Background and aim: Nutritional traffic light labeling was implemented in Iran as a tool to help consumers make healthy food choices and as a strategy to control and prevent non-communicable diseases. 

Methods: The status of policy implementation, identification of challenges, and presentation of policy solutions and options were conducted using a literature review, a comparative study, and qualitative interviews with informed stakeholders. The UNICEF Landscape Analysis Tool was used to assess implementation capacities, barriers, and opportunities for improvement. 

Findings: Despite more than a decade of implementation of this policy, studies have shown that the level of public use and awareness of labels is low. Weak implementation governance, poor inter-sectoral coordination, high cost of label changes for manufacturers, data fragmentation and lack of periodic evaluation mechanism, illegibility and ambiguity of information included on the label, insufficient public awareness, and lack of information were identified as challenges in implementing this policy. 

Conclusion: Revising the content of this policy, inter-sectoral coordination for implementation, adequate implementation guarantees, periodic monitoring, increasing public knowledge and awareness, and informing and evaluating the policy were introduced as solutions to improve the implementation of this policy.