Nutri-Score for Confectionery: Updated Algorithm

Which Nutri-Score algorithm is current?

Nutri-Score is a voluntary front-of-pack nutrition label that maps a numerical score to five letter/color grades, from A to E. It is designed primarily to compare the nutritional quality of foods within a relevant category. It does not declare that one portion is safe or unsafe, and it does not replace the mandatory nutrition declaration.

The algorithm was materially revised by the transnational Nutri-Score governance process in 2022–2023. The update was not limited to niche categories. For general solid foods, it changed the core scales for sugars, salt, protein, and fibre and moved the A/B boundary. France implemented the updated algorithm on 16 March 2025; Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, and the Netherlands did so on 1 January 2024, and Luxembourg on 5 March 2024, according to Santé publique France’s current information.

Businesses must use the official materials and trademark rules applicable in the market where the logo appears. Transition provisions can depend on when a product was placed on the market. This article explains general solid foods; beverages, fats/nuts/seeds, cheese, and red meat have category-specific rules.

The updated score structure

For a general solid food, the algorithm calculates negative “A” points and positive “C” points per 100 g. The numerical score is based on A minus the eligible C points. The official documents use component-specific threshold tables; values should not be rounded into a different point band before calculation.

The theoretical negative total for general foods is 55, and the theoretical positive total is 17. Actual subtraction is subject to the protein rule: when negative A points are high, protein points are generally not subtracted unless the official exception applies. Cheese keeps a category-specific exemption. Always follow the official decision tree rather than subtracting every positive point automatically.

The updated sugar scale is aligned to increments based on the EU reference intake and extends to 15 points, reaching the maximum around 51 g sugars per 100 g. Use the exact official threshold table at boundary values.

The updated algorithm uses salt in grams per 100 g, not the original sodium scale capped at 900 mg. Salt can contribute up to 20 negative points, with the maximum reached around 4 g/100 g in the official summary scale. Use the exact official threshold table for boundary values.

Grade boundaries for general solid foods

The updated numerical bands for general solid foods are:

The original algorithm placed A at −1 or below and B at 0–2. The updated algorithm places a score of 0 in A. The C, D, and E numerical bands for general foods remain 3–10, 11–18, and 19 or above.

The letter is not a clinical assessment and should not be used to compare unrelated eating occasions without context. A confection and a staple food serve different dietary roles. Nutri-Score is most useful when comparing plausible alternatives within the same shelf or product family.

Why confectionery usually scores D or E

Chocolate, caramel, nougat, pâte de fruit, and filled confections are energy-dense. Many contain substantial sugars, and chocolate or dairy formulations can contain high saturated fat. The updated sugar scale is stricter and the salt scale is wider, so the revision directly affects confectionery rather than merely changing red meat or beverage rules.

A chocolate confection can reach the maximum saturated-fat points before energy and sugar are counted. A sugar-rich fruit confection may have little saturated fat but accumulate many sugar points. Fibre, protein, and fruit/vegetable/legume points can offset part of the negative total, but the protein restriction means that simply adding protein to a high-A product may not reduce the final score.

Do not reverse-engineer a desired letter by guessing ingredient points. Calculate from the finished product’s per-100-g nutrition data and the eligible ingredient percentage defined by the official rules. Ingredient databases can support development, but the values used on pack must be substantiated under applicable labeling law.

A correct calculation workflow

First, select the correct product category. Most confections are general foods, but nuts/seeds and added fats have a dedicated algorithm, beverages have another, and cheese and red meat have modifications. A filled product is classified according to the official rules for the product as sold, not whichever component gives the preferred score.

Second, assemble per-100-g energy in kJ, total sugars, saturated fatty acids, salt, fibre, and protein. Salt is not sodium: on an EU nutrition declaration it is generally calculated as sodium × 2.5. Keep sufficient precision through the calculation, particularly near thresholds.

Third, determine the eligible fruit, vegetable, and legume percentage from the ingredient list and processing definitions. The updated general-food component is not a generic “healthy ingredient” bonus. Nuts and selected oils that appeared in the original broad wording are handled differently under the updated category structure.

Fourth, assign points from the official updated tables. Sum negative A points. Determine which positive C points are eligible, including the protein rule. Subtract them and map the result to the updated grade bands.

Finally, retain a calculation record: algorithm version, product category, nutrient source, ingredient-percentage evidence, exact inputs, point assignments, score, grade, calculation date, and approval. Recalculate when composition, supplier nutrition, regulation, or algorithm changes.

Worked interpretation without false precision

Consider a chocolate filling with high energy, more than 30 g sugars per 100 g, and more than 10 g saturated fat. It will collect substantial negative points in all three components. If its salt is low, that component may add little; however, the total A points will usually remain well above the protein-cap threshold.

Adding enough fibre to cross one official threshold can gain one positive point. Reducing sugar only helps when it crosses a sugar-point boundary; reducing from one value to another within the same band does not change the numerical score, although it may still improve nutrition. The same threshold effect applies to energy, saturated fat, salt, and protein.

This is why “D to C requires eight points” is not a general rule. D spans scores 11–18. Moving from 11 to C needs one point; moving from 18 needs eight. State the starting score and target boundary instead of quoting the maximum as though it applied to every D product.

Reformulation also changes water activity, viscosity, crystallization, flavor release, and legal product identity. A numerical improvement that makes the confection unstable or unacceptable is not a successful product.

Reformulation levers and trade-offs

Sugar reduction is the most direct lever for sugar points, but it also removes solids and changes sweetness, aw, boiling behavior, glass transition, and freezing-point depression. Polyols are not declared as “sugars” under the EU nutrition table, but most contribute energy and can cause gastrointestinal effects at sufficient intake. The separate non-nutritive-sweetener penalty belongs to the updated beverage algorithm, not as a universal extra row for solid confectionery.

Replacing saturated fat can reduce points, but chocolate identity and tempering behavior constrain the fat system. Cocoa butter equivalents and other fats have legal and technical limits. A lower-saturated-fat filling may be possible without changing the chocolate shell, but compatibility, migration, bloom, and melting profile require testing.

Fibre can add positive points and replace some caloric carbohydrate, yet high doses change water demand, viscosity, grittiness, and digestive tolerance. Only analytically or legally supportable fibre belongs in the nutrition input. A supplier’s “dietary fibre” claim and the method accepted by Nutri-Score must align.

Protein can contribute up to seven raw points, but high-A general foods may not be allowed to subtract those points. Protein addition can also alter Maillard browning, water binding, allergen labeling, and texture. Calculate eligibility before reformulating around protein.

Increasing eligible fruit, vegetable, or legume content may add positive points, but use the official ingredient definition and percentage rules. Fruit purée also adds sugars and water; nut paste may fall under the fats/nuts/seeds category rules rather than the general-food component. Model the complete product, not one favorable ingredient.

Verification, labeling, and software

The official algorithm and trademark materials are the source of truth. A software tool should identify “Updated Algorithm (2023),” the product category, input units, threshold table, protein rule, and grade mapping. If it only says “Nutri-Score” without a version, the result cannot be checked independently.

Before using any software-generated score on packaging, reproduce it against the official updated tables and decision tree. Confirm the product category, salt units, protein rule, threshold handling, and grade boundary for the target market.

Use independent test vectors around every threshold and grade boundary. Include high-A products to test the protein rule, category-specific products, exact-boundary decimals, and salt/sodium conversion. Have a qualified regulatory specialist confirm the final on-pack result in the target jurisdiction.

What changed in the 2023 revision

For general solid foods, the revision expanded sugars from 10 to 15 negative points, replaced the old sodium scale with salt up to 20 points, revised fibre thresholds, expanded protein from 5 to 7 points, updated eligible plant ingredients, and shifted A to include score 0. These are core changes.

The revision also created or refined product-category treatment for fats, nuts and seeds, red meat, cheese, and beverages. In France the legal implementation began in March 2025, with a transition period described in official FAQs. The algorithm may evolve again, so the version and review date belong in every calculation record.

Nutri-Score remains a simplification. It does not assess serving frequency, processing in a general-food point component, micronutrients, allergens, sustainability, or individual medical needs. Use it for its intended comparative purpose and communicate confectionery as an occasional product rather than trying to make the letter carry more meaning than it was designed for.

Official references

• Santé publique France. Nutri-Score: current implementation and governance. Updated 19 March 2026.
• Scientific Committee of the Nutri-Score (2022). Update of the Nutri-Score algorithm for solid foods. Official technical report.
• Santé publique France. FAQ: Updated Nutri-Score Algorithm. Product categories, transition, calculation, and logo attribution.
• Santé publique France (2026). Evaluation of the Nutri-Score 2025 campaign. Confirmation of French implementation and expected product changes.
• European Parliament and Council. Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011. Nutrition declaration and salt convention context.

Frequently asked questions