Following France and Belgium, Germany is the next country to introduce the Nutri-Score nutrition label, after an independent consumer survey commissioned by the German government found this to be the best label.
Scientific basis
The German Minister for Food and Agriculture, Julia Klöckner, has announced that she intends to introduce Nutri-Score as an official food label. “In doing so, I am making a valid decision in a debate that has been going on for more than ten years in a very emotional and sometimes polarising manner”, LebensmittelPraxis quotes the Minister. “That is why it is all the more important that the scientific analysis and consumer research that we have carried out should now provide us with a reliable database.”
A survey showed that 57% of respondents preferred Nutri-Score to other food labels, as it was was best understood by consumers. In addition, the label scored very well in two particularly relevant consumer groups: people who rarely or never think about the composition of food, and obese people.
Nutri-Score uses a colour (on a scale from green to red) and a corresponding letter (on a scale from A to E) to indicate how healthy a product actually is. The label takes into account both ingredients that are beneficial to health (like fibres or proteins) and nutrients that are best limited in this respect (like saturated fatty acids, sugars and salt).
