The rules and methods for calculating fruit and vegetable points (V points) are provided in Schedule 5 of the Food Standards Code.
What can count towards V Points?
- Foods which are fvnl in Schedule 5, that is, fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes (including coconut, spices, herbs, fungi, seeds, and algae) including these foods when: fresh, cooked, frozen, canned, pickled or preserved; and when peeled, diced or cut (or otherwise reduced in size), pureed or dried.
- Fruit juice or vegetable juice (as standardised in Standard 2.6.1 - Fruit Juice and Vegetable Juice), including concentrated juices and purees.
- Coconut flesh (which is to be scored as a nut), whether juiced, dried or desiccated, but not processed coconut products such as coconut milk, coconut cream or coconut oil.
- The water in the centre of the coconut.
What cannot count towards V points?
- A constituent, extract or isolate of a food mentioned above (e.g. peanut oil derived from peanuts, fruit pectin, de-ionised juices) with the exception of fruit juice or vegetable juice (as standardised in Standard 2.6.1).
- Cereal grains mentioned as a class of food in Schedule 22 (e.g. barley, buckwheat, maize, millet, oats, popcorn, rice, rye, sorghum, triticale, wheat and wild rice).
How much fvnl is needed to score V points?
- V points can be scored for foods that contain:
- more than 40% non-concentrated fvnl; or
- more than 40% of a mixture of non-concentrated fvnl and concentrated fruit or vegetables (after the NPSC calculator applies the formula in subsection S5-4(8) in Schedule 5); or
- 25% or more of concentrated fruit or vegetables.
- Foods that do not contain the amounts listed above score zero V points.
Using the NPSC Calculator to determine V points
- The percentage of non-concentrated fvnl/concentrated fruit or vegetables in the food must be determined in accordance with the appropriate method in Standard 1.2.10 - Information requirements - characterising ingredients and components of food, before using the calculator. For health claims the form of the fvnl in the food used to determine the percentage of non-concentrated fvnl/concentrated fruits or vegetables will not always be the same as the form in the final food on which the claim is made.
- The percentage of concentrated (dried) fruit or vegetables needs to be determined separately from the non-concentrated fvnl because a standard conversion factor is used in the calculator that allows for the loss of water from the concentrated fruit or vegetables. The percentage of concentrated fruit or vegetables should be entered into the calculator in the box corresponding with 'Percent concentrated fruit or vegetable ingredients in the food' (note that this only applies to fruit or vegetables that are concentrated/dried, not other fvnl). Do not use your own conversion factor before entering this data into the calculator.
- For the purposes of calculating V points, although fruits and vegetables may be concentrated or non-concentrated fvnl, nuts, legumes, spices, herbs, fungi, seeds, algae and coconut are treated as non-concentrated fvnl. The percentage of the non-concentrated fvnl sources should be entered into the calculator in the box corresponding with 'Percent non-concentrated fvnl ingredients in the food'.
- Potato crisps and similar low moisture vegetable products are also treated as non-concentrated for the purposes of the V points calculation (see paragraph S5-4(6)(d) of Schedule 5). The percentage for these products should also be entered into the calculator in the box 'Percent non-concentrated fvnl ingredients in the food'.
- The percentage of fruit or vegetables may be calculated using the amount of fruit or vegetables in the rehydrated or dehydrated form, as described in Standard 1.2.10. If using a rehydrated form, no further conversion factor should be applied and the percentage of the fruit or vegetables following rehydration should be entered in the calculator in the box corresponding with 'Percent non-concentrated fvnl ingredients in the food'. Alternatively, the percentage of the dehydrated (dried or concentrated) form may be entered in the box corresponding with 'Percent concentrated fruit or vegetable ingredients in the food', in which case the calculator will automatically apply the conversion factor.