3N6 F20D4N3 F20D4N6 F20D5N3 F22D5N3 F22D6N3 |
| Cholesterol | Analytical method: Gas chromatography. | CHORL | CHOLE |
| Carbohydrate | Carbohydrates are calculated as the sum of starch and sugars. Please note that other sources can calculate carbohydrate by difference, i.e. carbohydrate = 100 – (water, fat, protein, alcohol, dietary fibre and ash). Carbohydrate values calculated by difference are often somewhat higher than carbohydrate calculated as the sum of starch and sugars. | CHO | CHOAVL |
| Sugars | Sugars (mono- and disaccharides) include naturally occurring glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose and sucrose or other sugars added during processing and cooking. Analytical method: HPLC | SUGAR | SUGAR |
| Starch | Starch is expressed in grams. | STARCH | STARCH |
| Added sugars | The values for added sugars include refined or industrially produced sugars in the form of glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose, sucrose, glycose syrup and other hydrolysed starch products such as glucose syrup and high fructose syrup, which are added during industrial production or when prepared at home. Naturally occurring sugars in fruits, vegetables and milk are not considered added sugars. | SUGAD | SUGAD |
| Natural sugars | The values for natural sugar include added sugar and sugar naturally occurring in honey, syrup, fruit juice and fruit juice concentrate. | SUGAN | SUGAN |
| Dietary fibre | Dietary fiber is not included in carbohydrates. The values for dietary fibre are based on different definitions of dietary fibre, depending on when the value is from. From 2015, the Norwegian analytical values are based on the methods AOAC 2009.01/AOAC 2011.25/AOAC 2017.16. These methods include both higher and lower molecular weight fractions. Older analytical values and most values borrowed from other sources are based on older definitions of dietary fibre such as AOAC 985.29 and AOAC 991.43. These methods contained fewer fiber fractions. For some food groups, the fiber value will therefore be somewhat lower for these than those based on the latest analytical methods. | FIBT | FIBTG |
| Protein | The content of protein is calculated from the analysed content of nitrogen. The calculation factor from nitrogen to protein varies with the food composition of amino acids:
Analytical method: Kjeldahl method. | PROT | PROCNT |
| Alcohol | When labelling alcoholic beverages, the content of alcohol is usually given as a volume percentage. In the Norwegian Food Composition Table, the content of alcohol is converted to a percentage by weight, i.e. grams per 100 g of drink. For beer, wine and other alcoholic beverages with about the same specific gravity as water, i.e. 1, the percentage by weight is calculated as 0.8 times the percentage by volume. Liqueur and sweet vermouth have a higher specific gravity, at 1.1 and 1.05 due to their sugar content. Pure liquor has a specific gravity of 0.95. | ALC | ALC |
| Vitamin A | There are two calculation methods for vitamin A in the Norwegian Food Composition Table. Vitamin A (RE) is calculated as the sum of retinol + 1/6 beta-carotene, with the unit retinol equivalents (RE). It is this unit used by the Norwegian Directorate of Health's reference values for energy and nutrients refer to. Vitamin A (RAE) is calculated as the sum of retinol + 1/12 beta-carotene, with the unit of retinol activity equivalents (RAE). NB: Both calculations of vitamin A include retinol and beta-carotene only, not other carotenoids such as α-carotene and β-cryptoxanthin. Analytical method: HPLC | VITA RETOL CARTB | VITA RETOL CARTB |
| Vitamin E | Vitamin E is given as alpha-tocopherol equivalents (mg-TE). There are several vitamin E compounds (tocopherols and tocotrienols), but only alpha-tocopherol has vitamin E activity. Analytical method: HPLC | VITE | TOCPHA |
| Vitamin D | Vitamin D3 Analytical method: HPLC | VITD | VITD |
| Vitamin B1/ thiamine | The values for thiamine are given as thiamine hydrochloride. Analytical method: HPLC | THIA | THIA |
| Vitamin B2/ riboflavine | Analytical method: HPLC | RIBF | RIBF |
| Vitamin B3/niacin | Nicotin acid + nicotin amid Analytical method: HPLC | NIA | NIA |
| Niacin equivalents | Niacin equivalents are calculated as the sum of the preformed niacin and the niacin activity from the amino acid tryptophan. 60 mg tryptophan provides the same vitamin activity as 1 mg niacin. The content of tryptophan varies with the type of protein the food contains. The following factors are used when calculating niacin equivalents: Protein source / Content of tryptophan
| NIAEQ | NIAEQ |
| Vitamin B6 | Pyridoxine + pyridoxal + pyridoxamine Analytical method: HPLC | VITB6 | VITB6C |
| Folat | Total folate: Folic acid + derivative of folic acid Analytical method: Microbiological method | FOL | FOL |
| Vitamin B12 | Cobalamin
| VITB12 | VITB12 |
| Vitamin C | Vitamin C is calculated as the sum of ascorbic acid and dehydroascorbic acid. Some values borrowed from other food tables may contain ascorbic acid only. Analytical method: HPLC | VITC | VITC |
Sodium Salt | Salt is calculated as (sodium x 2.5)/1000 Analytical method: ICP-MS | NA NACL | NA |
| Calsium | Analytical method: ICP-MS | CA | CA |
| Iron | Includes both haem and non-haem iron. Analytical method: ICP-MS | FE | FE |
| Potassium | Analytical method: ICP-MS | K | K |
| Magnesium | Analytical method: ICP-MS | MG | MG |
| Zink | Analytical method: ICP-MS | ZN | ZN |
| Selenium | Analytical method: ICP-MS | SE | SE |
| Copper | Analytical method: ICP-MS | CU | CU |
| Phosphorus | Analytical method: ICP-MS | P | P |
Iodine | Analytical method: ICP-MS | ID | ID |