The Yuka app promises to help consumers make better food choices for their health. But are these recommendations always accurate? We asked a registered dietitian about Yuka's pros and cons.
Just over a half (62%) Americans have confidence in the safety of the food supply, with the presence of carcinogens and pesticides being among the most common concerns, according to a 2024 survey.
Increasing awareness and interest in healthy foods open the door to products like the Yuka app, a free mobile application that allows users to scan foods and cosmetic products and assigns them a score from 0 to 100, suggesting whether the product is healthy.
Anything over 75 is considered 'excellent,' a score of 50-75 is 'good,' and 20-50 is 'poor.' The products that score less than 20 are considered 'bad.'
The Yuka app now has over 55 million users across 12 countries, including its fastest-growing market, the United States. Even the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, admitted using it.
Many users praise Yuka for helping them understand what ingredients are in their food and
what impact they can have on health. After all, diets rich in certain foods can contribute to the development of chronic diseases, while some eating patterns may protect against them.
However, nutrition experts say the Yuka app doesn't always take into account personal dietary needs, while the classification of foods into 'good' and 'bad' may reinforce disordered eating beliefs.
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The Yuka app is marketed to help consumers make healthier food choices.
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However, the app doesn’t address personal nutrition needs and sometimes may assign low scores to nutritious foods.
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Some nutrition experts warn that dividing foods into ‘good’ and ‘bad’ may reinforce disordered eating beliefs.
The science behind the Yuka app
Let's take a deeper look at how the app rates foods and what the scientific basis is for it.
According to Yuka's website, nutritional quality accounts for 60% of the score. The calculation method is based on Nutri-Score, a nutrition label used in several European countries that rates foods based on the quantity of specific nutrients. For example, foods high in added sugar, sodium, and saturated fats would have a lower score compared to those rich in fruits, vegetables, and fiber.
The Nutri-Score system is supported by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which called the label 'harmonized and mandatory,' and multiple European scientific associations.
Another 30% of the score is based on the presence of additives. Yuka's website states that the benchmarks for additives are based on the latest scientific research. They also consider the recommendations of the IARC and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), a European agency that advises on food safety.
Each additive is assigned a level of risk. If the level is high, the maximum score for the product is set at 49/100.
Additives are used to prevent foods from spoiling and enhance their color and taste, and their health risks depend on the amount consumed. That's why they have established acceptable daily intakes (ADI), which indicate how much of a certain additive can be consumed over a lifetime without causing adverse health effects.
The organic dimension accounts for 10% of the score. Products labeled as organic score higher than non-organic ones to help users avoid pesticides. However, there's no strong evidence that organic foods are nutritionally superior to conventional foods.
Studies suggest no significant differences in terms of macro nutritional value, such as the content of protein, fat, carbohydrate, and dietary fiber.
However, some data indicate that organic crops have higher antioxidant concentrations, particularly polyphenols. Moreover, organic dairy products may contain higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, while organic meats have improved fatty acid profiles.
Organic foods may contain lower levels of heavy metals such as cadmium, as well as synthetic fertilizer and pesticide residues.
How accurate is the Yuka app?
Amy Woodman, RD, registered dietitian and founder of Farmington Valley Nutrition and Wellness, says she agrees with most of Yuka's healthy designations. However, the app may be too quick to give particular foods the thumbs down.
When evaluating whether a certain food is healthy, it is important to consider the amount a person will consume, their individual nutritional needs, and the rest of their diet, Woodman says. The Yuka app doesn't take into consideration where a person is on their journey towards a healthier diet either.
If I'm seeing a patient who is consuming a lot of butter, I may recommend that they try an olive oil butter blend instead of butter to help them transition towards using healthier fats like olive oil. This change would decrease saturated fat by up to 40%. But the Yuka app would just tell them both products are bad.
Amy Woodman, RD
Yuka's review by the World Cancer Research Fund points out that the presence of additives lowers the scores even if the amount of these additives is very small and unlikely to cause health problems.
The dangers of the Yuka app
A lot of criticism towards Yuka comes from the categorization of foods, with some experts warning consumers against using the app.
Labeling foods as 'bad' reinforces disordered eating beliefs that you are 'bad' for eating them, according to Jo Moscalu, MSc RD, an eating disorder specialist dietitian.
"Constantly scrutinizing labels makes you more worried about food, which can be harmful to your mental and physical health," she wrote on Instagram.
Dr. Adrian Chavez, an evidence-based nutritionist, compared the app to 'having one of those terrible influencers who walk around grocery stores giving misleading fear-mongering nutrition advice in your pocket all the time.'
Creating a general rating of healthy and unhealthy foods that applies to everyone is very difficult, Woodman says.
"People have individual nutrition needs that may not always align with the red light-green light rating that Yuka provides. I really like helping my patients get comfortable reading the nutrition facts panel. It's important for consumers to understand which foods are good for them and why," she adds.
The pros of the Yuka app
A recent study from France examined whether the Yuka app outperforms front‐of‐pack nutrition labels for encouraging healthy eating. The researchers analyzed over 16,000 online reviews, surveyed 86 respondents, and carried out two experiments.
They found that Yuka is more effective than front‐of‐pack nutrition labels under three conditions. First, when the app suggests a product's poor nutritional quality. Good scores don't affect consumer response as much because consumers generally don't expect the product to be unhealthy.
The app was also found to outperform front‐of‐pack nutrition labels when used by distrustful consumers. This likely may be due to growing consumer distrust toward dominant players, including public authorities and large corporations, which is fueled by conspiracy theories and misinformation.
Moreover, the Yuka app is more effective at influencing decisions about the brands with lower equity. For high-range brands, their strength may be enough to influence consumer choice.
The authors concluded, "Ultimately, this suggests food scanner apps and front‐of‐pack labels complement rather than oppose each other. The findings provide implications for public policymakers and food brand managers."
The takeaway
The Yuka app doesn't take into account personalized nutrition needs, while categorizing foods into 'good' and 'bad' may fuel disordered eating beliefs, according to some experts. However, emerging evidence suggests that the app can complement front‐of‐pack nutrition labels to help people make healthier food choices.
8 resources
- American Heart Association. The American Heart Association diet and lifestyle recommendations.
- The International Food Information Council. 2024 IFIC Food & Health SURVEY.
- Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Food consumption and its impact on cardiovascular disease: Importance of solutions focused on the globalized food system.
- International Agency for Research on Cancer. Nutri-Score: Harmonized and mandatory front-of-pack nutrition label urgently needed at the European Union level and beyond.
- United European Gastroenterology. UEG joins key European public health organisations in supporting the mandatory adoption of the NutriScore in the EU.
- Nutrients. A systematic review of organic versus conventional food consumption: Is there a measurable benefit on human health?
- World Cancer Research Fund. Healthy new you: the Yuka app – review.
- Psychology & Marketing. When food scanner apps outperform front‐of‐pack nutrition labels: A conditional process model to foster healthier food choices in times of growing distrust.
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