The Nutri-Score as an extended nutrition labeling model in food retailing

Abstract

The Nutri-Score has been available for use with legal certainty by companies in France since the end of 2017 and in Germany since November 2020. Based on data from the Mintel Group’s Global New Product Database (GNPD), this study compares which products have been labeled with the Nutri-Score by which distributor (manufacturer or food retailer) in France and Germany up to now, and whether specific patterns can be identified in this respect. The results show that A and B labels currently dominate in Germany as well as in France. Nevertheless, the data for France show that over time the proportion of products with an unfavourable D or E label has increased to a statistically significant extent, and this development can also be expected on the German market. In both countries most labels are found on dairy products, main dishes and ready meals, as well as fish, meat and egg products. In terms of distributors, manufacturers dominated in both countries in the first few months after introduction of the Nutri-Score. Over time, however, the proportion of private labels increased significantly in France from around a third to just under half of all labeled products.