The British Government has published an updated nutrient profiling model that could dramatically expand restrictions on junk food advertising to children. The move signals a tougher crackdown just weeks after stricter advertising rules took effect on January 5.
The Department of Health and Social Care will now conduct a full consultation on applying the new model to advertising and supermarket promotion regulations. If implemented, the updated standards could reclassify products currently considered acceptable – including some fruit-flavoured yoghurts and sweetened breakfast cereals often perceived as healthy by parents.
The timing underscores the Government's intensified push to tackle childhood obesity. More than one in three 11-year-olds are already growing up overweight or obese, and children are consuming more than twice the recommended amount of free sugars.
Current restrictions and planned changes
Since January 5, television advertising for less healthy foods has been banned between 5.30am and 9pm. Online advertising for these products is banned at any time. The rules currently cover 13 categories including soft drinks, chocolates, sweets, pizzas, ice creams, breakfast cereals, and main meals.
The new nutrient profiling model lowers the threshold for free sugars – including those in syrups, honey, unsweetened fruit and vegetable juices, smoothies, purees, and pastes. The current model underpinning these rules is more than 20 years old. A revised version was first published in 2018 but was shelved by the previous government.
Government estimates suggest applying the updated model could reduce childhood obesity cases by an additional 170,000. Currently, 90 per cent of children do not consume enough fibre.
Industry pushback
The Food and Drink Federation has raised serious concerns about the new model. Chief executive Karen Betts said: «Food and drink manufacturers have made multimillion-pound investments to meet the nutrient profile model that underpins the new promotion and advertising restrictions, the latest of which only came into force in this month. This includes developing new options that make it easier for consumers to swap to healthier choices. We have serious concerns that changing to the new model will mean many healthier options could no longer be promoted or advertised to consumers, which runs the risk of them being delisted by retailers.»
Betts added that the uncertainty is causing companies to pause investments in developing healthier products. She urged the Government to meet industry representatives as soon as possible.
Government position
A DHSC spokesman emphasized the Government's health priorities: «Most children are consuming more than twice the recommended amount of free sugars, and more than one in three 11-year-olds are growing up overweight or obese. We want to work with the food industry to make sure it is the healthy choices being advertised and not the 'less healthy' ones so families have the right information to be able to make the healthy choice. We promised to publish the updated model in our 10-year health plan and now we have done so. We want to work with parents and the food and drinks industry to help create the healthiest generation of children ever.»
The consultation will determine whether and how the new model is applied to existing advertising and promotion regulations.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
