So until now, the indication of geographical origin only concerned unprocessed products; it will now also be present in a non-mandatory manner on the packaging of their processed cousins, with the Origin’Info logo.
Since the beginning of July 2024, a new logo has been added to the Nutri-Score on processed food products: Origin’Info. It indicates the origin of the main materialsmaterials agricultural products that compose them, for example the wheatwheatTHE tomatoestomatoes and minced meat for a pasta bolognese dish. This initiative follows an opinion issued by the National Consumer Council (CNC), but also a strong response from consumers, 8 out of 10 of whom consider the origin of products as a major criterion in their purchasing decision. However, until now only unprocessed food products were subject to mandatory information on their geographical origin.
Three possible formats
Not mandatory, the system is based on the voluntary participation of brands with three possible logo formats:
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one with a list of the main agricultural materials of the product and their country of origin;
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one where an indication of the place where the product was processed is added to the list (place represented by a small factory);
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one where the list is this time completed by a pie chart, representing the relative share of each country in the composition of the product.
This logo can be indicated either directly on the product packaging, or on the electronic label on store shelves, or via a QR CodeQR Code to scan to access detailed information online, or finally on the online shopping site for the brands concerned.
More trust between brands and consumers
In addition to allowing consumers to support local producers and reduce their footprint carboncarbonthe approach is also a way to combat certain misleading practices, such as the sometimes abusive use of a flag when no ingredient in the product comes from the country concerned. For brands, it helps strengthen the relationship of trust with their customers and complements the use of recognized acronyms and logos of origin. Currently, 116 brands have already signed up to the charter of the system. The deployment of Origin’Info will be gradual and a review is planned for the first half of 2025 to implement any adjustments.
