The Obesity Health Alliance (OHA) has found that foods the public overwhelmingly regards as unhealthy, including burgers and crisps, are not being captured by advertising and supermarket promotion restrictions because the UK still relies on nutrition rules developed more than 20 years ago.
Outdated model lets products slip through
In its latest snapshot, OHA compared how products are classified as ‘healthy’ or ‘less healthy’ under the government’s current 2004/05 Nutrient Profiling Model (current NPM) and the 2018 NPM (updated model). The analysis found that six of the seven food and drink products currently allowed to be advertised during the Britain’s Got Talent Final, a popular family viewing programme, could be reclassified as ‘less healthy’ under the updated NPM.
A similar gap emerged on supermarket shelves. 45 out of the 68 in-scope products featured in promotions at the end-of-aisle, such as cakes and biscuits, sugary drinks and desserts and puddings, that currently pass the current NPM could be classed as ‘less healthy’ under the updated NPM.
Public perception and polling
That disconnect is also reflected in what the public thinks. In polling conducted by Savanta among a nationally representative sample of 2,211 UK adults, 77% described a KFC Zinger Burger as unhealthy, 71% said the same of a McDonald’s Spicy McCrispy and 62% of Walkers Prawn Cocktail crisps. Yet, these products can still fall outside the advertising and promotion restrictions under the current NPM.
This, says OHA, highlights a gap between the rules, latest evidence, and public understanding. More than two-thirds of adults (69%) believe children regularly see advertising for unhealthy food and drink, while 57% say the government should do more to restrict it. This is despite the government introducing long-awaited laws to stop less healthy food being advertised before 9 pm on TV and through paid-for online media at any time.
OHA calls for urgent implementation
The OHA is now urging ministers to move quickly to implement both the updated Nutrient Profiling Model and the Healthy Food Standard. It is calling on the government to publish its response to the consultation on applying the updated NPM, which is already past the 12 weeks recommended by government guidance, and to publish the consultation on the Healthy Food Standard immediately, enabling businesses to prepare for and implement mandatory healthy sales reporting and improvement targets.
It also calls for the updated NPM and the Healthy Food Standard to be implemented as soon as possible, within this Parliament, in line with the Health and Social Care Select Committee’s recommendations.
Katharine Jenner, executive director of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: “Families expect the rules on food advertising and promotions to reflect modern nutrition science. Instead, we’re still relying on a model designed more than 20 years ago.
“Both the updated model and the Healthy Food Standard were promised in the NHS 10‑Year Plan, and countries around the world are already modernising how they identify unhealthy products based on the latest evidence – so multinational companies have long known which way the wind is blowing.
“Now they need to be implemented quickly, so the rules make sense to businesses, parents and consumers, and help ensure the food we buy is affordable, available and advertised responsibly.”
