Have you noticed newly designed shelf labels in your grocery store lately? Markets are making big strides in consumer nutrition education by creating label systems using shapes, colors, and numbers to make it easier to make healthy food choices.

Hannaford has had their kid-friendly Guiding Stars system for years. Foods that don’t meet nutritional criteria have no star label. Parents can engage kids in shopping by setting star limits for foods that can be placed in the shopping cart. One star is good, two better, and three best.

Recently, Shaws Supermarkets introduced their Nutrition IQ color-coded labels based on food nutrient content. A multi-colored wheel on their site explains the details, and makes it easy to select healthy foods based on your needs.

Many markets, like Big Y, Tops, Price Chopper and fourteen other chains are using the Nuval system of shelf labels. Foods are rated a number from 1 to 100 using a complex formula of multiple variables. A score of 100 is the best. Try the “Nutrition by the Numbers” game on their website, and compare family scores.

All of these nutrition tools make grocery shopping faster and effective, and lend themselves well to creating games for kids to help and learn.

Have them search for number ranges, or colors, or star level foods. Think of it as a scavenger hunt in the grocery store. It’s a win-win game for families or individuals.