A nutritional score for every dish, explained to guests

On the dish page, under nutrition, guests see a letter from A to E, a sentence explaining it (“C, mainly thanks to…”) and a note that the score is an estimate.

iAlacarte applies the public Nutri-Score method to the dish recipe, per 100 g: unfavourable points for energy, sugars, saturated fat and salt; favourable points for fibre, protein, fruit, vegetables and legumes. The total gives a letter from A to E.

Amounts come from the ingredients declared on your menu, public food composition tables (ANSES-Ciqual, USDA, FAO) and an estimated portion. When the recipe is unknown or too incomplete, no score is shown: better no score than a made-up number.

NOVA classifies foods into four groups according to their degree of processing: 1, unprocessed or minimally processed foods; 2, culinary ingredients; 3, processed foods; 4, ultra-processed foods.

iAlacarte shows the NOVA group below the score for drinks and branded products when it is provided on the product sheet. It is never estimated. NOVA describes the degree of processing, not nutritional quality: a product can be NOVA 4 and score well, or the other way around.

• Not the official Nutri-Score. The official Nutri-Score is reserved for packaged products and issued by Santé publique France; restaurant dishes are outside its scope.
• Not mandatory. No regulation requires a nutritional score on a restaurant menu.
• Not medical advice. It is a guide for comparing dishes; for a strict diet or medical condition, guests should consult a healthcare professional.
• Not a measurement. Portions and quantities are estimated; the dish page tells guests this.

• Nutri-Score: algorithm and trademark rules (Santé publique France)
• Ultra-processed foods, diet quality, and health using the NOVA classification system (FAO, 2019)