KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Nutrition Keys will appear on the front of Best Choice and Always Save private-label products distributed by Associated Wholesale Grocers.
Designed by the Food Marketing Institute with the Grocery Manufacturers Association in response to a request from First Lady Michelle Obama, the voluntary system will highlight four nutrients to limit (calories, saturated fat, sodium and sugars) and eight nutrients to encourage (potassium, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, calcium, iron and protein).
An item must contain at least 10% of the daily value per serving in order to carry a nutrient to encourage. Depending on the product and available space, AWG may just include the calorie icon.
“We are working with our design teams and well on our way to modifying the labels on the 3,000-some food products that we distribute,” said Jerry Garland, president and chief executive officer of AWG, in a statement. “Certainly this doesn’t happen overnight, but we expect to start rolling out the first of the front-of-pack labels in the next 160 days and then continue on for the next 12 months.”
