Version 2.4 · Last updated 4 October 2026

Data sources

Logged ingredients show their nutrition source. Kandro visibly separates database values, AI-assisted matching and its own typical planning references.

German dishes · Bundeslebensmittelschlüssel

For typical German dishes, Kandro uses reviewed reference values from the Bundeslebensmittelschlüssel. These values are not generated by AI; they are database and average values. Matching them to the detected dish, assuming a preparation and scaling them to the estimated portion remain estimates.

Max Rubner-Institut (2025): Bundeslebensmittelschlüssel (BLS), Version 4.0 – Deutsche Nährstoffdatenbank. Karlsruhe. DOI: 10.25826/Data20251217-134202-0

Licence: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). The data was selected for use in Kandro and converted to portion sizes; the Max Rubner-Institut has neither reviewed nor endorsed Kandro.

Individual ingredients · USDA FoodData Central

Ingredients outside the German dish reference are matched against USDA FoodData Central of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This data is available in the public domain.

Matching a food name to a USDA entry is an estimate. That is why every ingredient shows where its value came from, and uncertain matches are flagged for review.

Packaged products · Open Food Facts

Barcodes are looked up at Open Food Facts. The product database is published under the Open Database License (ODbL) and is maintained by volunteers.

Nutrition values for packaged products therefore come from the manufacturer’s declaration and can be incomplete or out of date. When in doubt, check the value on the packaging.

Kandro recommendation catalogue

The three next-meal options come from a catalogue curated by Kandro. Its calories and macros are typical, plausible planning references for the described standard portion, not measurements of an individual preparation. The app labels them “Kandro catalog · typical reference value”.

The catalogue is ranked deterministically against your remaining daily frame, context and preferences. AI does not invent recommendation cards.

How a photo estimate is produced

GPT-4.1 mini identifies foods and estimates visible gram amounts. Kandro does not take nutrition values from the model; it matches the detected terms against BLS or USDA references. Uncertain matches, hidden calories and broad portion ranges are flagged.

Before saving, Kandro shows every ingredient, gram amount and source for confirmation. You can change amounts or exclude ingredients. This review is part of every photo and text analysis.

Imagery

The example meal photo is by Markus Winkler and is used under the Unsplash licence. It only appears until you have taken a photo of your own.

What this means for your numbers

Every value in Kandro is an estimate. Even reviewed reference values assume a standard preparation – oil, sauce and portion size vary considerably in practice. That is why you can correct every ingredient and every portion before saving.