4.2 Refined Ingredients (N03), Food Advertising (N04), Artificial Ingredients (N05) & Portion Sizes (N06)
Key Takeaways
- N03 Part 1 caps beverages at 25 g of sugar per container or serving, requires at least 25% of beverages to contain no sugar or drinking water at no cost, and caps non-beverage foods except whole fruit at 25 g of sugar per serving.
- N04 Option 1 prohibits advertising or promoting sugar-sweetened beverages and deep-fried options and prohibits displaying deep-fried options under heat lamps; Option 2 instead requires two instances of messaging promoting fruits and vegetables or drinking water.
- N05 offers a three-year phase-out with labeling, or an outright restriction, of a defined list of artificial colorings, sweeteners, preservatives and fats including partially hydrogenated oil and brominated vegetable oil.
- N06 requires standard menu items at or below 650 Cal, or a smaller and lower-cost version for at least 50% of items above 650 Cal.
- N06 self-serve dishware limits for adults are 10 in (25 cm) circular plates, 79 in2 (507 cm2) non-circular plates, and 16 fl oz (473 mL) bowls and cups, with smaller limits for primary and secondary school students.
4.2 Refined Ingredients (N03), Food Advertising (N04), Artificial Ingredients (N05) & Portion Sizes (N06)
Core Exam Takeaway: Four consecutive optimizations, each worth 1–2 points, and each easy to mis-number. N03 Refined Ingredients (2 pt) = sugar and whole grains. N04 Food Advertising (1 pt) = what may be promoted. N05 Artificial Ingredients (1 pt) = the named-chemical list. N06 Portion Sizes (1 pt) = 650 Cal and dishware dimensions. If your notes say "N05 Portion Sizes," correct them.
Feature N03: Refined Ingredients — Optimization (2 pt / WELL Core 2 pt)
Intent: help individuals avoid highly processed foods and refined ingredients.
N03 Part 1 — Limit Total Sugars (1 pt)
Foods and beverages sold or provided daily meet all three:
- (a) Beverages do not contain more than 25 g of sugar per container or serving.
- (b) At least 25% of beverages contain no sugar per container or serving, or drinking water is available at no cost.
- (c) No non-beverage food item (except whole fruit) contains more than 25 g of sugar per serving.
[!WARNING] Requirement (b) is 25% of beverages with zero sugar, and it has an either/or escape: free drinking water satisfies it outright. Study materials frequently misstate this as "50% of beverages must be sugar-free or low-sugar." Note also the whole fruit exemption in (c) — a banana's naturally occurring sugar is not the target.
N03 Part 2 — Promote Whole Grains (1 pt)
- (a) In at least 50% of grain-based foods — defined as foods with a grain flour as the first ingredient or containing ≥ 30% grain ingredients — a whole grain is the first ingredient.
- (b) If both whole grain and refined grain options are available, whole grain options do not cost more than their refined counterparts (brown rice must not cost more than white rice).
Scoping note: projects must have at least one whole grain option at each food outlet (where grain-based foods are sold), but the 50% calculation may be considered across the entire food service operation — per food category or total number of grain-based foods.
[!TIP] The test is "a whole grain is the first ingredient," not a percentage of whole grain by weight. "Whole grain rich, ≥51% whole grain" is a U.S. school-meal standard, not WELL's rule. And requirement (b) — price parity — is the quiet equity provision: healthier default choices must not carry a price penalty.
Feature N04: Food Advertising — Optimization (1 pt / WELL Core 1 pt)
Intent: encourage the selection and consumption of healthier food choices through advertising and messaging.
N04 Part 1 — Optimize Food Advertising
Option 1: Food advertising — all three:
- (a) Sugar-sweetened beverages are not advertised or promoted.
- (b) Deep-fried food options are not advertised or promoted.
- (c) Deep-fried food options are not displayed under heat lamps.
Option 2: Nutritional messaging. All dedicated eating areas and points of sale contain at least two different instances of messaging promoting either the consumption of fruits and vegetables or the consumption of drinking water.
[!TIP] Requirement (c) is delightfully specific and highly testable: WELL treats the heat lamp as a form of advertising, because a golden, steaming display case is a promotional device regardless of whether any sign accompanies it. Note that N04 restricts promotion, it does not ban selling the items.
Feature N05: Artificial Ingredients — Optimization (1 pt / WELL Core 1 pt)
Intent: help individuals avoid artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners and preservatives.
N05 Part 1 — Limit Artificial Ingredients
Option 1: Artificial ingredient phase out — both:
- (a) The project phases out over a maximum of three years the use, sale and provision of foods and beverages containing the listed artificial ingredients.
- (b) All foods and beverages sold or provided are clearly labeled on packaging, nearby menus or signage to indicate whether they contain the listed artificial ingredients.
Option 2: Artificial ingredient restriction. All foods and beverages sold or provided daily do not contain the listed artificial ingredients.
The list, by category
| Category | Listed ingredients |
|---|---|
| Colorings | Blue 1 (E133), Blue 2 (E132), Green 3, Orange B, Citrus Red 2, Red 3 (E127), Red 40 (E129), Yellow 5 (E102), Yellow 6 (E110), carmine, cochineal, caramel coloring |
| Sweeteners | acesulfame-potassium (acesulfame-K), advantame, aspartame, calcium saccharin, saccharin, sucralose, cyclamate, neotame, polydextrose, olestra |
| Preservatives | sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, potassium bromate, potassium iodate, propyl gallate, BHA, BHT, TBHQ, sodium benzoate |
| Fats & oils | BVO (brominated vegetable oil), partially hydrogenated oil |
[!IMPORTANT] Partially hydrogenated oil — the industrial trans fat source — is restricted under N05, not N03. N03 governs sugar and grains only. This is the single most common cross-feature error in the Nourishment concept.
[!TIP] The three-year phase-out in Option 1 is generous by design: a project with long-term vending or catering contracts cannot reformulate overnight, so WELL trades immediate compliance for transparent labeling during the transition. Option 2 is the harder, faster path with no labeling obligation.
Feature N06: Portion Sizes — Optimization (1 pt / WELL Core 1 pt)
Intent: promote healthy portion sizes and reduce unintended overconsumption and food waste.
N06 Part 1 — Promote Healthy Portions
For commercial dining spaces, both:
- (a) All standard menu items do not contain more than 650 Cal (650 kCal), or a version or portion of the item is available at a smaller size and lower cost for at least 50% of all standard menu items containing more than 650 Cal.
- (b) Where food is self-serve (e.g., buffet), dishware does not exceed these sizes:
| Dishware | Primary school students | Secondary school students | Adults |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circular plates, diameter | 8 in (20 cm) | 10 in (25 cm) | 10 in (25 cm) |
| Non-circular plates, surface area | 49 in² (314 cm²) | 79 in² (507 cm²) | 79 in² (507 cm²) |
| Bowls, volume | 8 fl oz (240 mL) | 12 fl oz (355 mL) | 16 fl oz (473 mL) |
| Cups, volume | 8 fl oz (240 mL) | 12 fl oz (355 mL) | 16 fl oz (473 mL) |
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| WHY DISHWARE SIZE IS A HEALTH CONTROL |
| |
| The Delboeuf illusion: an identical portion looks smaller on a large |
| plate and larger on a small plate. Diners self-serve to a visual |
| fraction of plate area, not to a caloric target. |
| |
| Plate area scales with the SQUARE of diameter: |
| 10 in plate -> ~79 in2 12 in plate -> ~113 in2 (+43%) |
| |
| So a two-inch increase in plate diameter can drive a ~40% larger |
| self-served portion at identical perceived fullness. Capping the |
| dishware caps the portion without policing the diner. |
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[!TIP] Note that secondary school students and adults share the same plate limits but the bowl and cup limits differ (12 fl oz vs 16 fl oz). And requirement (a) has a genuine either/or: a project need not reformulate its menu if it offers smaller, cheaper versions of at least half its over-650-Cal items. The lower cost condition matters — a smaller portion at the same price would not comply.
Under N03 Part 1, what must be true of the beverages a project sells daily?
Which WELL v2 feature restricts partially hydrogenated oil in foods sold or provided by the project?
A corporate cafeteria offers a self-serve buffet for adult employees. What is the maximum permitted bowl volume and circular plate diameter under N06?
A café inside a WELL project displays deep-fried chicken tenders under heat lamps at the counter but runs no advertisements for them. Does this satisfy N04 Part 1's advertising-restriction route?