From the SAIN,LIM system to the SENS algorithm: a review of a French approach of nutrient profiling

• Published in: Proceedings of the Nutrition Society Vol. 76; no. 3; pp. 237 - 246
• Main Authors: Tharrey, Marion, Maillot, Matthieu, Azaïs-Braesco, Véronique, Darmon, Nicole
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01.08.2017
• Subjects: Adult; Algorithms; Biomedical Research - methods; Biomedical Research - trends; Child; Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Conference on ‘New technology in nutrition research and practice’; Congresses as Topic; Consumer information; Consumers; Descriptive labeling; Diet; Dietary Reference Intakes; Dietetics - methods; Dietetics - trends; Fatty acids; Food; Food and Nutrition; Food Packaging - legislation & jurisprudence; Food Packaging - standards; Food Packaging - trends; Food quality; Food, Preserved - adverse effects; Food-Processing Industry - legislation & jurisprudence; Food-Processing Industry - trends; foods; France; Health care expenditures; health claims; Health Promotion - methods; Health Promotion - trends; Healthy Diet; Humans; issues and policy; Labeling; Life Sciences; Linear programming; nutrient content; nutrient density; Nutrient profiling as a tool to respond to public health needs; Nutrients; Nutrition; nutrition labeling; Nutrition research; Nutritional Sciences - methods; Nutritional Sciences - trends; Nutritive Value; Policies; Public health; Quality; Societies, Scientific; World Health Organization; Nutrient; Labelling; France; Nutrition information; Food; EC European Commission; LIM the score of nutrients to be limited; MRV maximal recommended values; SAIN score of nutritional adequacy of individual foods; DRV daily recommended value; F&V fruits and vegetables; NDS nutrient density score; AFSSA French Food Standard Agency; ED energy density; SENS simplified nutrition labelling system; alimentation; étiquetage; information nutritionnelle; fruit et légume; recommandation nutritionnelle; food intake
• ISSN: 0029-6651; 1475-2719; 1475-2719
• DOI: 10.1017/S0029665117000817

Nutrient profiling aims to classify or rank foods according to their nutritional composition to assist policies aimed at improving the nutritional quality of foods and diets. The present paper reviews a French approach of nutrient profiling by describing the SAIN,LIM system and its evolution from its early draft to the simplified nutrition labelling system (SENS) algorithm. Considered in 2010 by WHO as the ‘French model’ of nutrient profiling, SAIN,LIM classifies foods into four classes based on two scores: a nutrient density score (NDS) called SAIN and a score of nutrients to limit called LIM, and one threshold on each score. The system was first developed by the French Food Standard Agency in 2008 in response to the European regulation on nutrition and health claims (European Commission (EC) 1924/2006) to determine foods that may be eligible for bearing claims. Recently, the European regulation (EC 1169/2011) on the provision of food information to consumers allowed simplified nutrition labelling to facilitate consumer information and help them make fully informed choices. In that context, the SAIN,LIM was adapted to obtain the SENS algorithm, a system able to rank foods for simplified nutrition labelling. The implementation of the algorithm followed a step-by-step, systematic, transparent and logical process where shortcomings of the SAIN,LIM were addressed by integrating specificities of food categories in the SENS, reducing the number of nutrients, ordering the four classes and introducing European reference intakes. Through the French example, this review shows how an existing nutrient profiling system can be specifically adapted to support public health nutrition policies.