News item | 25-04-2023 | 5:00 PM
Nutri-Score is legally designated as the food choice logo that Dutch manufacturers and supermarkets are allowed to use for their foodstuffs. Anyone who does their shopping can use this extra tool to make a healthier choice per product category. After careful consideration and review by the Health Council, State Secretary Maarten van Ooijen (VWS) hereby implements the agreement from the National Prevention Agreement to introduce a food choice logo.
Wholemeal bread usually an A
Nutri-Score is originally a French system that is already used in several European countries (France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg). In recent years, the Nutri-Score calculation method has been scientifically scrutinized at the request of the Netherlands. This has led to an international revision of the calculation method of the logo, making it better suited to the Dutch situation. The new method, for example, greatly improves the distinction between wholemeal bread and white bread because wholemeal bread usually gets an A and white bread mainly gets a C. Frozen pizzas usually do not score higher than a C with the revised algorithm.
Further improvement remains necessary
Nutri-Score has been improved, but further development and improvement will remain necessary in the future, because the logo is not perfect, as the Health Council also states. State Secretary Van Ooijen supports the recommendations made by the Health Council for further improvement and will include them in the discussions in the international Nutri-Score steering group. New scientific insights about nutrition will be followed to further improve the calculation method.
Wheel of Five remains the healthiest advice
Van Ooijen: “We should really see Nutri-Score as something extra that we can all use in the supermarket. Eating as much as possible within the Wheel of Five remains the healthiest advice for everyone. In addition, the Nutri-Score offers an extra handle to make the better choice, for example for products that are not in the Wheel of Five. In a very simple way with colors and letters that we all recognize by now. In short: frozen pizza every day is not healthy. But if you do eat it once, Nutri-Score can help you find the pizza with the better composition.”
The Netherlands will immediately introduce the improved algorithm
Nutri-Score is a voluntary logo. Manufacturers and supermarkets in the Netherlands may officially use Nutri-Score with the revised algorithm from January 1, 2024. The assessment of trade associations CBL and FNLI is that supermarkets and food manufacturers who want to get started with Nutri-Score will need until mid-2024 to put the logo on their products. Dutch products that already have a Nutri-Score as part of a test run must be adjusted to the new calculation method from 1 July 2024.
Legislation and communication
The regulations required to use Nutri-Score will be published shortly. For consumers, we are working with supermarkets and food manufacturers, among others, on communication about how Nutri-Score can help with healthier shopping, in stores and online.