This study assessed the consistency of the NOVA food classification system among French food and nutrition specialists. Evaluators assigned foods to NOVA groups in an online survey, using two lists: one with marketed food products and ingredient information, and one with generic food items. Fleiss' k, measuring inter-rater reliability, was low (0.32 and 0.34 for marketed and generic foods, respectively), indicating inconsistent assignments. Hierarchical clustering revealed that while some foods showed consistent assignments, a substantial number exhibited high heterogeneity, suggesting that the current NOVA criteria do not enable robust and functional food assignments.
