Does the update of the Nutri-Score improve its complementarity with French dietary guidelines?

Abstract

Abstract To help consumers to make healthier food choices, seven European countries have implemented the front-of-pack nutrition label Nutri-Score Six years after its implementation in France, the algorithm was updated in 2023 by the Nutri-Score European scientific committee, based on the current scientific knowledge. The present work aimed to study the complementarity of the newly-developed algorithm and the 2019 French food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG) and compare the respective performances of the new and initial algorithms. Three French food composition databases were used to have access to the food composition of the entire food supply in France: the OQALI, Open Food Facts, and Ciqual databases. Based on the FBDG, a list of 40 criteria was identified for 26 food groups and used to assess the complementarity between FBDG and the Nutri-Score. Out of the 40 criteria, 45% (18/40) were position criteria (i.e. criteria which require to have products rated favourably (A or B) (resp. unfavourably (D or E))), 35% (14/40) were discrimination between groups criteria (i.e. criteria which require a group to be discriminated over another group), and 20% (8/40) were nutrient discrimination criteria (i.e. criteria which require products in a group to be discriminated on a nutrient of interest). For the position and group discrimination criteria (32 in total), the initial algorithm met 63% (20/32) of them while the revised algorithm met 84% (27/32) of them. For the nutrient discrimination criteria, the revised algorithm was more discriminatory than the initial one against critical nutrients for 63% (5/8) of the criteria, while the initial algorithm was for no criteria more discriminatory. Compared to the previous version, the revised algorithm of the Nutri-Score appeared to better rank foods in regard to the French dietary guidelines and improved the currently existing system. The present work constitutes the first step in the process of validation of the newly-developed algorithm. Key messages • The revised Nutri-Score algorithm improved the alignment between Nutri-Score and the French dietary guidelines compared to the previous version of the Nutri-Score. • The present work constitutes the first step in the process of validation of the newly-developed algorithm.