How does the Nutri-Score system work

  1. It simplifies product assessment too much: it informs on general product nutritional value on the basis of only four (4) selected product parameters (energy value, saturated fatty acids, sugar and salt) and selected nine (9) product ingredients (dietary fiber, protein, fruit, vegetables, legumes, oils (made of rapeseed, walnuts and olives).
  2. It does not support diversified/balanced diet: it does not consider correct proportions of all nutritional ingredients; moreover, it ignores content of vitamins, mineral salts and various necessary anti-oxidizers; it also does not encourage to eat diversified food.
  3. It does not support change of eating habits: lack of the holistic approach to product and diet quality assessment. Choosing only products labeled “positively” with A or B and avoiding products labeled “negatively” with D or E, which are actually necessary, however should be eaten in limited amounts, may have negative impact on diet diversification which is the basic element of the correct way of nutrition.
  4. It misleads consumers: labeling products with the red color does not mean they have lower nutritional value; similarly, green color does not mean higher nutritional value, however, using this label in front of a label produces risk of discouraging consumers from thorough analysis of objective information usually contained at the rear part of packaging.
  5. It constitutes a threat to agricultural and food production: Nutri-Score is supposed to change eating habits in consumers to make them quit traditional, regional products characterized by short delivery chains, which Europe is proud of, for products which have better grade in the Nutri-Score system.
  6. It does not support products with short delivery chains, which are produced by local farmers and small and medium processors, while it promotes production targeted on global recipients, ignoring local nutritional and cultural heritage which is also a part of diversified and balanced diet.
  7. Depreciates ecological products: ecological conditions of production and processing are not considered within the system criteria which are currently one of the factors improving standards of life, nutrition and health of consumers.
  8. Depreciates traditional and regional products which are made with great care of preserving natural ingredients and methods of processing, often with high nutrient density; when labeled with the alarming orange and red colors, they will be treated as food of the worse category.
  9. Depreciates products with simple ingredients strictly defined in regulations, i.e. products which content must not be modified because of formal or technological reasons, such as juices, honey, olive or cheeses, which are given C, D and E grades and are also labeled with the alarming colors from yellow to red.
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