Cover Nutriscore and Nutrinform: the derby of brands still to be played

Nutriscore and Nutrinform:

the derby of brands still to be played

Europe will have to complete the impact analysis on the systems adopted by countries, but any decision could significantly affect local products and the private labels that have made them strong.

After October 31, 2017, when the French Ministry of Health recognized the Nutriscore logo by a decree, in the same month in 2020 the Italian Ministry of Agriculture voluntarily introduced the Nutrinform Battery. In four and a half years, frontof-pack nutrition labeling or ‘Fop Labels’ in the European Union has turned into what seems just another tug-of-war between Paris and Rome. However, looking deeper, an intertwining of science, political will and economics in the supply chain emerges.

u Teamwork Both Nutriscore and Nutrinform are the result of preparatory studies by teams of experts. The French label has a clearly identifiable ‘father’ in Serge Hercberg, epidemiologist and nutritionist at the Sorbonne and member of the French High Council for Public Health since 2007, who worked with his team on ‘NutriNet Santé’. The Italian label, on the other hand, is the result of the work of Iss and Crea, with the support of trade associations and of 4 ministries (Agricultural Policies, Health, Foreign Affairs and Economic Development).

PARIS OR ROME (OR STOCKHOLM): THE DEBATE IN EUROPEAN POLITICS

According to Brussels’ version, making food packaging more intelligible and using it in all member countries aims to combat obesity, overweight, as well as, to prevent cancer, in the wake of the UN SDGs (2015) and FAO’s indications (2019 and 2021). A path undertaken with the Regulation 2011/1169 and continued with the ‘Farm to fork’ strategy. "This debate on labels has something in common with the debate that raged back in the early 2000s, when the amount of cocoa and chocolate had to be established erga omnes - recalls Paolo De Castro, member of the Committees on Agriculture (Comm. ‘Agri’, ed.), Budget, Foreign Trade at the European Parliament -. Let's face it: for now there is no European law initiative on this subject, we’re at an earlier stage. There are only national or macro-regional proposals, such as Nutriscore and Nutrinform, or even the lesser-known Scandinavian Keyhole, which are in the running for becoming universal. Europe will have to complete the impact analysis on the systems adopted by countries. However, it is not out of the question that, in the end, it may acknowledge that there is no need for a new single and compulsory system, which would actually lead to greater confusion." Despite the European Commission’s talk of ‘simplification’, in fact, no Fop label model aims to replace the nutritional table, but rather to complement it. "The European Union is vast and includes different climates, specialties and food cultures. Stigmatizing the impact of specific substances on the consumer, such as fats and sugars, would be counterproductive, if not arduous. - affirms De Castro- There’s no criticism of Made in Italy itself, as some want us to believe. It’s more a matter of divergence between schools of thought: there are those- such as the experts of the Eat-Lancet Commission- who believe that the consumer is not able to choose and their purchases should be guided, for both environmental and health reasons. We are light-years away from this idea.” The ministerial decree on Nutrinform, however, contains an opting out clause for packages smaller than 25 cm2 and for PDO, PGI and TSG products. This has led to considerable criticism. "An exclusion at the European level of protected foods alone, isn't a good idea, and would prejudice the market. In my opinion, honey, cheese, cured meats, oil and fresh-squeezed juices, all deserve to be exempt from the traffic light label, which, if anything, could be applied only to foods that undergo more than 3 processing steps. This would be the case of, for example, snacks, chocolate bars, and it would trigger a ‘healthy’ competition among hyper-processed products.

As it is now, the label may be misinterpreted, and it is no coincidence that in Italy 17 in 20 consumer associations are against it. In addition, if it were extended to the EU, large food companies would carry out color-driven ‘reputational operations’, by using promotional levers - as it’s happening in Belgium, France, Holland and Germany. This would further complicate things for brands, whose added value lies in the supply chain and in their direct contact with local producers." One possibility for large companies to improve the ‘rating’ of the traffic light label could be to change some ingredients, their dosage or change some steps, which is something forbidden to foods that have recipe and processing established by specific Disciplinary Regulations. This is the case of Parmigiano Reggiano, Prosciutto San Daniele or Pasta di Gragnano, but also of the French Roquefort or the Spanish Jamón Serrano. According to Oxfam, already in 2013 the 500 most famous food brands in the world were concentrated in 55 groups headed by only 10 major brands. Of these, 6 are on the Eu Transparency register. The question arises whether a single label represents a lower cost and concern compared to 27 all different.

u A road paved with best intentions Speaking of food education, it should be remembered that there is already the so-called ‘School Fruit and Milk Program’: presented on August 1, 2017, it brought together two previous projects, ‘Fruit and Vegetables for Schools’ and ‘Milk for Schools’. Under EU Regulation 2017/39, all states are required to implement the program by investing a 10-15% share of their annual budget, that is 220 million euros (270 before Brexit). Italy is due as much as 26 million, 11.8% of the total.

u Traffic light system vs battery system, the differences Nutriscore and Nutrinform are conceptually profoundly different. Nutriscore gives an overall and decontextualized judgment to each food and does so by assigning it a color from green to red and a corresponding letter from A to E, based on calculations made on a fixed amount of 100 grams. Nutrinform simply displays the calories and nutrients contained in the product on the basis of the RDA (recommended daily allowance) and in relation to the daily food intake.

PRODUCERS, PROTECTION CONSORTIA AND BRANDS FOR AND AGAINST

In Italy, trade associations, such as Assica (which has published a detailed report about the debate on labels), producers and protection consortia, from North to South are on the warpath. "Cold cuts belong to the Mediterranean Diet and for good reason. With their B12 vitamins," Doriana Sena, Quality and HR Director of Parmacotto Group, recalled at Marca 2022. "Of course, they must be consumed in the right quantities and any judgment disregarding this aspect, such as in the case of Nutriscore, would demonize the entire category.” From Andria, appealing to the EU Regulation 1151/2012, in November 2021, the Consortium for the protection of burrata Igp, Consorzio di tutela della burrata Igp, labeled the traffic light as "a measure that devalues the image of the product.""The Consortium - clarifies the Director Francesco Mennea - took all the necessary actions to counter such practices, including the refusal to change the Igp label (by proposing the traffic light label) following a buyer's request". Among distributors, ‘hawks’ and ‘doves’ stand out. Coop Italia and Gruppo D.it are resolute "with the French label, Italian products are penalized as they are not contextualized to a realistic RDA. In addition, we have more than 1,900 branded references, each of which has a color code. Introducing other colors would mean reprinting all the graphics - specified Roberto Romboli, PL Director, at Marca 2022. The costs range from 200-500 euros to 4-5,000 euros per reference, depending on whether a label is produced to be superimposed or a can is redesigned by redoing the entire tinplate." Softer is the position of Carrefour, where they say they are in favor of the exclusion of cheese, cold cuts and oil from Fop labels. "It could be a solution, given the need common to France, Italy and Spain. - explained at Marca 2022 Gilles Ballot, Marketing, Merchandise and E-commerce Director of the Billancourt-based brand - Packs between France and Italy differ, especially when it comes to products from America, and this is a further source of complication. Of course, the customer wants clarity and so do we, whether it's called Nutriscore or not. In the meantime, we can guarantee that we will always respect the Law." In late 2021, however, Carrefour's Italian division, along with other brands and food companies, was subject to one of the five investigations on the use of Nutriscore in Italy carried out by AGCM,The Italian Competition Authority.

STUDIES AND SCIENTIFIC OPINIONS

"Nutriform and Nutriscore have been exalted as 'the remedy' but their purpose is to clarify some aspects of proper nutrition." - explains Vitaliano Fiorillo, Director of AgriLab at Sda Bocconi in Milan. Most scholars agree that Nutriscore’s interpretation is too superficial. On the other hand, the graphics of the Nutriform Battery, validated by the scientific community, are not very intuitive for the average consumer, whose knowledge on the topic isn’t enough to fully understand it. Hopefully, there will be a solution with no colors and letters together with a serious dietary education from childhood." After all, if we look at numbers and projections, the situation isn’t the best. "In 2021 in the EU 60% of the population will be obese or overweight. - claims Michele Carruba, Professor at the University of Milan and founder of the Csro - Compared to the rest of Europe, on average, Italy outranks the other countries when it comes to adults. However, the same can’t be said for the sum of obesity and overweight in childhood, which is 43% in the 6-9 years. Notwithstanding these data, nutrition is undoubtedly a complex matter, there are not only products with the ‘traffic light’, and collateral factors, such as physical activity, are of great importance." The professor is the first signatory of an article, published on October 19, 2021 on the scientific website ‘Springer’. Contrasting Nutriscore and Nutrinform, he affirms "The British Mtl (Multiple TrafficLight Label) was already unconvincing for two reasons: it divided foods into ‘good’ and ‘bad’, which is unreal, and it had no significant impact on obesity, despite being taken into consideration by far more people. The French Nutriscore’s harsh judgment, then, may not help some categories of consumers, such as young people in their developmental age, athletes or cardiovascular patients. In fact, for these people seeing yellow, red or green on a package makes little difference. Another issue concerning this label is its algorithm. Speaking of ‘efficiency’, its creators have tried to convince the entire European scientific community ."As reported in the same article on ‘Springer’, the score the color and the letter displayed on each label are obtained from is always unbalanced, since ‘harmful elements’ such as salt, saturated fat and sugar are worth 40 points, while ‘healthy elements’ such as fiber, vitamins and proteins are worth 15.

A MATTER OF MORAL SUASION

"A person takes on average 2-3 seconds to decide what to put in the shopping cart. This explains why European institutions aim to provide equally immediate indications - says Paolo Palomba, partner of IPLC Italy - Italy's proposal came out late, losing its three years of advantage, which could have been useful to conduct a moral suasion on the rest of Europe, while the French were applying their system. In addition, Italian companies oppose any indicators penalizing them in the eyes of the public. Therefore, transparency and courage on the part of companies, as well as a simpler logo should come into play. We Italians are still very convoluted in our communication, especially compared to Central Europe, where messages are perhaps too simplistic." In fact, 27% of Eu citizens live in that area, something that makes it pretty relevant in the community when it comes to decision-making. There, obesity and overweight are closely linked to the abuse of canned products, a problem much more evident then in taly, Greece, Cyprus, Portugal and Croatia. Considered as the ‘cradles’ of the Mediterranean Diet, these five Eu countries are also strong on fresh and semi-processed product consumption, the result of historical production, something imbued with artisan reminiscence.l

Maria Teresa Giannini, Professional Journalist specialized in Large-scale Distribution.