More than 270 European scientists call for EU-wide introduction of the Nutri-Score

273 renowned European scientists and 26 medical associations have called on the European Commission to make the Nutri-Score mandatory in Europe. The experts from the scientific fields of nutrition, public health and medicine warned against the efforts of the food lobby and some EU Member States to prevent the mandatory labelling with the nutrition traffic light at European level. 

Wide-ranging scientific support

The European scientists and associations come from 31 different countries. Together they warn against the influence of lobby interests on nutrition labelling. 

The Nutri-Score has repeatedly been the target of scientifically unfounded attacks with the intention of discrediting and preventing the labelling. The signatories of the appeal stress out that the decision for a model should solely be made on a scientific basis. In this respect, the Nutri-Score is more convincing than any other model: it is the only nutrition label in Europe that has proven its effectiveness and relevance to consumers and public health in numerous peer-reviewed studies. 
 

Exemplary list of signatories

• Alberti Corinne, Professor of Public Health, Université de Paris, France
• Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER), Brussels, Belgium
• Bischoff Stephan C, Professor of Medicine and Clinical Nutrition, Chair of Nutritional Medicine, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
• Bo Simona, Associate Professor of Dietetic Sciences, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Torino, Italy
• Bouzas C, Associate professor of Physiology, University of the Balearic Islands-IUNICS, IDISBA, & CIBEROBN (ISCIII), Palma de Mallorca, Spain
• Brázdová Zuzana Derflerová , Professor., Dept. of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
• Campbell Norah, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
• Chan Doris, Research Fellow, Imperial College London, United Kingdom
• Dembiński Łukasz, Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
• And many more…
   

We need a mandatory Nutri-Score in the EU

The governments of France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Luxembourg and the Netherlands have all decided in favour of the nutrition traffic light. However, for now the labelling with Nutri-Score remains voluntary, because a legal obligation at national level is not possible under European law. The EU Commission intends to propose a mandatory nutrition labelling model by the end of 2022. foodwatch together with the scientists and associations calls for a mandatory introduction of the Nutri-Score at EU level.

Originally developed by French scientists, the Nutri-Score’s assessment of food ingredients includes recommended components such as dietary fibre and certain proteins in addition to the sugar, fat and salt content. Numerous scientific studies have proven that the Nutri-Score is the most understandable form of nutrition labelling and that it fosters more balanced food choices of consumers.
 

Sources and further information:

• Call from European scientists to implement Nutri-Score in Europe
• List of signatories
• Eight Common Nutri-Score Myths Debunked