The report assesses the nutrition-related commitments, performance and disclosure practices of 25 of the worlds largest food and beverage manufacturers as measured against international guidelines, norms and accepted best practices.

Danone, Unilever and Nestle are the top performers on the ATNI, receiving the highest scores on both the obesity and undernutrition rankings. But even the top performers have significant room for improvement with the highest score being 6.3 on a 10.0 point scale. In addition, both Danone and Nestle have been reported to be in violation of the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, which affected their scores. The ATNI recommends that both companies, along with other breast-milk substitute manufacturers, take immediate action to ensure full compliance with the International Code.

"Obesity and undernutrition affect billions of people and threaten a global health catastrophe. The Access to Nutrition Index is an urgent call to action for food and beverage manufacturers to integrate improved nutrition into their business strategies. It is not only good for public health; it is a business imperative and key to their long-term sustainability, " said Inge Kauer, Executive Director of ATNI.

The three-year initiative was funded by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Wellcome Trust. Development of ATNI was housed at GAIN and involved an extensive, multi-stakeholder process that included input from governments, international organizations, civil society, academia, and investors at every phase of the process. It was also guided by advice from an independent, multi-stakeholder advisory panel and a group of experts on nutrition. Company research and assessments were conducted by MSCI ESG Research using publicly available documents supplemented by additional information requested from each company.

ATNI evaluated companies on:

"The Access to Nutrition Index offers companies a comprehensive, independent assessment of how well their practices align with competitors in the food and beverage industry and provides benchmarks against which they can improve their approach to nutrition, " said Keith Bezanson, chair of the ATNI Independent Advisory Panel. "The aim is to promote a more objective public debate and encourage companies to do more to address nutritional needs of customers."

Thirty-nine investment organizations which collectively manage more than USD 2.6 trillion in assets have signed a statement of support for the Index. The ATNI Investor Statement recognizes health and nutrition as drivers of future growth in the food and beverage sector, and that those manufacturers that are most effective in anticipating and responding to these factors will be better positioned to deliver superior and more sustained financial performance.

Key findings include:

The report challenges companies to:

Later this year, ATNI will also publish three Spotlight Indexes assessing 10 of the largest food and beverage manufacturers operating in India, Mexico and South Africa, respectively. The ATNI Global Index will be published every two years.

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Access to Nutrition Index Calls on World´s Largest Food & Beverage Manufacturers to Address Global Nutrition Challenges