Understanding Default Ingredient Lists

When you view a recipe’s spec sheet in Recipe Cost Calculator, you’ll see an ingredient list displayed in descending order by weight—the standard format you’d find on any packaged food product. This default view works well for many users, but food labeling requirements vary significantly by country and use case.

Setting Up Sub-Ingredient Display Names

Some ingredients contain multiple sub-ingredients that need to appear in your final ingredient list. For example, margarine might contain vegetable oils, water, salt, and emulsifiers. To ensure these sub-ingredients display correctly:

  1. Navigate to the ingredient you want to edit
  2. Scroll to the bottom of the ingredient editing screen
  3. Expand the “Allergens and Ingredient List” section
  4. Enter the complete sub-ingredient breakdown in the display name field

This ensures your ingredient lists accurately reflect the full composition of complex ingredients.

Customizing Your Ingredient List Format

Recipe Cost Calculator offers extensive formatting options under Company Settings. Navigate to the dropdown menu and scroll to “Ingredient List Formatting” to access these powerful customization tools.

Allergen Highlighting

Many countries require allergens to be clearly identified in ingredient lists. You can:

  • Append common allergens to your ingredient listings
  • Display allergens in bold text for enhanced visibility

Sub-Recipe Handling

For recipes containing multiple components—like a pie with separate crust and filling recipes, or cookies with icing—you have two options:

  • Combine all ingredients into a single unified list
  • List sub-recipes separately with their ingredients grouped together

Added Sugars Grouping

Group added sugars together in your ingredient list to meet labeling requirements that specify sugar content disclosure.

Separator Options

Choose between different separators for your ingredient lists:

  • Commas (traditional format)
  • Bullets (enhanced readability)

Capitalization Control

Match your country’s specific labeling requirements with these capitalization options:

  • All lowercase
  • All uppercase
  • First letter capitalized only
  • As entered (no changes)

Applying Your Changes

After adjusting your settings, save your preferences and return to any recipe’s spec sheet. The ingredient list will automatically reflect your new formatting choices. This flexibility ensures you can produce compliant labels for any market without manually reformatting each recipe.