Containers

The label

Updated October 2026

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What a beverage label carries And for untreated juice, the warning Which crowds a small bottle So reserve the space first Condensation is the physical problem Shrink sleeves solve it and add a rule Date coding Proof it cold and wet Juice content percentage is its own declaration References

On an untreated juice the warning is a reserved block, not a line of small print.

What a beverage label carries

A statement of identity, a net quantity, an ingredient list, a name and place of business, and a Nutrition Facts panel. Then anything the specific product requires.

And for untreated juice, the warning

Verbatim, naming children, the elderly and persons with weakened immune systems. It is long, it is mandatory and it has to be readable.

Which crowds a small bottle

The median container here is 118 mL. A facts panel plus an ingredient list plus a warning on a bottle that size is most of the available surface.

So reserve the space first

Lay out the mandatory blocks at legible sizes on the actual panel, then design the brand into what is left. Every other order shrinks the warning.

Condensation is the physical problem

A refrigerated beverage sweats. The label stock and adhesive have to survive that for the whole shelf life, in a cold wet environment, which is a specific brief rather than a general one.

Shrink sleeves solve it and add a rule

A full-body sleeve handles condensation well and it is also an outside wrapper. Whatever it obscures has to be legible through it or repeated on it.

Date coding

A use-by or best-before on a product whose shelf life is part of its safety case is not optional in practice, and it has to be applied per unit at fill rather than printed in the artwork.

Proof it cold and wet

Print it, apply it, fill it, chill it, and look at it after a day in a fridge. That is where the label fails, and it is not where it is usually checked.

Juice content percentage is its own declaration

A beverage containing juice carries a percentage declaration, which is a separate requirement from the ingredient list and one that catches products marketed as juice drinks.

References

21 CFR 101.17(g), the warning statement for untreated juice, required verbatim: "WARNING: This product has not been pasteurized and, therefore, may contain harmful bacteria that can cause serious illness in children, the elderly, and persons with weakened immune systems." Exempt where the product achieves the 5-log reduction or meets equivalent HACCP process controls, and for juice sent for further manufacturing at another facility with documentation disclosing the lack of processing. law.cornell.edu

The Davis Pack Supply catalog, measured 18 October 2026. The beverages shelf is 558 rows: 305 containers and 253 closures, 246 PET and 59 glass, from 30 to 976 mL with a median of 118. No HDPE and no PP. The closures include 159 continuous thread, 27 spouted, 19 flip top and 18 lug and twist, and no crown finish anywhere on the shelf.

Written from 21 CFR 120.24 and 101.17(g), and from the catalog as it stood on 18 October 2026. Whether a given product is a juice, an acidified food, a dietary supplement or an alcoholic beverage decides which regime applies, and that determination is specific to a formula and a label.