The UK is clamping down on obesity. Over the weekend, the government announced a new policy that requires all big food businesses to report on healthy food sales. It’s designed to hold food makers and retailers accountable for what they sell, and push for healthier food choices.
Once that’s disclosed, the government will set targets to boost the healthiness of sales, making the average shopping basket of goods sold “slightly” healthier.
This is part of a broader national effort to tackle obesity in the UK. By reducing calorie intake, experts believe significant progress can be made in reversing the trend.
By removing 216 calories a day, the same as a bottle of soda, obesity levels could be halved. And even removing just 50 calories per day could lift two million adults and 340,000 children out of obesity.
How much of what Big Food sells is healthy?
How much of what Big Food – including food retailers and manufacturers – is healthy? Everyone will know the answer to that by the end of the decade, at least in the UK. The UK Government plans to bring in mandatory reporting by the end of this parliament in 2029.
Some food businesses already report on their healthy vs unhealthy sales splits. The world’s biggest food company, Nestlé, is one. A couple of years ago, the company became the first major food business to report on the nutritional value of its entire global portfolio. It does this using the Health Star Rating system.
Other companies are doing it too. UK-headquartered Nomad Foods has long been disclosing its proportion of sales from healthy products, as have retailers such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s.
On the whole, the food industry has responded positively to the new policy. The UK’s food and beverage manufacturers say they know “bold and coordinated” action is needed to support the nation’s health, explains trade body the Food & Drink Federation. Its members “welcome the government’s plans to introduce mandatory reporting of healthier food sales across the whole food system”.
How will industry make food baskets healthier?
Once the government has the data on healthy food sales, it will develop – in coordination with innovation agency Nesta – new healthy food standards. That means that the largest supermarket chains must achieve a minimum target for healthy food sales. If they don’t comply, they could be fined.
It’s understood the health score for supermarkets will be calculated using the UK Nutrient Profile Model, which measures the healthiness of a food or drink product based on calorie content, salt, sugar, and saturated fats.
How healthy are the UK's supermarkets?
The supermarket sector's average converted nutrient profile model (NPM) score on health is currently 67 out of 100, according to Nesta.
If a healthy food standard was set at or around 69, the innovation agency believes levels of obesity could be reduced by around one fifth.
While it’s not yet known what target will be set, Nesta assures that it will be “achievable” for business, all the while “driving meaningful improvements” in national health.
What is known is that the government won’t dictate how retailers improve their health scores. It will be up the individual businesses to meet the new standard in whichever way works best for them, be it changing shop layouts, offering discounts on healthy foods, or modifying loyalty schemes to promote the sale of healthier food and drink.
The other lever the food industry can pull is reformulation, meaning tweaking recipes to lower calories, or reduce fat, salt and sugar levels in products.
Food industry prompted to reformulate, again
This isn’t the first time the UK Government has turned to product reformulation as part of its strategy to combat the obesity crisis. Over at least the last decade, voluntary programmes have pressured food manufacturers to cut salt and sugar from their products. More recently, HFSS (foods high in fat, sugar and/or salt) laws have applied stronger pressure, prompting more decisive reformulation efforts. And let’s not forget the sugar tax.
Now reformulation is very much back on the agenda for big food businesses, suggesting that recent voluntary targets and mandatory HFSS laws have not done enough to move the needle.
From the food and drink makers’ perspective, there’s been no pause in progress. Compared to 2015, FDF members now contribute 31% less salt, 30% less sugar and 24% fewer calories (Kantar Worldpanel). They’re also spending much more on healthier product innovation, which now accounts for 50-60% of the industry’s R&D spend (FDF State of Industry Survey).
Nevertheless, manufacturers are looking forward to working “in partnership” with government on the project. They want to make sure there’s a “stable” regulatory environment so that businesses can feel confident to keep investing in developing healthier food and drink.
While official health targets are still to be confirmed, it’s likely that retailers are already exploring ways to grow healthy food sales in ways that align with their business models. And if healthy food sales are going to grow, manufacturers are going to want to be part of that.
This period offers a valuable opportunity for retailers to test and refine approaches before mandatory targets – and potential penalties – come into force.