Proper nutrition contributes to well-being and health. However, one in two adults in Europe suffers from overweight or obesity. Labelling food with the Nutri-Score nutrient labelling system could help make informed decisions when choosing healthier foods and could help balance the diet.
Almost 40 stakeholders - including consumer groups, world-renowned food companies, retailers and other organisations - have recently called on the European Commission to introduce mandatory food labelling under the Nutri-Score system in the European Union (EU).
This proposal comes even before the European Commission has to make public the From Field to Fork Strategy, which aims to build a sustainable food system. As this strategy also aims to promote the consumption of healthy food, industry expects specific food labelling to become mandatory across the EU.
What is Nutri-Score?
According to Nutri-Score,foods and beverages are classified according to their nutritional profile. It is a color code system with a scale ranging from A, which means healthier choices, to E, which means less healthy choices. In this way, information about the nutritional value of the product is provided in a more easily understandable way. The Nutri-Score label is located on the front of the product packaging.
This special label makes it easier to compare different products and tailor them to specific nutritional needs. Research results show that Nutri-Score is indeed the best scheme at the moment, helping consumers opt for healthier foods because shoppers are aware of safe, nutritious, high-quality products. Such information could also contribute to sustainable consumption, and the specific label incentivises food developers to improve the composition of products.
Special labelling is supported by world-renowned brands
Product labelling under the Nutri-Score system is supported by well-known food industry representatives and retailers such as Danone, Nestlé, Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG" and others. Together with other organisations, they appealed to the European Commission to use this special label throughout the EU. Although labelling is not yet mandatory, some companies are taking advantage of it and seeing positive advantages.
"We started our reformulation to make our products healthier 20 years ago. Now Nutri-Score offers a clear standard that helps you grow even faster. For example, 16% of our breakfast cereals in France in 2019 earned the mark "A" or "B". We want more than 50% of our breakfast cereals in France to receive "A" or "B" by the end of 2021," says Bart Vandewaeter,Head of Corporate Communications and Government Relations at Nestlé Zone EMENA.
"No system is perfect, but we believe that Nutri-Score is currently the best scheme that allows people to instantly compare the nutritional value of products. We therefore support the call to make this colour-based, front-end nutrient label mandatory across the EU," says Thomas Gauthier-Lafaye,Director of Public Relations for Europe at Danone.
States recognize the benefits of Nutri-Score
Since 2016, all foods and soft drinks sold in the EU must bear nutrition claims on the back of the packaging. However, food labelling in the Nutri-Score system is currently optional in Latvia and other EU countries.
Since 2017, when the scheme was officially approved by France, the effectiveness of Nutri-Score has also been recognised and recommended in its territories by Belgium, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Switzerland. Nestlé Nutri-Score's nutrition labels are used in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and Switzerland from the first half of 2020. In total, more than 5,000 products in five countries are labelled with nutrition labels. Over the next two years, more and more Nestlé products will be labelled under the Nutri-Score system.