HEALTH-SCORE: How balanced is your plate?
Studying ingredient lists and nutrition facts is a thing of the past. Today, with the Health Score, we show you at a glance how balanced your meal is. Together with Beelong and Fourchette verte, we’re creating more transparency so that every main course can be compared, making it easier to make informed choices in your daily life.
The well-being and health of our guests are a top priority for us as a company. For this reason, promoting a balanced diet as part of our guests’ daily lives is also part of our sustainability strategy.
With the Health Score, we make the nutritional quality of our main courses transparent and easy to understand. Together, the Health Score and the ECO-SCORE® give you two answers at a glance: How balanced is my meal? And what impact does it have on the environment? Two metrics, one informed decision.
What is the Health Score?
The Health Score rates the nutritional quality of main courses for adults on a scale from A to E. It was developed by Fourchette verte and is integrated into the Beelong Menu Calculator.
The calculation is based on the ingredients and their quantities and follows the dietary recommendations of the Swiss Society for Nutrition (SGE). The score indicates how balanced a main course is and to what extent it complies with the dietary recommendations.
How is the Health Score calculated?
To assess nutritional balance, the Health Score for main dishes first takes into account the following four food categories:
- starchy foods
- Vegetables
- protein-rich foods
- Added fats
Depending on the proportion of these food categories, a grade from “A” to “E” is assigned. For example, if the amount of vegetables in a dish is less than 20% of the recommended serving size, the rating is lowered by one level (for example, from “C” to “D”).
In addition, the following nutritional values are factored into the overall rating:
- Fiber content
- Percentage of saturated fatty acids
- Salt content
These nutritional values influence the final rating of a main course and complement the assessment of its balanced composition.
How do you interpret the traffic light?
The Health Score shows the nutritional quality of a main course at a glance, ranging from green (A) to red (E).
Health Score: A
It aligns very well with the SGE's dietary recommendations and has a particularly balanced composition.
Health Score: B
It aligns well with nutritional guidelines and makes for a balanced main course.
Health Score: C
Partially meets dietary recommendations.
Health Score: D
Deviates from dietary recommendations in several areas and has room for improvement in terms of nutritional balance.
Health Score: E
Deviates significantly from dietary recommendations and meets the criteria for a balanced composition only to a limited extent.
Good to Know
The Health Score applies to main dishes for adults. It is based on average recommendations and serves as a guide for making balanced choices, not as personalized nutritional advice.
Differences from Nutri-Score
Fourchette Verte’s Health Score should not be confused with Nutri-Score. Although both systems use a similar scale, they have different objectives.
Nutri-Score rates packaged foods sold in retail stores and is used to compare individual products within their product group based on their nutritional values per 100 g or 100 ml.
The Health-Score, on the other hand, was developed specifically for institutional food service. It does not evaluate individual products, but rather complete dishes and menus. In doing so, it takes into account the composition of the meal as well as nutritional recommendations.
About Fourchette verte
Fourchette verte is Switzerland’s leading quality label for health-promoting institutional food service and developed the Health Score. The methodology is based on scientific findings and the dietary recommendations of the Swiss Society for Nutrition (SGE).
About Beelong
Beelong has developed the Menu Calculator, which incorporates the Health Score. The calculator determines the score based on ingredients and quantities, providing transparency regarding the nutritional quality of dishes. Together with the ECO-SCORE®, it helps restaurants provide well-founded information on nutrition and sustainability.