Nutrikonverter Guide
Added Sugar vs. Total Sugar on a Thai Label
6 min read
Checked against Notification No. 445's panel-format clause: September 2026
A Thai Nutrition Facts label lists one sugar number, "Total sugars." It doesn't say whether that sugar occurs naturally in the food or was added during processing. The difference still matters, even though the label doesn't show it.
This is a plain-language explainer. The official panel format is in Ministry of Public Health Notification No. 445 (Section 3 / No. 2.3, and Annex 4 for claim conditions), and this article draws on that text directly.
"Total sugars" is the only sugar number Thai regulation requires
Total sugars (น้ำตาลทั้งหมด) is one of the eight mandatory nutrients in every standard-format Thai Nutrition Facts panel, listed under Total Carbohydrate. This is a fixed requirement of Notification 445's panel-format rules (Section 3, No. 2.3). The format has no separate line for sugar added during processing versus sugar the food naturally contains. "Total sugars" combines everything into one number.
The GDA graphic, the four-cylinder format that Notification 394/466 requires on snacks, bakery items, and other mandatory categories, works the same way. Its "Sugar" cylinder is also a total, measured against a 65 g/day guideline reference, with no breakdown by source.
"Added sugar" appears in Thai food law only as a claim, never as a disclosure line. A product can say "no sugar added" (ไม่เติมน้ำตาล) or "no added sugar" only if it meets the conditions in Notification 445's claim rules: no ingredients added with sugar or sugar substitutes during production. Manufacturers choose whether to make that pass/fail claim about their process, and no label has to show a number for it.
Why it's still worth knowing which kind you're eating
A 200 ml glass of plain milk and a 200 ml glass of regular soda can show a similar "Total sugars" number on their labels. In the milk it is all lactose the food naturally contains. In the soda it is all sugar added during production. The Total sugars line can't tell them apart. The ingredient list, or just knowing the food category, fills that gap on a Thai label.
Common foods: naturally occurring vs. added sugar
What sits behind the "Total sugars" number for foods common on Thai shelves.
| Food or drink | Naturally occurring | Added | What "Total sugars" reflects |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular soft drinks (carbonated) | — | Yes | Added sugar only |
| Sweetened fruit juice / juice drinks | Yes (fructose) | Yes | Fructose + added sugar |
| 100% fruit juice, no added sugar | Yes (fructose) | — | Fructose only |
| Plain milk | Yes (lactose) | — | Lactose only |
| Flavored milk (e.g. chocolate milk) | Yes (lactose) | Yes | Lactose + added sugar |
| Plain yogurt | Yes (lactose) | — | Lactose only |
| Sweetened / flavored yogurt | Yes (lactose, fructose if fruit) | Yes | Lactose/fructose + added sugar |
| Cookies, cakes, snacks without dairy or fruit | — | Yes | Added sugar only |
| Cured or seasoned meat snacks | — | Yes | Added sugar only |
| Canned fruit in syrup | Yes (fructose) | Yes | Fructose + added sugar |
| Unsweetened canned or frozen fruit | Yes (fructose) | — | Fructose only |
"Added" sugar can appear under many ingredient names. Sucrose, glucose, fructose syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, and fruit juice concentrate used as a sweetener all count as added sugar, even though some sound "natural."
How to tell without a separate label line
Check the ingredient list, not just the nutrition panel
If any form of sugar appears in the ingredients (sucrose, glucose, honey, syrup, concentrated fruit juice used to sweeten), some of the Total sugars figure is added rather than natural.
Know which food categories have no natural sugar
Savory snacks, cured meats, and plain crackers or biscuits with no dairy or fruit have essentially no naturally occurring sugar. Any Total sugars figure above near zero on these is added.
Read "no sugar added" as a claim, not a guarantee of zero sugar
A "no sugar added" product can still show a nonzero Total sugars number. It means only that none of that sugar was added during processing. A naturally sweet food like fruit juice can carry the claim and still contain a lot of natural sugar.
Building a label and need the numbers right?
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