Comparison between the Choices Five-Level Criteria and Nutri-Score: Alignment with the Dutch Food-Based Dietary...

Area of Science:

• Nutrition Science
• Public Health
• Food Policy

Background:

• The Dutch food environment is characterized as obesogenic, with a high prevalence of unhealthy food products.
• The Wheel of Five serves as the Dutch food-based dietary guideline (FBDG) to promote healthier food selections.
• Front-of-package (FOP) health logos are potential tools to guide consumers, but require alignment with existing guidelines.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the alignment of two FOP nutrient profiling systems (NPSs), Choices and Nutri-Score, with the Dutch Wheel of Five FBDG.
• To determine which NPS is more consistent with the Wheel of Five to avoid consumer confusion.
• To assess the suitability of Choices and Nutri-Score as FOP health logos in the Netherlands.

Main Methods:

• A sample of 124 food products was selected from the Dutch food composition database (NEVO).
• Scores for the Choices and Nutri-Score systems were calculated based on their published criteria.
• Compliance with the Wheel of Five was assessed using criteria from the Netherlands Nutrition Center (NNC), categorizing products by food groups.

Main Results:

• Differences in product classification between the Wheel of Five and the Choices system were found to be smaller compared to the Nutri-Score system.
• The Choices system demonstrated greater consistency with the Wheel of Five food groups and recommendations.
• Nutri-Score exhibited larger discrepancies when compared against the Wheel of Five criteria.

Conclusions:

• The Choices NPS shows higher consistency with the Dutch Wheel of Five FBDG.
• Choices may be a more suitable alternative for a FOP health logo on the Dutch market.
• Ensuring alignment between FOP tools and FBDGs is crucial for effective public health messaging and consumer guidance.