Nutriscore was born with controversy. The European system of frontal nutritional labeling of processed and packaged foods to which Spain wants to adhere gave a lower grade to the indisputable olive oil than to a zero soft drink. Nutriscore is a kind of traffic light with letters and colors, which gives a global nutritional assessment of the product based on its composition, in five categories: from A in green for the best quality to E with a red background for the least healthy passing through yellow and orange.
Why does a tool that aims to make better choices for the shopping basket penalize olive oil or cheese? Because of the algorithm it uses, which negatively assesses, among other things, a high energy intake (calories) regardless of the quality of the fat. Also the presence of saturated fats, added sugars and sodium remain. While the fiber, proteins and the percentage of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts and olive oils or other similar in composition add up. But it does not take into account the degree of processing. This leads to other less recommended products such as zero soft drinks or some sugary breakfast cereals having a better score than the indisputable olive oil, sardines in olive oil or Iberian ham.
Now, according to the OCU, a scientific committee has updated the calculation with the aim of better adjusting the assessment of the nutritional traffic light to dietary recommendations. In this way, the algorithm to give the valuation will further penalize the presence of sugar and salt, and will value the presence of fiber and protein even more positively. “The result is that with this allocation of points it is more difficult to obtain the A rating,” they say from OCU.
The main changes
The organization of consumers and users has prepared a brief summary with the main changes:
• Oily fish: products without added salt or oil will obtain a better score.
• Ripened cheeses with lower salt content will be better valued.
• 100% whole grain products (bread, flour, pasta, etc.) are better valued than refined ones.
• Nuts and oilseeds will not be valued as fruits and vegetables, but following the criteria of the group of fats, which improves their Nutriscore evaluation.
• Vegetable oils rich in unsaturated fats are now better valued, in such a way that olive oil obtains a B instead of the initial C.
• Sugary products (breakfast cereals, dairy desserts, cookies, pastries, etc.) will be penalized more by the changes in the algorithm.
• Prepared dishes, due to their higher content of salt and saturated fat, will now be less valued.
Changes are also planned for the calculation of the Nutriscore of beverages this fall, according to OCU.