FAQ

DII-Certification and Inflammation Food Grade Scores (IFGS).

What is Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII)®?
Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII)® is the index used to measure how inflammatory foods are to an individual’s body and its organs. It is derived through a complex mathematical formula. Dietary Inflammation has been clinically studied and documented for more than 27+ years by our partner Dr. James R. Hebert, ScD a world renowned nutritional epidemiologist and Harvard alumni and Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Arnold School of Public Health of the University of South Carolina, USA. He is the world’s expert on Dietary Inflammation and inventor of the world’s first and only Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII)® and Children’s Dietary Inflammatory Index (C-DII)™. He is also the founder of our partner company Connecting Health Innovations, Columbia, South Carolina, USA.
Do you certify each and every food product? Suppose, if an establishment or a company manufactures/produces/processes 40 products individually, then, do you certify for all the 40 products independently?

Yes, each product is certified individually. The cost for us to certify each product is mentioned below in the process involved for certification; however we do not certify a product singly without being part of a total licensing/marketing package with the food producer to assure increased products consumption/sales (traction and validity of bearing DII Certification/IFGS labels).

What process is involved for certification?

Food producers submit formulations (inclusive of ingredients, ingredient proportions/weights, and ingredients specificity as known) for analysis and scoring;

A small certification application fee of INR 2000 is submitted per product put forth; as part of this application process, the food producer will need to provide all country of origin food production/distribution approvals assuring Health Interventions its labels are applied to products meeting industry standards;

Analysis and Computation by Connecting Health Innovations llc , USA (CHI) will inform the results and certification recognition, issue of product certification, DII-Certified Seal of Approval and corresponding Inflammation Food Grade;

Each certification and label offer is good for one calendar year. Renewal applications (additional fee and continuance or revisement of revenue-share agreement) are to be submitted within 60 days of the expiry date. This will require updates on any formulations previously approved.

Any liquidation of products bearing our certifications through market pathways other than direct sales or those specified within the contract, are subject to a revised royalty or fee agreement;

Any other details or inputs to be provided by the client?
Each client provides us their nutrient content as per the guidelines of their respective country/regulatory agency.
Any other important points for consideration?

Products, once certified, are the responsibility of the producer to control quality and not alter product specs. We expect and trust, any food product certified by us meets the country of origin food product and distribution standards and must reflect the same.

Any product reported to Health Interventions and its partner CHI reflecting its Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) Certified and Inflammatory Food Grade Score (IFGS) labels, and whose company do not possess valid certifications, will be subject to a fine per instance discovered. The fine for Indian Market is INR 300000 per instance discovered.

In addition, Health Interventions llp, Connecting Health Innovations llc, and University of South Carolina reserve the right to take legal recourse against companies misusing the certification and labelling. This is to prevent unscrupulous elements in carrying out our labelling for commercial gains and provide genuine players the stated value addition to their products.

What is the turnaround time that can be promised for the final certification and grading?
2 – 3 Weeks.
What is the market reaction to your products?
We are pioneers on all fronts relative to launching these scientifically-based innovations targeting Dietary Inflammation. It’s a unique concept in bio-medicine.
Can you cite any reference to your products?

We have been well received, garnered a lot of interests in the US and India. All clients will be added to our website for easy reference.Our partner CHI is investigating how the DII Certification and IFGS should be co-branded with this existing ‘Healthy Heart Check’ label by the American Heart Association.

We also would urge every interested institution, company, individual or a decision maker to visit the case studies section of our website for better understanding of our scientific base.

Are you eligible to provide a certificate? Is there any government restriction or approval for this?
This is not a government-backed certification. We are the certifiers using our proprietary system patented in the United States by University of South Carolina (USC) and duly licensed for commercial operations to Connecting Health Innovations llc, Columbia, South Carolina, USA (CHI)and Health Interventions llp, the commercial partner of CHI to India and Asian markets.
What are the advantages of DII-Certification for food production, food processing and restaurant chains?
DII Certified Seal of Approval and Inflammation Food Grade System (inclusive of labelling) is desired by food producers and supported by distribution entities to realize edge in the market.
Can DII-Certification be desirable for Institutional settings?
This is especially desirable to be competitive when gaining end-user institutional settings like hospitals, universities, schools, corporations and congregational settings (in U.S. this is assisted living/nursing home facilities)-wherever there are cafeteria/food-service environments.