The Nutri-Score calculation method will change at the end of 2023 to better recommend healthy products

A necessary update to take better account of food and health knowledge. The method of calculating the Nutri-Score, the nutritional labeling imposed in France and other European countries, will change from the end of 2023, announced Monday, April 24 the health authorities of several European countries.

For example, this update is less likely to recommend drinks containing sweeteners, such as Diet Coke, noting that recent studies do not show a crucial advantage over conventional sugars. Launched in 2017, the Nutri-Score is the subject of criticism, even among its defenders. Without questioning its merits, some criticize it for the obsolete or unsuitable nature of several of its recommendations.

“This new algorithm will enhance the effectiveness of the Nutri-Score to classify foods and beverages in line with the main dietary recommendations of European countries.“, justified in a joint press release the health or agri-food authorities of several countries, including France and Germany.

Applied in six countries

“The countries have agreed on a coordinated implementation of the new algorithm (…) by the end of 2023”. The companies concerned will then have two years to adapt their labeling.

This device aims to inform the consumer about the health benefits or disadvantages of foods on sale in stores. With its dots ranging from green to red with the letters from A to E, the system is in force in six European countries (Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland). However, it has not been extended to the entire European Union in the face, in particular, of lobbying from countries, such as Italy, anxious to defend the interests of their agri-food sector.