NuVal Now at Lowes Foods

Lowes Food Stores has introduced the NuVal Nutritional Scoring System at its 108 locations in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Products throughout the store have been assigned a NuVal score from 1 to 100, with higher scores indicating higher nutritional content, enabling customers to see at a glance how their favorite foods stack up. Scores are highlighted by the system’s trademark blue hexagons on shelf tags.

“Most shoppers find nutrition information confusing and difficult to interpret, but NuVal makes it faster and easier to compare nutrition and make better food choices,” said Steve Hall, president of Lowes Foods, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hickory, N.C.-based Alex Lee Inc. “NuVal LLC’s mission to guide consumers to the most nutritious foods on the shelf is a perfect fit with Lowes Foods’ commitment to help customers save time and live healthier lifestyles.”

Lowes Foods was among the first U.S. supermarket chains to employ a nutritionist to assist shoppers, and in 1997, the company debuted “Be A Smart Shopper,” a nutrition-focused field trip program for elementary school-age children. More than 25,000 students now tour Lowes Foods stores each year.

In addition to facilitating better food choices, NuVal lets shoppers get more nutritional bang for for their buck, as they can now compare items side to side to determine which product offers the better value, not just in price, but also in nutrition. Consumers can also see that in many instances, store-brand products are just as nutritious as their more expensive national-brand counterparts.

A joint venture of Skokie, Ill.-based Topco Associates LLC, and Griffin Hospital in New Haven, Conn., NuVal, which will eventually cover all food sections of the store, is also available at Tops, King Kullen, Price Chopper, Hy-Vee, Meijer, Brookshire’s, Big Y, Skogen’s Festival Foods, Food City, United Supermarkets, Mariano’s Fresh Market, Scolari’s, and select Coborn’s and Metro Market locations.

For more information, contact [email protected] or (781) 228-5800.