NGOs welcome Nestlé’s commitment to update nutrition reporting

Advocacy groups ShareAction and Access to Nutrition initiative (ATNI) welcome Nestlé’s decision to improve its reporting on products’ nutrition profiles. In previous years, ShareAction had challenged the food and nutrition company to improve the healthfulness of its product portfolio. At the same time, ATNI urges food companies to use internationally recognized nutrient profiling models to better assess portfolios’ healthiness. 

ATNI calls Nestlé’s commitment an “important step toward greater accountability in the food sector.” The foundation, which challenges the food industry to create healthier food systems, adds that the proposed actions respond to ATNI’s recommendations in its Global Access to Nutrition Indexes. 

In a statement on LinkedIn, Laurent Freixe, CEO of Nestlé, said the company worked with ShareAction to evolve Nestlé’s reporting on the nutritional value of the company’s portfolio and to make it easier for investors to compare companies & their portfolios across the food industry. 

He shared the company’s commitment to “evolve” its nutrition reporting with its following non-financial report. “We hope other companies in the food industry will consider following our lead.” 

Regarding specific actions, Freixe detailed: “We will complement our existing reporting with new data aligned with the scope of the ATNI. We will include a sales-weighted average measure for relevant categories and the total portfolio. We will continue to use the government-approved Health Star Rating system as the basis of our nutrition profile reporting.”

ShareAction

Last year, ShareAction coordinated a resolution from a coalition of Nestlé’s shareholders challenging the company to improve its products’ healthiness. Nestlé rejected the criticism, arguing it was the world leader in offering nutritious products. 

In his statement, Freixe highlighted the importance of transparent discussions with stakeholders and shared his appreciation for ShareAction and its investor coalition. “Collaboration to co-create reporting measures that build trust across the food industry is the way forward.”

Laurent Freixe, CEO of Nestlé, hopes other businesses in the food industry will consider following the company’s lead.Garance Boullenger, Healthy Markets Initiative lead at ShareAction, says the NGO welcomes Nestlé’s decision to improve transparency on healthy product sales after close engagement with investors. This initiative works with investors to urge the food industry to lead a drive for more nutritious food options. 

“It sends a powerful message that the biggest food company in the world is setting a high standard for the industry on health and nutrition reporting, while other companies such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Mondelez are dragging their feet on taking responsibility for their role in the global health crisis.”

Boullenger adds that Nestlé, as the largest food and drink producer, has an enormous influence on billions of people’s diets. By extension, the company can make a real difference in consumers’ lives and help shape healthier societies and economies. 

“What investors want now is to see Nestlé set an ambitious target to sell healthier food. With a tangible commitment in place, the food giant could reassure its investors that it is working to adapt its business away from its current risky over-reliance on unhealthy products.”

Transparent reporting

ATNI says that by introducing a sales-weighted average healthiness score (based on the Health Star Rating system) at the portfolio and category levels, Nestlé improves transparency and allows for better assessment of its product offerings. 

In a report co-authored with Planet Tracker, ATNI urged investors to reward companies for healthy food portfolios. 

Using internationally recognized nutrient profiling models like the Health Star Rating helps to better assess portfolios’ healthiness.The organization has also called for a globally accepted method to define and measure the healthiness of food portfolios after evaluating the Health Star Rating system, the EU Nutri-Score, and the UK Nutrient Profile Model. As these systems diverge in some product rankings, the organization explained multiple models would be needed to consider a product’s healthiness. 

ATNI uses these models to assess the healthiness of food companies’ portfolios in its Global Access to Nutrition Index. 

Freixe highlights that Nestlé has one of the industry’s broadest portfolios. “This is why we will continue to include our specialized nutrition, pet care, and pure coffee ranges in our reporting, as they represent more than half of our sales. These categories make important nutritional contributions but are not included in the ATNI scope.”

At the same time, ATNI states that further steps are needed to align fully with its “expectations for responsible nutrition reporting.” These actions include:

• Setting a clear and ambitious target to increase the share of healthier products sold and reduce sales of less healthy products.
• Greater transparency on reduction of nutrients of concern (sugar, sodium, saturated fat).
• Public reporting of marketing audit results and responsible marketing practices.
• Progress updates on front-of-pack labeling and use of nutrition or health claims.
• Complete adherence to the WHO International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes.

“As a global leader, Nestlé has the opportunity to influence broader change,” concludes the organization. “We encourage continued momentum and look forward to seeing more companies adopt transparent, nutrition-focused reporting that supports healthier diets for all.”