The Belgian supermarket chain Colruyt has introduced the rating system Eco-Score, to indicate the environmental impact of its food products labeled ‘Boni Selection’.
Eco-Score comes with a front-of-pack (FOP) label consisting of a color and a letter code, as well as a barcode that can be scanned by the Eco-Score app for fuller information. The score is calculated by combining two elements:
- Results of the life cycle analysis (‘from farm to fork’) of more than 2,500 product categories available in the Agribalyse database, developed by the French governmental agency ADEME (Agence de la transition écologique)
- Extra indicators, according to a bonus-malus system, such as food production methods, products impact on biodiversity and recyclability of the packaging.
“People want simple, relevant information. They want to go beyond how healthy a product is and what its nutritional value is. Market research has shown that customers are also asking questions about the environmental impact of their products. It is up to us as retailers to help them, starting with our private label products,” said the responsible for the Eco-Score project at Colruyt Group, Stefan Goethaert, in a company’s press release.
Main image source: Datagir