The International Breakfast Research Initiative (IBRI) - what really makes a better breakfast?

Previously, there were no internationally-agreed criteria regarding what constitutes a nutritionally balanced breakfast. This is the challenge the IBRI project aimed to address. Its objective was to propose an approach to developing such criteria and define the nutritional guidelines for a balanced breakfast for three regions: Europe & North America, Latin America, and South-East Asia.

The IBRI methodology considered what people in each region actually consume at breakfast with the aim of improving nutritional intakes where needed. It relied on international nutritional recommendations from the World Health Organization and Codex, and can be adapted to specific countries and populations using the country/national and age-specific recommendations.

You can find more details in the video below. The full methodology has been published and is available here.

We have looked at a range of common breakfasts from Europe and North America and tested different options to improve them. Here are some simple steps that can help you make your own breakfast better:

Most people don’t get the recommended 5g of fibre at breakfast. By including a serving of whole grain in your breakfast such as oatmeal, whole grain bread or whole grain cereals, you’ll get up to 4g of fibre!

Breakfast is the primary opportunity to get your recommended calcium intake. A glass of milk will provide a sufficient amount at breakfast – if you prefer a plant-based alternative, make sure it’s fortified with calcium!

Most breakfasts fall short of the recommended levels of vitamins and minerals*. If you add fruit to your breakfast, you’re more likely to get enough of the right stuff!

Adults need 10g of protein and 5g of fibres at breakfast*. Most breakfasts fall short of this, but adding a handful of nuts or seeds to your breakfast will increase your intake of both. What’s more – nuts and seeds are a great source of vitamins and minerals too.

Further, this tool, provided by MS-Nutrition, allows nutritionists around the world to test breakfast examples against the IBRI criteria* and to generate recommendations to improve them.

*At present, only the Western Europe & North America criteria are included in the tool

We have been improving our recipes to provide you with nutritious breakfast options.  We have reduced sugar by 20% and salt by 25% across our portfolio. We have also increased the amount of whole grain by 50% and removed all artificial colours and flavours.

Most of our products are fortified with at least five vitamins and two minerals (calcium and iron). 

In addition, we clearly display on all of ours pack how the product should be consumed as part of a balanced breakfast. Our detailed serving size guide is here.

The IBRI criteria will guide us in our further improvements, to ensure our breakfast cereals represent a great option to build a balanced breakfast.

More questions?

We would be delighted to hear your thoughts on the project and how we can help you achieve a more balanced start of the day. You can reach us here.