Final answer:
The calorie used on food labels is equal to the energy content of the food. The caloric content on food labels is determined using the Atwater system, which calculates the energy content of a food by multiplying the quantities of carbohydrate, protein, and fat by the average Calories per gram for each and summing the products.
Step-by-step explanation:
The calorie used on food labels is equal to the energy content of the food. The caloric content on food labels is determined using the Atwater system, which calculates the energy content of a food by multiplying the quantities of carbohydrate, protein, and fat by the average Calories per gram for each and summing the products. The calorie unit used for foods is actually the kilocalorie (kcal), which is equal to 1000 calories.