Nutrient Profiles – A Suitable Means of Nutrition Information

For several years, nutrient profiling has been discussed as a regulatory instrument for health claims made on foods. The aims of the European Commission are mainly to protect consumers from misleading and even dangerous information and to ban advertisements for foods and menus for children if they are not healthy. Generally, nutrient profiling will be established on the basis of contents of different nutrients and substances like fat, saturated fat, trans fatty acids, salt/sodium and sugars ‘whose excessive intakes in the overall diet are not recommended and those such as poly- and monounsaturated fats, available carbohydrates other than sugars, vitamins, minerals, protein and fiber’. In the present paper, 4 out of >20 proposals will be discussed: the US requirement for health claims (FDA Code), the ‘a little a lot’ system from the UK, the ‘tripartite classification’ model of the Netherlands and the FSA scoring system from the UK. At present, several details remain uncertain, e.g. the reference basis (100 g, serving size or 100 kcal, respectively), moreover the use of thresholds or a scoring system. The evaluation may be ‘across the board’ versus in categories, respectively. In all cases, exceptions will be necessary.