Dear Dr. Fazzino,

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to PLOS ONE. After careful consideration, we feel that it has merit but does not fully meet PLOS ONE’s publication criteria as it currently stands. Therefore, we invite you to submit a revised version of the manuscript that addresses the points raised during the review process.

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We look forward to receiving your revised manuscript.

Kind regards,

Joanna Tindall, PhD

Staff Editor

PLOS ONE

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

1. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions?

Reviewer #1: Yes

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2. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously? -->?>

Reviewer #1: Yes

**********

3. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available??>

The PLOS Data policy

Reviewer #1: Yes

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4. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English??>

Reviewer #1: Yes

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Reviewer #1: I would like to thank the authors of this manuscript. Having read your manuscript, I understand that it investigates the prevalence and nutrient characteristics of hyper-palatable foods (HPF) across 17 countries, examining their potential link to increased energy intake and obesity. The authors utilize crowdsourced data from the Open Food Facts database to compare the availability of HPF across different countries and analyze their nutrient composition. Additionally, the study explores the overlap between HPF and ultra-processed foods. I have a few suggestions that may further enhance your manuscript:

Abstract

1.1 The abstract is concise and informative. It clearly states the study’s purpose, methodology, key findings, and implications. However, based on the information the authors have provided, it seems that the comparison between HPF and UPF is a significant part of the research. Therefore, it would be beneficial to briefly mention UPF in the abstract to highlight the comparison between HPF and UPF as a key aspect of the research.

Introduction

2.1 While the introduction provides a good overview of HPF and their association with obesity risk, it could be strengthened by expanding on the global prevalence of HPF and the need for more research in this area.

2.2 The authors should explicitly state the research gap that this study aims to fill, such as the lack of comprehensive research on the global prevalence and characteristics of HPF.

Methods

Please provide additional information about the Open Food Facts database is essential for transparency and replicability, including details on data collection and quality assurance procedures.

Discussion

4.1 Please define strengths of your study

4.2 A deeper discussion of UPF, relating it back to the specific findings of the study and highlighting the prevalence of foods classified as both HPF and UPF, would enhance the analysis.

4.3 The authors should compare the study’s findings with previous research, highlighting any similarities or discrepancies and discussing potential explanations for any differences.

4.4 It would be helpful to discuss the implications of the findings for public health interventions.

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what does this mean? ). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

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Reviewer #1: No

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Dear Dr. Fazzino,

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to PLOS ONE. After careful consideration, we feel that it has merit but does not fully meet PLOS ONE’s publication criteria as it currently stands. Therefore, we invite you to submit a revised version of the manuscript that addresses the points raised during the review process.

Please submit your revised manuscript by Jun 09 2025 11:59PM. If you will need more time than this to complete your revisions, please reply to this message or contact the journal office at plosone@plos.org . When you're ready to submit your revision, log on to https://www.editorialmanager.com/pone/ and select the 'Submissions Needing Revision' folder to locate your manuscript file.

• A rebuttal letter that responds to each point raised by the academic editor and reviewer(s). You should upload this letter as a separate file labeled 'Response to Reviewers'.
• A marked-up copy of your manuscript that highlights changes made to the original version. You should upload this as a separate file labeled 'Revised Manuscript with Track Changes'.
• An unmarked version of your revised paper without tracked changes. You should upload this as a separate file labeled 'Manuscript'.

If applicable, we recommend that you deposit your laboratory protocols in protocols.io to enhance the reproducibility of your results. Protocols.io assigns your protocol its own identifier (DOI) so that it can be cited independently in the future. For instructions see: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/s/submission-guidelines#loc-laboratory-protocols . Additionally, PLOS ONE offers an option for publishing peer-reviewed Lab Protocol articles, which describe protocols hosted on protocols.io. Read more information on sharing protocols at https://plos.org/protocols?utm_medium=editorial-email&utm_source=authorletters&utm_campaign=protocols .

We look forward to receiving your revised manuscript.

Kind regards,

John W. Apolzan, PhD

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE

Journal Requirements:

Please review your reference list to ensure that it is complete and correct. If you have cited papers that have been retracted, please include the rationale for doing so in the manuscript text, or remove these references and replace them with relevant current references. Any changes to the reference list should be mentioned in the rebuttal letter that accompanies your revised manuscript. If you need to cite a retracted article, indicate the article’s retracted status in the References list and also include a citation and full reference for the retraction notice.

Additional Editor Comments:

Please note few comments that remain to be addressed.

Could you please review the comments and address them accordingly. 

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Reviewers' comments:

Reviewer's Responses to Questions

Comments to the Author

Reviewer #1: All comments have been addressed

Reviewer #2: (No Response)

**********

2. Is the manuscript technically sound, and do the data support the conclusions??>

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Partly

**********

3. Has the statistical analysis been performed appropriately and rigorously? -->?>

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

**********

4. Have the authors made all data underlying the findings in their manuscript fully available??>

The PLOS Data policy

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

**********

5. Is the manuscript presented in an intelligible fashion and written in standard English??>

Reviewer #1: Yes

Reviewer #2: Yes

**********

Reviewer #1: (No Response)

Reviewer #2: This manuscript presents a well-designed and methodologically transparent cross-national analysis of hyper-palatable foods (HPF) using a large crowdsourced dataset (Open Food Facts). The study applies a validated operational definition of HPF and contributes original insights into cross-country differences in food formulation and the overlap with ultra-processed foods (UPF). Statistical methods are appropriate and clearly reported, and the discussion is well-aligned with the findings.

Nonetheless, a few aspects could be strengthened to improve clarity and interpretability. First, the conceptual distinction between HPF and UPF—though central to the manuscript—would benefit from clearer explanation earlier in the introduction or discussion. This would help readers unfamiliar with the field better contextualize the comparative findings. Second, while the dataset is extensive, the representativeness of country-level comparisons remains limited. A more detailed discussion of data coverage across countries (e.g., imbalances in product counts, potential input bias, or contributor type) would help interpret the generalizability of results.

Although the manuscript acknowledges the limitations of working with a crowdsourced database, highlighting a few critical patterns from the supplemental figures in the main text—particularly for nutrient composition—could improve synthesis. The analysis of HPF–UPF overlap is a novel strength of the study and could be more prominently presented in the Results section. Finally, while the manuscript is written in standard English, minor stylistic improvements in phrasing and paragraph transitions could enhance readability, particularly in the Results and Discussion sections.

In summary, this is a relevant and technically sound contribution to the literature on food system environments and public health nutrition. I recommend publication pending minor to moderate revisions, focused on interpretive framing and clarity of presentation.

**********

what does this mean? ). If published, this will include your full peer review and any attached files.

If you choose “no”, your identity will remain anonymous but your review may still be made public.

Do you want your identity to be public for this peer review? For information about this choice, including consent withdrawal, please see our Privacy Policy

Reviewer #1: No

Reviewer #2: Yes:  Sinara Laurini Rossato

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[NOTE: If reviewer comments were submitted as an attachment file, they will be attached to this email and accessible via the submission site. Please log into your account, locate the manuscript record, and check for the action link "View Attachments". If this link does not appear, there are no attachment files.]

While revising your submission, please upload your figure files to the Preflight Analysis and Conversion Engine (PACE) digital diagnostic tool, https://pacev2.apexcovantage.com/ . PACE helps ensure that figures meet PLOS requirements. To use PACE, you must first register as a user. Registration is free. Then, login and navigate to the UPLOAD tab, where you will find detailed instructions on how to use the tool. If you encounter any issues or have any questions when using PACE, please email PLOS at figures@plos.org

Attachments

Attachment

Submitted filename: Review_PLOS_ONE_HPF_Structure.pdf

Examination of Hyper-Palatable Foods and their Nutrient Characteristics using Globally Crowdsourced Data

PONE-D-24-53803R2

Dear Dr. Fazzino,

We’re pleased to inform you that your manuscript has been judged scientifically suitable for publication and will be formally accepted for publication once it meets all outstanding technical requirements.

Within one week, you’ll receive an e-mail detailing the required amendments. When these have been addressed, you’ll receive a formal acceptance letter and your manuscript will be scheduled for publication.

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Kind regards,

John W. Apolzan, PhD

Academic Editor

PLOS ONE