SFDA calorie labelling rules for restaurant menus in Saudi Arabia (2025 update)

If you run a restaurant or café in Saudi Arabia, your menu has to do more than list dishes and prices. The Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) asks every menu to show nutrition information, and in 2025 it added caffeine, salt and activity labels.

This guide sums up what the rules say, where they apply and how to keep up without reprinting your menu. It is a summary, not legal advice. Always check the latest official wording with the SFDA.

How the calorie rule started

The idea goes back to the SFDA's Healthy Food Regulation Strategy. When the SFDA announced it in September 2018, one of its aims was to "include the calories levels in restaurants and cafes' menus".

According to a 2023 study in Frontiers in Nutrition, the calorie policy was enforced in 2019 and updated in 2023 to cover food delivery apps. The study describes the core requirements:

• Calories for all items on the menu, whatever the size of the restaurant.
• Information in an easy-to-read format.
• A statement that adults need an average of 2,000 calories a day, and that individual needs vary.
• Delivery apps must show nutrition facts, including calories.

What changed on 1 July 2025

In February 2025 the SFDA issued three new regulations for restaurants and cafés. They took effect on 1 July 2025.

• Caffeine: Caffeine in each drink, in mg per 100 ml or per cup, plus a note that adults should have no more than 400 mg a day. (Where it applies: paper and electronic menus.)
• High salt: A "Salt" icon next to items with more than 5 g of salt (2,000 mg sodium). (Where it applies: paper and electronic menus and online ordering platforms.)
• Activity: The time needed to burn each item's calories, with an activity icon and minutes or hours. (Where it applies: restaurant and café menus.)

The SFDA says the full technical regulations are available from its "Mwasfah" online store. Gulf News reported that the rules cover all food establishments, restaurants, cafés and delivery platforms, on both physical and digital menus.

A simple checklist for your menu

1. List every item, including drinks, sides and desserts. The rule covers the whole menu, not only main dishes.
2. Get the calorie number for each item. Use your recipes and portion sizes. The SFDA also offers an online calorie calculator for the private sector.
3. Mark high-salt items. Check which dishes go over 5 g of salt per serving and add the salt icon.
4. Add caffeine to every coffee and tea, in mg per cup or per 100 ml, and the 400 mg daily note.
5. Add the activity time for each item, as the regulation describes.
6. Add the 2,000-calorie statement where guests can see it.
7. Check every place your menu appears: table menus, the menu board, your QR menu and each delivery app. They should all show the same numbers.
8. Update when the recipe changes. A new portion size means new numbers.

Why digital menus make this easier

The hardest part is not the first menu. It is keeping every copy right when you change a recipe, add a seasonal drink or raise a price.

With a printed menu, every change means a reprint. With a digital QR menu, you edit the item once and every guest sees the new numbers straight away. The QR code on the table stays the same.

Research shows why one source of truth matters. The Frontiers in Nutrition study found that only 24.2% of the restaurants it checked on delivery apps were fully compliant. It also found that many restaurants with full calorie information on their website did not show it fully in the app.

How Restu Menu helps

In Restu Menu, each menu item has a calories field and allergen tags, along with spicy and vegetarian tags. They show next to the item on the guest menu, in Arabic and English.

• Import your menu from a photo or PDF. The AI prepares the items in Arabic and English, then you add or check the calories.
• Allergens at a glance. Mark common allergens on each item so guests don't have to ask.
• Caffeine, salt and activity notes. Our menu doesn't have dedicated fields for these yet. Until it does, you can add them to the item description, for example "Caffeine: 95 mg per cup".
• One edit, every table. Change a number in your dashboard and it's live on every phone.

Read our complete guide to digital menus in Saudi Arabia for the full setup, or try a code first with the free QR menu generator.

Common questions

Do the rules apply to small cafés? The study describes the calorie rule as applying to restaurants whatever their size, and the 2025 rules name restaurants and cafés. If you are unsure, ask the SFDA.

Does a QR menu count as a menu? Yes. The 2025 caffeine and salt rules name electronic menus, and the salt rule also names online ordering platforms.

Where do I find the official text? Start with the SFDA announcement. It points to the full regulations on the "Mwasfah" store.

Start today

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