The largest food manufacturers in the U.S. have some work to do to live up to their commitments to deliver healthy, affordable food, according to the U.S. Access to Nutrition Index.
The Index, first published in 2018, assessed 11 food manufacturers, which collectively account for roughly 30% of all U.S. food and beverage sales. A total of 127 factors were considered, ranging from product reformulation targets to responsible marketing (e.g., not marketing unhealthy products to children), to the companies’ lobbying activities. The Index scores were calculated on a scale of 0 to 10.
For 2022, the 11 companies, from highest score to lowest, are:
- Unilever – 5.5
- Kellogg – 5.2
- PepsiCo – 4.9
- General Mills – 4.3
- Nestle – 4.3
- Campbell – 3.9
- Keurig Dr. Pepper – 3.9
- Mars – 3.6
- Conagra – 3.5
- Kraft Heinz – 3.3
- Coca-Cola – 3.0
Overall, most companies scored a little higher than when the Index was first published in 2018, but the average was only 4.2. And only one-third of the companies’ combined sales value for over 11,000 products met the “healthy” threshold. Thus, the authors concluded that, “despite the introduction of healthier varieties in some product categories by some companies, the combined product portfolios…have not become healthier.”
Explore the Index to see how the companies did on the individual rating factors.
