French consumer association Que Choisir is launching the ‘Affiche ton NutriScore’ (Show your NutriScore) campaign to urge the European Commission to adopt the NutriScore as a simplified nutrition labeling system.
Indeed, Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner Stella Kyriakides has announced by the end of 2022 a decision on the criteria to be applied in the EU for so-called Front-of-Pack Nutrition Labeling (FOPNL).
Helping consumers understand the nutritional profiles of foods is, after all, essential to mitigating the epidemic of obesity and related diseases, as the World Health Organization, WHO, points out. (1,2)
NutriScore, the most popular system
The NutriScore was adopted in France, in 2017, by the National Agency for Public Health (Santé publique France). Six other countries-Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany and Switzerland-have followed suit, recognizing its effectiveness and consumer appreciation.
The system summarizes the nutritional profile of the food by a logo in five colors (green to vermilion) associated with letters ranging from A (best nutritional quality) to E (lowest nutritional quality).
Those who row against
Opponents of the NutriScore in France belong to the same industry lobby that in Italy has been able to bring agricultural confederations to their side and influence the press. (3)
Coca-Cola, Ferrero, Lactalis, and Mondelez,” Que Choisir denounces, “are in fact the best known representatives of the 40 percent of brands in France that still persist in masking the nutritional profiles of foods.
NutriScore, the mobilization of Que Choisir
Que Choisir is also mobilizing in supermarkets to help consumers understand the value of label transparency and urge the European Commission to make the right choice. With an invitation extended to all:
- Sign and promote signature collection in support of the NutriScore,
- post ‘silent’ labels, i.e., without NutriScore, on twitter and Facebook with the hastag #AfficheTonNutriScore,
- See the page devoted to the NutriScore at quechoisir.org,
- Engage the European Commission on social media so that the NutriScore is chosen as the mandatory FOPNL system in the EU.
Notes
(1) Dario Dongo. Codex Alimentarius, the NutriScore and the WHO guidelines. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade) 29.9.21
(2) Sabrina Bergamini, Dario Dongo. Obesity, childhood obesity, and marketing. WHO Europe 2022 Report. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade).16.6.22
(3) Dario Dongo. NutriScore, Ferrero and Coldiretti against all. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 16.7.21
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
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