Free food label scanner · Naked Compound
Ingredient lists are written in INS numbers and class names. Snap the back of a pack and CleanBites explains every additive, counts the sugars, spots allergens and checks the nutrition table, with a source for each note.
It rates ingredients, not brands. A flag is a reason to read closer, not a verdict on the food.
Last updated · Built and checked by the Naked Compound Research Team · How we work
Flat, straight-on photos in daylight read best. Shiny or curved packs often need a fix or two, so you'll always see the text we read.
The readout
Each flag says what the ingredient is, why it's flagged and who says so. Check the text we read against your pack: a misread number means a wrong answer.
This is a reading aid, not a safety test. CleanBites reads the label; it doesn't test the food. Additives sold in India are approved by FSSAI for use within set limits, and a flag here doesn't mean a product breaks the law or is unsafe. If you have an allergy or a medical condition, go by the printed label and your doctor.
The sample label is invented and isn't any real product.
What the flags mean
We rate each ingredient on what regulators and researchers have published about it. We don't rate products, and we don't add up a score.
How it works
We built CleanBites so that we never see your photo. Here's what happens after you press the button.
It uses Tesseract.js, an open-source text reader, to turn the photo into text on your device. Nothing is uploaded.
It finds INS numbers like (322) or E211 and ingredient names, then looks each one up in our sourced list. Unknown numbers are shown, not guessed.
Photos get misread. The text we read is right there to fix, and the readout updates when you press Check again.
Questions
Spotted a wrong note or a missing additive? Tell us and we'll fix it in public on our changelog.
CleanBites is a free food label scanner from Naked Compound. Photograph or paste the ingredient list from an Indian packaged food and it explains every additive by its INS number, flags added sugars, refined flour, palm oil and allergens, and checks the nutrition table, with a source for each note. It runs in your browser, so the photo is never uploaded.
Yes. There's no account and no limit on how many labels you check.
No. The text is read from your photo inside your browser, using the open-source Tesseract.js reader. The photo is never uploaded. The first time you scan, your browser downloads the reader itself (a few MB) from the jsDelivr CDN; after that it can be cached.
No. Caution means a major regulator such as the EU or US FDA has banned, restricted or required a warning on that additive, or the WHO's cancer agency IARC has classified it. FSSAI decides which additives are allowed in which Indian foods and in what amounts. Labels don't print amounts, so CleanBites can't tell whether a limit is met, and it never judges a product or brand.
A single number hides the reasons behind it, and what matters depends on you: a diabetic, a parent and someone with a nut allergy read the same label differently. So we show each flag with its source and let you weigh them.
The UK Food Standards Agency's front-of-pack traffic-light thresholds per 100 g or 100 ml, and WHO's advice to keep free sugars under 10% of calories, about 50 g a day. FSSAI has proposed its own front-of-pack thresholds for foods high in fat, sugar and salt; we'll switch to them once they're final.
Open “The text we read”, fix the mistake, and press Check again. Shiny, curved or crumpled packs are hard to read, so a flat, straight-on photo in daylight works best. You can also type or paste the ingredient list.
