Abstract: With the deepening implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), facilitating food trade and harmonizing food safety standards within the region have become critical issues. Pre-packaged food labeling, as a key component of technical trade measures, exhibits significant differences in requirements among RCEP member countries, particularly regarding labeling language, mandatory nutritional information items, Front-of-Package (FOP) labeling, and allergen lists. These differences constitute technical barriers to trade affecting the flow of food products. This paper compares food labeling regulations in RCEP member countries and analyzes their differences in the above four aspects, revealing dominant trends: continuous strengthening of health and nutrition orientation, more prominent refined and differentiated consumer protection, and the emergence of digitalization and intellectualization as new development directions. In light of China’s specific labeling management practices, the paper proposes that China should systematically enhance its food labeling governance through innovative pathways, including optimizing the presentation of nutritional information, strengthening science-based allergen regulation, accelerating the digitalization and intellectualization of labels, and building intelligent compliance service systems. This approach aims to enhance the country’s capacity for food labeling management and facilitate a strategic shift from “passive compliance” to “active leadership”.

Key words: Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership; food labeling; regulations; technical barriers to trade; management system reform