Kroger & bitewell’s FoodHealth Empowers Nutrition Choices
The Kroger Co. and bitewell, the FoodHealth Company, are bringing bitewell's nutrition scoring system, the FoodHealth Score, to Kroger’s customers. The scoring system gives customers a reliable way to manage mealtime nutrition.
The Kroger company is driven ‘to feed the human spirit’, with close to 420,000 associates across the family of companies. More than 11m customers are served each day. We included Kroger in our Top 10: Largest Food Retail Chains, for its range of food products, emphasis on locally sourced items and digital platforms which offer grocery delivery and pickup services.
Kroger Health Partners with bitewell to empower customers with FoodHealth scores
Kroger Health, a division of The Kroger Co., stands as a leading retail healthcare provider in America, serving over 17m patients each year. The Kroger Family of Pharmacies manages more than 2,200 pharmacies across 35 states, while The Little Clinic provides telehealth services in nine states and operates over 220 physical clinics in eight states. Its workforce of 24,000 healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, registered dietitians and technicians.
The company champions the concept of ‘food as medicine’ to prevent diseases proactively and promote healthier lifestyles. Meanwhile, nutrition technology company bitewell, aims to enhance global health through food, with its innovative FoodHealth Score system.
The bitewell FoodHealth Score rates foods from 1 - 100 based on factors such as nutrient density and ingredient quality. Kroger customers will now be able to view the FoodHealth Score of an item while shopping online or while using the Kroger app.
In-store, customers can scan the product's UPC code to access the FoodHealth Score, to help customers identify foods which match with their health goal. Customers can also set up a digital account to view their past purchases' FoodHealth Score.
Kroger and bitewell enhance OptUP with advanced FoodHealth score for better nutrition choices
"We are excited to collaborate with bitewell to make advancements that power the OptUP Nutrition Program," shared Laura Brown, Head of Nutrition, Kroger. "This improved resource will help us deliver better access and information to our customers, hopefully leading to improved health outcomes."
Jim Kirby, Chief Commercial Officer at Kroger Health is proud that Kroger and bitewell are united in their desire to improve the nutrition security of millions of people.
"This initiative uses modern technology to give customers the knowledge they need to make better decisions every day,” he said. “With this expanded service, Kroger and bitewell are setting a new standard for nutrition transparency, while empowering customers to gradually change the way they eat."
Kroger's commitment to advancing the concept of Food as Medicine led to the introduction of OptUP in 2017. This colour-coded programme was designed to assist customers in assessing the nutritional value of their food purchases and identifying healthier options. Now, the OptUP programme has been enhanced with the integration of the bitewell FoodHealth Score and an improved scoring algorithm. The bitewell FoodHealth Score, which utilises advanced scientific methods, takes into account a wider array of nutritional factors. This addition significantly enhances the OptUP programme, providing customers with a more comprehensive tool for making informed nutritional choices.
"People need help navigating nutrition while they shop for food," continued Samantha Citro-Alexander, CEO of bitewell. "We've all been there - standing in front of an aisle wondering 'which of these is actually healthy for me?'."
Now the FoodHealth Score will make it fast and easy to answer that question.
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