Hy-Vee at Midday: NuVal System

By Kimberly Proctor, Hy-Vee Dietitian

Organically grown tomatoes at the Hy Vee Food Store on Waterfront Dr. in Iowa City.

Tools

By Ashley Hinson

Story Created: Jan 10, 2012 at 10:21 AM CDT

Story Updated: Jan 10, 2012 at 10:21 AM CDT

New Year, New You…. NuVal™!
In January, our thoughts often turn to ways we can improve our health and manage our weight in the new year. Making better food choices is a good first step, but sorting through all of the nutrition messages can seem daunting. Today, your Hy-Vee dietitian will show you an easy way to size up food items at a glance.

What is NuVal™?
Have you seen this symbol in the Hy-Vee ads or in the stores? This is the NuVal nutrition scoring system which gives each food item a score from 1-100 based on its nutrition value. This score is found on the shelf tag, right next to the product price. Simply put, the higher the number, the more nutritious the food.

How are NuVal™ score calculated?
NuVal™ uses a scientific algorithm created by an independent panel of experts from the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center which considers more than 30 nutrients. Beneficial food components like protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals are factored in, as well as the not-so-good components like saturated fats, added sugars and sodium. Here is a comparison of NuVal™ scores for apple products:

Fresh apple (96)
Unsweetened applesauce (29)
Sweetened applesauce (13)
Apple juice (8)

What is the best way to use NuVal™?
No matter where you start, NuVal™ can help you make better choices. It’s simple! Find the food you usually choose and see if you can “trade up” for a food with a higher score. Use NuVal™ to makeover your meals by choosing ingredients with high scores. For example:

Traditional Lunch Trade-up Lunch
Arnold Italian bread (24) Pepperidge Farms 100% whole wheat bread (39)
Oscar Mayer Bologna (15) Hillshire Farms Reduced sodium turkey (35)
Kraft Deluxe American cheese (18) Hy-Vee 2% milk cheese (24)
Doritos Chips (9) Food Should Taste Good Chips (42)
Capri Sun Drink(1) Hy-Vee Skim milk (91)
Fruit Snacks (1) Apple (96)
Average NuVal™ Score of Foods = 13 Average NuVal™ Score of Foods = 55

Get the whole family involved in making better food choices with NuVal™! Children love to “win” by picking the highest-scoring items, and it provides a great opportunity for parents to start a conversation about good nutrition. For more information about NuVal™, or for a complimentary store tour featuring high-scoring products, contact your Hy-Vee dietitian.

Next Article Records Show Many Police Calls to Home of Manchester Murder Victims

Conversation Guidelines

Be Kind

Don't use abusive, offensive, threatening, racist, vulgar or sexually-oriented language.
Don't attack someone personally. Keep it civil and be responsible.

Share Knowledge

Be truthful. Share what you know and what you are passionate about.
What more do you want to learn? Keep it simple.

Stay focused

Promote lively and healthy debate. Stay on topic. Ask questions and give feedback on the story's topic.

Report Trouble

Help us maintain a quality comment section by reporting comments that are offensive. If you see a comment that is offensive, or you feel violates our guidelines, simply click on the "x" to the far right of the comment to report it.

read the full guidelines here »

Commenting will be disabled on stories dealing with the following subject matter: Crime, sexual abuse, property fires, automobile accidents, Amber Alerts, Operation Quickfinds and suicides.