Undine Lehmann

Whole Grain in Manufactured Foods: Current use, Challenges and the way Forward

ABSTRACT Some countries now incorporate recommendations for increased consumption of whole grain (WG) into local dietary guidelines. Cereal and pseudo-cereal grains are good sources of complex carbohydrates, dietary fiber, proteins, phytochemicals, vitamins and minerals. However, research shows that the large majority of consumers are still falling short of WG consumption goals. To address this, we are actively involved in research to help increase the WG content of processed foods without compromising on taste and texture. In order to ensure consumer trust, the advancement of process technologies in incorporating WG to produce tasty food has to go hand in hand with well designed clinical trials that confirm the health benefits resulting from diets rich in WG.

Modeled Dietary Impact of Pizza Reformulations in US Children and Adolescents.

Background and Objective Approximately 20% of US children and adolescents consume pizza on any given day; and pizza intake is associated with higher intakes of energy, sodium, and saturated fat. The reformulation of pizza products has yet to be evaluated as a viable option to improve diets of the US youth. This study modeled the effect on nutrient intakes of two potential pizza reformulation strategies based on the standards established by the Nestlé Nutritional Profiling System (NNPS). Methods Dietary intakes were retrieved from the first 24hr-recall of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011–12, for 2655 participants aged 4–19 years. The composition of pizzas in the NHANES food database (n = 69) were compared against the NNPS standards for energy, total fat, saturated fat, sodium, added sugars, and protein. In a reformulation scenario, the nutrient content of pizzas was adjusted to the NNPS standards if these were not met. In a substitution scenario, pizzas that did not meet the standards were replaced by the closest pizza, based on nutrient content, that met all of the NNPS standards. Results Pizzas consistent with all the NNPS standards (29% of all pizzas) were significantly lower in energy, saturated fat and sodium than pizzas that were not. Among pizza consumers, modeled intakes in the reformulation and substitution scenarios were lower in energy (-14 and -45kcal, respectively), saturated fat (-1.2 and -2.7g), and sodium (-143 and -153mg) compared to baseline. Conclusions Potential industry wide reformulation of a single food category or intra-category food substitutions may positively impact dietary intakes of US children and adolescents. Further promotion and support of these complimentary strategies may facilitate the adoption and implementation of reformulation standards.

Nutrient profiling for product reformulation: public health impact and benefits for the consumer

The food industry holds great potential for driving consumers to adopt healthy food choices as (re)formulation of foods can improve the nutritional quality of these foods. Reformulation has been identified as a cost-effective intervention in addressing non-communicable diseases as it does not require significant alterations of consumer behaviour and dietary habits. Nutrient profiling (NP), the science of categorizing foods based on their nutrient composition, has emerged as an essential tool and is implemented through many different profiling systems to guide reformulation and other nutrition policies. NP systems should be adapted to their specific purposes as it is not possible to design one system that can equally address all policies and purposes, e.g. reformulation and labelling. The present paper discusses some of the key principles and specificities that underlie a NP system designed for reformulation with the example of the Nestlé nutritional profiling system. Furthermore, the impact of reformulation at the level of the food product, dietary intakes and public health are reviewed. Several studies showed that food and beverage reformulation, guided by a NP system, may be effective in improving population nutritional intakes and thereby its health status. In order to achieve its maximum potential and modify the food environment in a beneficial manner, reformulation should be implemented by the entire food sector. Multi-stakeholder partnerships including governments, food industry, retailers and consumer associations that will state concrete time-bound objectives accompanied by an independent monitoring system are the potential solution.

Testing the capacity of a Multi-Nutrient profiling system to guide food and beverage reformulation : Results from five national food composition databases

Nutrient profiling ranks foods based on their nutrient composition, with applications in multiple aspects of food policy. We tested the capacity of a category-specific model developed for product reformulation to improve the average nutrient content of foods, using five national food composition datasets (UK, US, China, Brazil, France). Products (n = 7183) were split into 35 categories based on the Nestlé Nutritional Profiling Systems (NNPS) and were then classified as NNPS ‘Pass’ if all nutrient targets were met (energy (E), total fat (TF), saturated fat (SFA), sodium (Na), added sugars (AS), protein, calcium). In a modelling scenario, all NNPS Fail products were ‘reformulated’ to meet NNPS standards. Overall, a third (36%) of all products achieved the NNPS standard/pass (inter-country and inter-category range: 32%–40%; 5%–72%, respectively), with most products requiring reformulation in two or more nutrients. The most common nutrients to require reformulation were SFA (22%–44%) and TF (23%–42%). Modelled compliance with NNPS standards could reduce the average content of SFA, Na and AS (10%, 8% and 6%, respectively) at the food supply level. Despite the good potential to stimulate reformulation across the five countries, the study highlights the need for better data quality and granularity of food composition databases.