Nestle reported 60% of its food products are 'unhealthy'

Nestle SA, a Swiss FMCG firm, stated it is working across its whole portfolio to boost the nutritional profile of its products, after admitting that 60% of its mainstream food and beverage portfolio failed to fulfil "recognised criteria of health and nutrition."

Nestle is revamping its nutrition and health strategy as part of a company-wide initiative. According to a Nestlé SA spokeswoman, the company is reviewing its whole portfolio to verify that its products are meeting consumers' nutritional demands and ensuring a balanced diet.

The Financial Times revealed, on Monday, that the bulk of Nestle's mainstream food and beverage portfolio failed to fulfil recognised health and nutrition criteria.

"Nestlé, the world's largest food company, has affirmed that more than 60% of its mainstream food and drink products do not meet the 'recognised definition of health' and that 'some of our categories and products will never be healthy' no matter how much we renovate," the Financial Times reported, citing a Nestle document.

According to a presentation distributed among top executives this year and obtained by the Financial Times, only 37% of Nestle's food and beverages by revenue, excluding products such as pet food and specialised medical nutrition, achieve a rating higher than 3.5 on Australia's health star rating system.

According to the media report, "within its entire food and drink portfolio, over 70% of Nestlé's food products failed to satisfy that criterion, as did 96% of drinks (excluding pure coffee) and 100% of Nestlé's confectionery and ice cream portfolio."

Nestle, the creator of KitKat, Maggi noodles, and Nescafé, said in a global statement that it is embarking on a company-wide effort to modernise its nutrition and health strategy.

"We are reviewing our whole portfolio throughout the various stages of people's lives to ensure our goods are helping satisfy their nutritional demands and promoting a balanced diet," he added. Nestle, for instance, has drastically decreased sugar and salt levels in their products over the last two decades, by 14-15% in the last seven years alone.

"In recent years, we've developed hundreds of items for kids and families that fulfil external nutrition yardsticks," he explained. He went on to say "We have also provided billions of vitamin doses through our cost-effective and healthy goods. As we contemplate our future nutrition strategy, we are beginning by evaluating a portion of our food and beverage portfolio that can be tested against external nutrition profile methods."

In this context, systems such as Health Star Rating and Nutri-Score can help customers make educated decisions.

"However, they don’t acquire everything. These systems do not cover around half of our revenues. This includes newborn nourishment, specialised health products, and pet food, all of which adhere to controlled nutrition requirements" he added.

Nestle thinks that a good diet entails striking a balance between well-being and happiness. "This includes making room for delicious meals, which should be enjoyed in moderation. Our course of action has not altered and remains unchanged: we will continue to make our portfolio tastier and healthier" it stated.

Nestle is a major participant in the packaged food industry in India. It now has 8 manufacturing facilities and declared net sales of ₹13290.16 crore for 2020.

In October last year, Nestle announced that it will invest ₹2,600 crore in India over the next three to four years to expand current operations and build a new forthcoming operation in Sanand, Gujarat.

In terms of contribution to Nestle's worldwide revenue in 2020, the Indian market was rated 11th.

"Nestlé India thinks that nutrition is a fundamental requirement and that the food business can help people live better lives. We are continuously seeking to enhance the nutrition profile of our products, as well as innovate with new and healthy options, since we are driven by our purpose" according to the Nestlé India spokeswoman.