To understand everything about the Nutri-score
A, B, C, D, E: coloured letters now adorn the packaging of supermarket products. What do they mean? Follow our guide to find out everything about the Nutri-score, a nutritional tag which allows you to find out in a single look whether the products you buy have a positive nutritional value.
How does it work?
Created by a committee of independent experts and set up by the French Public Health department, the Nutri-score aims to favour a more balanced diet. Not yet mandatory, this logo can be added on any industrial food item tag including processed fruits and vegetables (cans, 4th range…). Easier to grasp than an ingredient list and clearer than nutritional tables already on food packaging, it is the calculation of a nutritional value score based on a 5-colour scale (from dark green to dark orange) associated with letters from A (the best nutritional value) to E (the worst). This score takes into account nutrients we should all aim to avoid (salt, sugar, saturated fat) as their consumption in excess can be harmful. This score also takes into account nutrients or foods to favour: fibbers, proteins, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, rapeseed, walnut and olive oil present in processed food recipes.
This nutritional value logo is not mandatory and does not involve some products: teas, coffees, alcoholic beverages are excluded as well as fresh and raw fruits, vegetables and fish as they are not processed.
What is it for?
To allow us all access to better food and better health, we need to be able to compare products in a simple and intuitive way. Thus, we can make better choices thanks to more readable packaging for products in the same category present in the supermarket. This method was adopted by some European countries namely Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland. Increasingly more companies decide to add this score on their products. As such, the consumer can make wiser choices. It is not about having a diet exclusively made up of products with a dark green Nutri-score: it is about being conscious that some foods should be eaten in smaller quantities and less often as part of a balanced diet. The Nutri-score reflects the nutritional value of foods without taking into account portions or how often they are eaten. For your health, remember everything is about balance!