Nutri-Score – A Step Towards Healthier Food Choices

Product quality is the most important factor for consumers in food and beverages brands. According to a global trend survey from 2025 provided by Innova Market Insights, specialized in providing market analysis and trends for the food sector, one of the important factors for consumers when buying nutritious food is freshness (both in terms of taste and texture), nutritional content and naturalness. These features represent a significant part of the quality that consumers desire.¹

As consumers increasingly prioritize healthier food choices, the demand for products with better nutritional profiles is rising. Consequently, Nutri-Score has become a key labeling system guiding purchasing decisions. To help consumers make informed choices, it is essential to provide clear, accessible information about the nutritional benefits and overall quality of products.

How Nutri-Score Works

The Nutri-Score calculator uses a well-defined algorithm to evaluate the nutritional profile of food products. It considers various factors and categorizes nutrients as positive (beneficial to health such as fibers, fruits and vegetables) or negative (harmful when consumed in excess such as sugars, saturated fats, salt and calories). The overall nutritional score of a product is calculated by adding the positive nutrients and subtracting the negative nutrients from the total score.²

The Nutri-Score Label

The Challenge and the Solution for Manufactures

Given the trend towards added-value products and the Nutri-Score front label clarifying and making information increasingly accessible to consumers, elevating quality beyond ingredients is crucial. For food manufacturers, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity: How can they improve the nutritional quality of their products—especially breaded and fried foods—without compromising taste and texture?

Frying is one of the most effective cooking techniques for delivering crispiness and flavour, however it comes with a nutritional cost: high oil absorption. The challenge is controlling oil absorption without compromising texture. This is where plant-based protein solutions like InnoBLQ™ become essential.

InnoBLQ is a protein blend designed to form a protective layer around the substrate (the food core) during frying, reducing oil absorption while maintaining the desired texture and flavour.

Protein Blend in Action: Key Benefits for Food Manufacturers

By incorporating fat reduction and increasing protein and fiber levels, products formulated with InnoBLQ and Kemin’s Functional Blends achieve a better Nutri-Score— making them more attractive to health-conscious consumers.   

Incorporating InnoBLQ into food formulations offers a range of benefits:

• Less oil absorption – the protein barrier effect leads to lower oil retention reducing operational costs.
• No loss of taste and texture – InnoBLQ maintains crispiness and sensory attributes.
• Clean label and natural – InnoBLQ is a functional plant-based blend, making it a clean-label functional solution.

On top of that – Functional blends that include fibers enhance the nutritional profile by increasing positive nutrients and fiber content. With Nutri-Score increasingly influencing consumer behavior and retailer strategies, brands should adapt to stay competitive. 

InnoBLQ and Functional Blends are at the forefront of this transformation, providing food manufacturers with a scientifically proven method to reduce fat, increase fiber, and create healthier products without compromising on quality. For brands aiming to promote healthier choices and provide the best to their consumers, exploring the benefits of InnoBLQ and Functional Blends could be a crucial step. Embracing these innovations not only meets the growing demand for healthier options but also ensures that your products remain appealing and competitive in an evolving market.

References:

1 - Innova Trends Survey 2025 (Average of Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Spain, UK, US), B.T.R. Bar

2 - FHA Food & Beverage - Understanding Nutri-Score: Decoding Food Labels - FHA-FnB