Grocery retailers across the country are jumping aboard the nutritional bandwagon and offering customers greater advice on their dietary choices, The Wall Street Journal reports. Using a scoring system developed by NuVal LLC, owned by Griffin Hospital in Derby, Conn., foods get a score between 1 (low in nutrition) and 100 (really healthy) based on calorie content and the presence of more than 30 nutrients including proteins, fat and carbohydrates.
ACSH's Jeff Stier points out the benefit of this nutritional taxonomy. “Here’s an example of an approach initiated by the private sector — acting in their own business interest — to improve nutrition and fight obesity.” He adds, “The solution, however, may not be perfect and consumers should still be cautious when using the scoring system, since the information they’re getting may not be based on good science.”
Stier contrasts this with governmental anti-obesity schemes. “This article is a wholesale debunking of the notion that the government has to regulate our food choices by placing restrictions on food manufacturers. Here’s a way that the private sector can solve the same problem, which will likely be more effective.”