On the date of November 2, 2022, more than 35,000 signatures have been collected in Europe to support the petition « Stop lobbies: Nutri-Score must be the mandatory official logo in Europe by 2023 » accessible on the site
https://chng.it/BghbbGMW
Text of the petition
The front-of-pack nutrition label Nutri-Score must be defended against lobbies that try to distort it and try to prevent it from becoming mandatory and in Europe
The Nutri-Score was officially adopted in France by an inter-ministerial decree on 31 October 2017 after a very tough battle against agri-food lobbies that lasted nearly 4 years. Displayed on the front of food packaging, its objective is to help consumers to make healthier food choices at the point of purchase by delivering simple at-a-glance nutritional information permitting to compare easily nutritional quality across food products. Although simple to interpret, it is based on numerous scientific studies that have demonstrated its effectiveness and its interest for consumers and public health. Moreover, after France, 6 other countries have also decided to implement the Nutri-Score: Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland.
Although no food company was in favour of Nutri-Score when it was proposed, in 2014, by a public research team without links of interest, thanks to scientific work, pressure from scientists, health professionals, consumer associations and NGOs and citizens’ actions, more than 800 brands that have finally committed to display it on their food products. But since it is still based on volunteering, given European regulation that prevent member states from making it mandatory to display a synthetic front-of-pack nutrition label on foods, many food companies are still opposing it and fighting it. This is the case for Coca-Cola, Ferrero, Mars, Lactalis, Mondelez, Kraft and many other national and international companies.
The recent announcement by the European Commission, as part of its strategy «Farm to Fork», of a future vote on the implementation of a unique and mandatory front-of-pack nutrition label for all European countries before the end of 2022, has awakened lobbying, both manufacturers opposed to Nutri-Score but also some agricultural sectors (cheeses, processed meats) with behind them, large industrial food groups (Lactalis, Savencia, etc.) who do not wish to provide consumers with real transparency on the nutritional composition of their products. Today, in France and throughout Europe, we are witnessing a new intense lobbying of economic actors, relayed by many politicians at the national and regional level (often for electoral reasons) who are doing everything to prevent Nutri-Score to be adopted in Europe as the single and mandatory model of nutritional label or trying to distort it to protect certain agricultural sectors (by proposing exemptions of certain products).
We, citizens and scientists/experts, aware that our food consumption plays a major role for health, demand to be able to assess, through the display of the Nutri-Score, the nutritional quality of ALL foods, without exception, in order to guide our choices in a reasoned way, with full knowledge of the facts. We consider this to be a consumer right and a duty of economic operators. We ask:
1) that the governments that officially adopted Nutri-Score do everything possible to thwart the action of lobbies which aim, at the national level, to torpedo Nutri-Score or to distort it;
2) that the European Parliament adopt Nutri-Score as the mandatory front-of-pack label for Europe in 2023, taking into consideration its scientific background and its demonstrated interest in terms of public health,
3) that manufacturers who today refuse to display Nutri-Score, to respond to consumer demand for a true nutritional transparency on composition of foods, and immediately display (even if it is not yet mandatory) the Nutri-Score on their products.
The health of citizens has no price and public health must prevail over the defense of purely economic interests! Sign the petition and spread it around you!
This petition is supported by: l’EREN (Équipe de Recherche en Épidémiologie Nutritionnelle, Inserm/Inrae/Cnam/Université Sorbonne Paris Nord), la SFNCM (Société Française de Nutrition Clinique et Métabolique), la SFN (Société Française de Nutrition), l’AFDN (Association Française des Diététiciens Nutritionnistes, la SFD (Société Francophone du Diabète), l’AFERO (Association Française d’Étude et de Recherche sur l’Obésité), l’APOP (Association pour la prise en charge et la Prévention de l’Obésité en Pédiatrie), le CERENUT (Centre de Ressources en Nutrition Nouvelle Aquitaine), l’AFPA (Association Française des Pédiatres Ambulatoire, l’AFPEL (Association Française des Pédiatres Endocrinologues Libéraux), le CEDE (Club Européen des Diététiciens de l’Enfance), la FNES (Fédération Nationale d’Éducation et de promotion de la Santé), la SFSP (Société Française de Santé Publique), l’ISPED (Institut de Santé Publique, d’Epidémiologie et de Développement), le SMISP (Syndicat des Médecins Inspecteurs de Santé Publique), l’AMISP (Association des Médecins Inspecteurs de Santé Publique), la SFHTA (Société Française d’Hypertension Artérielle), l’AFEF (Société Française d’Hépatologie), la SNFGE (Société Nationale Française de Gastro-Entérologie), la SFC (Société Française du Cancer), la FFCD (Fédération Francophone de Cancérologie Digestive), le CMG (Collège de Medecine Générale), le réseau NACRE (Réseau Nutrition Activité Physique Cancer Recherche), la Fédération Addiction, la Chaire Recherche Sciences Infirmières AP-HP/Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, la FFC (Fédération Française de Cardiologie), France Assos Santé, la Ligue contre le Cancer, la Fédération Française des Diabétiques, l’ONG Santé Diabète, le CNAO (Collectif National des Associations d’Obèses) la CLCV (Association nationale de défense des consommateurs et usagers Consommation Logement Cadre de vie), l’INCODESA-CGT (association de consommateurs salariés de la CGT), l’ASEF (Association Santé Environnement France), RAC (Réseau Action Climat), l’ Association des Amis de la Terre France, OTMeds (Observatoire de la Transparence dans les politiques du médicament).
And at european level: ECOG (The European Childhood Obesity Group), ASPHER (Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region
NUTRI-SCORE 