What constitutes in the eyes of a consumer a “normal” portion of food has gradually increased in size over the years; at the same time, many consumers are becoming more sedentary. The resulting excess calorie intake often leads to obesity and an array of related chronic diseases. In other cases, inadequate portions are leading to malnutrition, nutrient deficiencies and related diseases, even in developed markets.
Governments and regulatory authorities, particularly those associated with the public health sector, are increasingly vocal about the need for clear and coherent portion information for consumers. When committing to our 60/40+ programme, Nutritional Profiling System and Nutritional Compass on packaging, we had already set ourselves to support consumers with practical portion guidance.
Building on its Portion Guidance Framework developed in 2010, Nestlé is accelerating innovation and renovation efforts in this area. Be it in terms of product form or size, specific packaging, serving devices or equipment, our goal with portion guidance is to make “eating the right amount at the right frequency” as easy and intuitive as possible.
Implementing further portion guidance
Exact portion definition is, of course, paramount in several Nestlé product categories such as healthcare nutrition, infant nutrition, performance nutrition and Jenny Craig-branded products and services, where education about the volumetric and satiety effect of various foods and beverages is an integral part of the energy management benefit brought to consumers by Nestlé.
Estimates indicate that specific product- or pack-related portion guidance efforts applied to Nestlé products representing sales of at least CHF 21 894 million [KPI] at the end of 2011, which again puts the Company in a leading role in terms of nutrition, health and wellness within the food and beverage industry. This includes products sold as single servings, meeting our rigorous Nutritional Foundation (NF) criteria on all counts (including sodium or fibre, for example), sold with or via a device/equipment delivering a serving that meets all NF criteria, or sold to caregivers with detailed instructions on adjusting servings to evolving nutritional needs.
Davigel: the right nutrition in the right portion to facilitate a healthy recovery
When the kitchen equipment at Toulouse Hospital, the fourth largest in France, needed renewing in 2010, three choices were considered: continue on the same path with meals being prepared by hospital kitchen staff; sub-contract the catering; or, work with a partner. Davigel (a Nestlé Professional operating company) was already a product supplier. The hospital decided to opt for a close partnership with Davigel and to benefit from its nutrition, health and wellness expertise.
Healthy nutrition is clearly important for hospital patients. Research shows that while malnutrition can complicate and delay the healing process, adapted and individualised nutrition can reduce length of hospital stay and overall healthcare costs. To meet the needs of the hospital, Davigel created 60 customised culinary solutions with a high nutritional density and appropriate portion size.
Davigel teams comprise dedicated nutritionists, dieticians and top chefs; it was the first out-of-home company to sign the “Charte d’engagement volontaire de progrès nutritionnel” (Charter to undertake voluntary nutritional improvement) with the French government in 2010.
Nestlé Symposium on Portion at the European Congress on Obesity
On 26 May 2011, Nestlé held a symposium on the challenges of healthy portion size as a satellite event to the 18th European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul, Turkey. An international panel of researchers discussed portion sizes and food choices among adolescents, cultural and environmental determinants of portion size, and translating research on portion size into policy and practice. Dr. Cioran Forde, scientist at the Nestlé Research Center in Lausanne, also shared recent results of his work on the application of the ‘“expected ’satiety” approach to understand meal portion size selection.
The content of this page was independently assured by Bureau Veritas, March 2012.
