Meijer introduces the NuVal scoring system

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This information is taken from Meijer's new ad.


NuVal™ AS SIMPLE AS 1-100
The higher the nutritional value, the higher the NuVal™ Score

Want to know more?

Q. What is the NuVal™ Nutritional Scoring System?
A. The NuVal™ System is a nutrition scoring system that allows consumers to see - at a glance - the nutritional value of the foods they buy.
• It’s a summary of the overall nutritional value of grocery store products.
• It provides one simple score from 1 to 100. The higher the nutritional value, the higher the NuVal™ Score. It’s as simple as that.

Q. What does the NuVal™ System do?
A. The NuVal™ System makes it easy to quickly see the overall nutritional values of the foods you’re buying, helping you make smarter choices item by item.

Q. Who developed it?
A. The NuVal™ System is based on a unique food scoring formula developed over the course of two years of research by an independent team of nutrition and medical experts from leading universities and health organizations.
The team featured experts from nutritional and medical disciplines like general nutrition, pediatrics, cardiovascular disease, epidemiology, weight management, diabetes and chronic disease prevention.
Led by Dr. David Katz of the Yale University/Griffin Hospital Prevention Research Center, the team and its work was solely funded by Griffin Hospital, independent of funding or influence by food or beverage retailers or manufacturers. Ownership and ongoing oversight of the algorithm remains in the hands of Griffin Hospital. The team’s mission was to develop a science- based formula that would give people the ability to easily see and compare the overall nutritional values of any food or beverage they were considering.

Q. How is a score calculated?
A. The NuVal™ System takes into consideration more than 30 nutrients, including carbohydrates, protein, fat, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. It accounts for how these nutrients influence health and how they relate to recommendations from USDA dietary guidelines and Institute of Medicine Dietary Reference Intakes. Some of the nutrients used to arrive at a NuVal™ Score are:

GENERALLY FAVORABLE
• Fiber
• Folate
• Vitamin A
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin D
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin B12
• Vitamin B6
• Potassium
• Calcium
• Zinc
• Omega-3 Fatty Acids
• Magnesium
• Iron
• Total bioflavanoids
• Total carotenoids

GENERALLY UNFAVORABLE
• Saturated Fat
• Trans Fat
• Sodium
• Sugar (Total/Added)
• Cholesterol

A NuVal™ Score does much more than just add up nutrients. It provides nutritional perspective. For example, fiber is an important part of a healthy diet, but most Americans don’t get the recommended daily amounts. So we’ve weighted fiber to reflect the need to add more of it to our diets.
NuVal™ Scores also take into account the amounts of protein, fat and carbohydrates, as well as the quality of these important nutrients, as there are differing quality levels that we can evaluate.

Q. How can you make NuVal™ Scores work for you?
A. A NuVal™ Score allows you to compare products within a food section or even across categories by giving you a simple Score of the overall nutritional value of each product.
A NuVal™ Score allows you to compare products within a food section or even across sections by giving you an easy-to-follow summary of the overall nutritional values of each product. When you see a NuVal™ Score on the shelf, the higher the number you see, the higher nutritional value of that item.
The NuVal™ System is designed to help you make informed choices for a balanced approach to shopping and eating. It’s not there to tell you if a food is good or bad; it just gives the score that food earned. Only you can decide what your overall nutritional needs are.
Also, don’t forget to take into account the size of your portions and variety of foods you eat, as they’re also important to consider in addition to using the NuVal™ System.

Q. Why don’t all foods in the store have scores yet?
A. Because in order to do it right, it takes time to evaluate the tens of thousands of food items grocery stores carry. We’re doing it right so it takes time, but expect to continue seeing more NuVal™ Scores in your aisles soon. For more information visit Healthy Living

NuVal Category Examples:

Fruits & Vegetables
Scores range from 21-100
• NuVal™ Scores in fresh fruit are influenced by the quantity of fiber, sodium and sugar.
• NuVal™ Scores in fresh vegetables are influenced by the quantity of vitamins, minerals, fiber, calories and sodium.


Fresh Seafood
Scores range from 25-89
• NuVal™ Scores in fresh seafood are influenced by the quantity of quality protein, vitamins, minerals and omega-3 fatty acids.

Cereal
Scores range from 2-100
• NuVal™ Scores for cereal are influenced by the quantity of fiber, sodium and sugar.

Salty Snacks
Scores range from 1-93
• NuVal™ Scores for salty snacks are influenced by the quantity of fiber, sodium, saturated and trans fats.

Sandwich Breads
Scores range from 2-81
• NuVal™ Scores for sandwich bread are influenced by the quantity of fiber, sugar and salt.