On 1st August 2022, the Italian Competition Authority (“AGCM”) published its decision where it ruled that the NutriScore labelling must be discontinued in Italy because it deceives consumers.  The authority further held that products meant for the French market, where the NutriScore is allowed, and which are distributed also on the Italian market may keep the NutriScore labelling provided that this is sufficiently substantiated.    

Background and Reasoning

The AGCM initiated its investigation in 2021, calling into question the commercial practice of eight distinct companies using the NutriScore labelling on the Italian market.  In its press release announcing the investigation, the AGCM stated that it believed consumers would erroneously perceive the NutriScore as an absolute assessment of the healthiness of a product, whilst the NutriScore does not take into account the overall needs of an individual, including their diet, food intake and lifestyle. 

In its final decision, the authority has maintained this view.  It considers that the NutriScore deceives consumer because it provides “an arbitrary classification of positive foods (fruit, vegetables, fibre and protein) and negative foods (salt, sugar and saturated fat)” but it fails to consider that, for example, proteins are compared without distinguishing their different source (vegetable or animal), fats are not distinguished into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated, and fruit and vegetables are evaluated in the same way as proteins, factors that the authority deems crucial to correctly assess the ‘health impact’ of a food item.

In the AGCM’s view, the NutriScore label does not allow consumers to take informed choices but actually leads them “to believe that, regardless of one’s dietary needs, the green product is preferable over the others in the same product category” and encourages them to consume those green products without limits, on the erroneous assumption that those products cannot have harmful effects on their health. 

Next Steps for Companies

The AGCM decision will have significant direct and indirect implications on food labelling.  In practice, companies that still wish to commercialize their products in Italy with the NutriScore on pack, will be obliged to additionally inform consumers about the nutritional information and dietary context of certain food items by warning them on in-shop posters, shelf tags, their websites, or products’ labelling (even via QR codes) that the NutriScore system is not universally recognized by the scientific community, and that e.g. it does not take into account the needs and nutritional profile of the individual. 

If you have any questions, please contact Giulia Romana Mele or Bart Van Vooren.

Tags: Consumers, Food Labelling, NutriScore
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Photo of Bart Van Vooren Bart Van Vooren

Bart Van Vooren, partner leads a dynamic practice at the intersection of EU regulatory law, global health, and biodiversity law. In these fields, he advises innovative pharmaceutical, food, cosmetic and technology companies on complex EU and global regulatory, compliance and policy assignments.

Bart…

Bart Van Vooren, partner leads a dynamic practice at the intersection of EU regulatory law, global health, and biodiversity law. In these fields, he advises innovative pharmaceutical, food, cosmetic and technology companies on complex EU and global regulatory, compliance and policy assignments.

Bart holds a Ph.D. in EU and International Law and was a professor of EU law until 2013. During that time, he wrote the first-ever handbook with Cambridge University Press on “EU External Relations Law” (2014). He then transitioned to private practice, and frequently acted for the Belgian government before the EU Court of Justice (e.g. C-16/16P Belgium vs Commission). Bart joined Covington in 2016, leading some of our most consequential EU litigation proceedings (e.g. C-311/18 “Schrems II”) over the years.  Having handled nearly 50 cases before the EU Court, he’s uniquely qualified to support our corporate clients in our most high-stakes disputes. Recent examples include T-189/21 Aloe Vera of Europe v Commission (which we won, so the Commission decided to appeal); as well as T-201/21 Covington & Burling and Van Vooren v Commission (which we also won, and hence is also on appeal).

As a pioneer in biodiversity law, over the past 15 years Bart has built a unique, global practice on Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) laws under the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Nagoya Protocol, the Plant Treaty, the High Seas Treaty and the WHO Pandemic Agreement. ABS compliance is critical when sourcing biological materials for life sciences R&D and I work with many of the world’s innovative life sciences companies on the whole range of e.g. transactional, contractual, compliance, IP, (EU) regulatory and litigation work relating to ABS. As biodiversity has increasingly become identified as a major commercial and financial risk to companies, so has the practice expanded to e.g. biodiversity credit markets, biodiversity insurance, biodiversity claims and advertising, and so on. Since April 2025, Bart has been appointed as the industry representative to the Steering Committee of the UN Biodiversity Fund that seeks funding from the private sector for biodiversity conservation and restoration.

Bart also pioneered our global health practice. He has advised pharmaceutical clients on seasonal and pandemic influenza since 2016. Since then, this practice area expanded to cover all matters relating to infectious diseases, and as of 2020, emergency preparedness and response (eg. WHO prequalification, International Coordination Group negotiations, Emergency Use Listing, International Health Regulations Rev 2024). He has been the pharmaceutical industry’s lead lawyer advising on the WHO Pandemic Treaty negotiations, adopted on 14 May 2025. Currently, he continues to advise on the work of the Intergovernmental Working Group (“IGWG”) teasing out the technical details of the “Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing System” intended to create legally binding obligations on companies to commit vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics in case of a new global health emergency.

In Chambers rankings, clients have kindly described Bart as “very knowledgeable, action-focused and service-focused lawyer”, adding that he “really tries to find a way of working through challenges”, am “customer-oriented” and provide “sound advice and reasonable options for our business with pros and cons.”

Finally, Bart has an active pro bono practice assisting NGOs defending the human rights of persons with a disability through strategic litigation before the EU Court.

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