INRA-ALISS, 65 Boulevard de Brandebourg, 94205 Ivry sur Seine, France.
Public Health. 2011 Oct;125(10):717-24. doi: 10.1016/j.puhe.2011.07.004. Epub 2011 Sep 3.
To assess the potential contribution of improving the nutritional quality of processed foods on individuals' nutritional intake and food supply. This paper also discusses the means to encourage firms to implement these reformulations, particularly in public/private partnerships.
The French Observatory of Food Quality was created by the Government for the quantification and follow-up of food reformulation by the food industry. This nutritional composition database on branded products was matched with two consumption databases: TNS Kantar Worldpanel, which provides details on quantities bought and food expenditures; and INCA 2, an individuals' food consumption survey completed by the French Food Safety Agency. Three food groups were considered: breakfast cereals (355 items in 2008), biscuits and pastries (1805 items in 2008), and bread-based products (620 items in 2009).
First, the variability in nutrient composition within food categories was determined, which made it possible to consider several food composition modification scenarios within each category. The formulation of the food items with the lowest nutritional quality was modified to three different levels to improve the overall level of quality in a given category. Second, the quantities of sugars, fat, fibre and sodium delivered to the French market through breakfast cereals, biscuits, pastries and bread-based products were calculated for each scenario. Finally, the distribution of individuals' nutrient consumption from the three food groups among the French population was assessed.
These scenarios generated important improvements of 1-22% (increase in the amount of fibre or decrease in the amounts of sugars, fat and sodium delivered to the market), depending on the scenario, the food group and the nutrient considered. Improvement of the products with the lowest nutritional quality would also lead to significant variation in individuals' nutrient consumption for the average adult and child consumers of the three groups (range 4.2-18.8%, depending on the scenario, the food group and the nutrient considered).
Encouraging the reformulation of foods, especially for products with the lowest nutritional quality in each category of processed foods, is a worthy target for health policy makers. The methodology presented in this paper provides information for negotiations between policy makers and firms to quantify commitments in terms of their potential impacts on individuals' nutrient intake, and to check that the firms' commitments are actually met.
评估改善加工食品营养质量对个人营养摄入和食品供应的潜在贡献。本文还讨论了鼓励企业实施这些配方改革的途径，特别是在公私伙伴关系中。
法国食品质量观察站由政府创建，用于量化和跟踪食品行业的食品配方改革。这个品牌产品的营养成分数据库与两个消费数据库相匹配：TNS Kantar Worldpanel，提供购买量和食品支出的详细信息；以及 INCA 2，法国食品安全局完成的个人食品消费调查。考虑了三个食品组：早餐谷物（2008 年有 355 种产品）、饼干和糕点（2008 年有 1805 种产品）以及面包类产品（2009 年有 620 种产品）。
首先，确定食品类别内营养成分的可变性，这使得在每个类别内考虑几种食品成分修改方案成为可能。将营养质量最低的食品成分进行修改，以提高给定类别中的整体质量水平。其次，计算每个方案通过早餐谷物、饼干、糕点和面包类产品向法国市场提供的糖、脂肪、纤维和钠的数量。最后，评估三类食品中个体营养素摄入在法国人口中的分布情况。
这些方案根据方案、食品组和考虑的营养素的不同，产生了 1-22%的重要改进（纤维量增加或向市场提供的糖、脂肪和钠量减少）。改进营养质量最低的产品也会导致三类食品中普通成年和儿童消费者的个体营养素消费的显著变化（取决于方案、食品组和考虑的营养素，范围为 4.2-18.8%）。
鼓励食品配方改革，特别是对每个加工食品类别中营养质量最低的产品进行改革，是健康政策制定者的一个有价值目标。本文介绍的方法提供了政策制定者与企业之间谈判的信息，以量化其对个人营养摄入的潜在影响，并检查企业的承诺是否得到实际履行。
