(PTFS11-02-26) Evaluating Israel’s Front-of-Package Labelling Policy: A National Nutritional Profile of the Retail Food Environment

Objectives: Front-of-package labelling (FOPL) is a key nutrition policy tool designed to improve population diets by guiding consumers toward healthier products and encouraging industry reformulation. Israel’s 2020 dual-label system, combines mandatory red nutrient warnings and voluntary green endorsement labels, is unique internationally but has not been systematically evaluated at the market level. This study assessed the nutritional profile of products sold in Israel’s retail environment two years after policy implementation.

Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted on 7,884 products from two major supermarket chains representing ≈ 45% of national grocery sales. Product data was scraped from online catalogues (November 2022), classified into 15 food groups, and coded for FOPL status (prevalence and compliance), nutrient composition, and price. Nutrient and price densities were analyzed using Kruskal–Wallis and Wilcoxon tests with Dunn’s post-hoc corrections. Comparisons were made between labelled and unlabelled products and across food groups.

Results: Overall, 45% of products carried at least one red warning label (sugar 24%, saturated fat 23.8%, sodium 16.5%), while 52% had none. Only 3.4% displayed voluntary green labels despite 12.2% eligibility. Compliance with warning labels was high (92%), with most non-compliance related to sodium. Nearly one-quarter (23.5%) of unlabelled packaged products had sodium levels within 5% of the regulatory threshold, suggesting strategic reformulation near cutoff values. Labelled products were more energy-dense and more expensive per 100 g but cheaper per 1,000 kcal. 

Conclusions: Israel’s dual-FOPL policy has reshaped the retail food environment but reveals limited green-label uptake and widespread borderline sodium reformulation. Strengthening nutrient thresholds, improving monitoring, and integrating complimentary fiscal policies may enhance policy impact and health equity.

Funding Sources: The research was partially supported by a subcontract from the Global Food Research Program at UNC-Chapel Hill, funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies.