Sainsbury's will give low-income families an £18 boost to buy healthy food in the run-up to Christmas. The grocer will issue £3 vouchers every week for six weeks to eligible NHS Healthy Start families in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from November 18.
The vouchers can be redeemed for a range of healthy foods, including fresh, frozen, or tinned vegetables and fruit, or beans and pulses. The NHS scheme supports low-income families with young children across the UK in buying more healthy food through a free prepaid Healthy Start card that is automatically topped up every four weeks.
How the vouchers work
Sainsbury's will deliver a £3 eGift card by email each week, which can be used in-store and online. This year's initiative followed a successful 2021 trial, with customers buying more fruit and veggies as a result of the vouchers.
Shoppers redeeming the top-up coupons purchased an average of 13 more portions of fruit and vegetables per basket than those who did not, according to an analysis by the Leeds Institute for Data Analytics.
Reaction from officials and experts
Health minister Dame Diana Johnson welcomed the announcement and encouraged other grocers to follow suit. "Every child deserves the best possible start in life. That's exactly why Healthy Start matters so much to this government, helping families to put healthy food on the table," she said.
Nilani Srithran, Sainsbury's head of healthy and sustainable diets, said it wants to support customers at a time when budgets are stretched. "We know our customers want to get more fresh fruit, vegetables and fibre into family mealtimes. We've seen the difference extra support can make for families on Healthy Start, with our previous top-up trial helping customers buy an average of 13 more portions of fruit and veg per basket," they said.
"That's why we're bringing back our £3 weekly top-up in the run-up to Christmas, when family budgets can face additional pressures."
Application deadline
Food Foundation executive director Anna Taylor praised the supermarket's decision, while calling for the Government scheme to be expanded since "too many miss out". Those interested can register here by 11.59pm on November 9, 2026.
