Nutritional logo “NutrInform Battery”
The latest novelty for food business operators (FBO) regarding the labelling of foods is the definition of the nutritional logo “NutrInform Battery“, the form of complementary presentation to the nutrition facts that is recommended by the Italian Government in application of article 35 of Regulation (EU) no. 1169/2011.
Its use is still optional, therefore food business operators can apply it on a voluntary basis; however FBOs opting for its use shall commit themselves to extend it progressively to all their products belonging to the same category.
The scope of the voluntary “battery” system is to increase the consumers’ understanding of the contributions or importance of food in terms of energy and nutrition intake through clear, fair information that can be easily understood by everyone.
Italian Authorities intended to draft a supplementary nutrition label with the aim of providing consumers with a synthetic and clear information about the presence of some nutrients, that can be useful to include a food in a varied and balanced diet, capable to effectively prevent obesity, and cardiocirculatory diseases.
Let’s see the logo “NutrInform Battery” in more details.
The logo will integrate the reference intake table: this will be matched to the figure of a “battery”. All values indicated are referred to a single portion of that food.
The symbol of a battery indicating the energy and nutrients rate delivered by the single portion compared to the recommended daily intake is added to the quantitative indication of the energy content (expressed both in joule and in calories), fats, saturated fats, sugars and salt (all expressed in grams).
The percentage should also be accompanies by a charged portion of the battery, graphically representing the energy and nutrients rate present in the single portion.
In this way, a clear and simple visual representation is included, allowing a quick display of the intake of each single food portion.
Consumers are therefore supported in their selection of foods in the frame of a balanced daily diet, where the sum of the food eaten during the day should not exceed 100% of the recommended daily intake.
This highlights an unmistakable link between the contents present in the food in terms of energy and single nutrients, and the graphical representation of the energy and nutrients rate consumed vs. the recommended daily intake.
Foods sold in packs whose bigger surface is less than 25 cm2 and DOP (protected designation of origin), IGP (protected geographical indication) and STG (traditional speciality guaranteed) products are excluded from the field of application of the logo.
Further indications and information on the correct use of the logo by operators – with special reference to size, colours and technical printing details – will be published on a second stage.
FBOs committing themselves to use this logo shall inform the Italian Ministry of Health – General Directorate for hygiene and food safety and nutrition, but further updates are also expected from the authorities on this issue.
In compliance with the decree, the inclusion of the nutritional logo “NutrInform Battery” should not involve any additional tax burden for public finance.
Written by: Federica Montozzi
Foto di jacqueline macou da Pixabay
