Food manufacturers and retailers are pushing back against new government proposals on healthy food, labeling them as "unworkable" and warning that they could classify popular items like fruit yoghurts and breakfast cereals as unhealthy.
Labour's Nutrient Profiling Model Faces Backlash
The Labour government plans to introduce a new nutrient profiling model (NPM) to expand the number of foods considered "less healthy" in an effort to combat child obesity. Currently, retailers and manufacturers follow an NPM from 2004-05, but the proposed model, developed in 2018, would impose stricter standards.
Industry figures argue that the new model casts its net too wide, potentially banning smoothies, yoghurts, and breakfast cereals from being placed near shop entrances or advertised online. The government's impact assessment has been criticized as "incomplete and overly optimistic" by industry sources.
Danone Voices Concerns
Danone, owner of brands like Activia and Actimel with €27bn in annual sales, stated: "We support the government's focus on improving public health through better nutrition, [but] the 2018 NPM proposal raises real questions about whether it can work in practice." The company highlighted that the impact assessment relies on assumptions not supported by real-world evidence.
Confused Government Messages
An industry source told City AM that the new NPM would add costs to manufacturers and retailers already grappling with other regulations, such as sustainable packaging rules and EU reintegration. "The messages from the government are very confused. There's just so much that the government is asking businesses to look at and the costs are filtering through to consumers," they said.
The government's own report concedes that costs could be exacerbated by other regulations but has not quantified the total impact. "Due to the number of policies in force or coming into force, the potential interactions between options have not been quantified," the report states.
Timing Questioned
One industry figure called it "absurd" that the government is considering changing the definition of healthy foods just months after new junk food ad regulations came into force in January. The government claims the new NPM ensures a better balance between nutritional benefits and salt, sugar, and saturated fats, and predicts that manufacturers will reformulate products to qualify as healthy, yielding health benefits for consumers.
Risk of Undoing Years of Work
Food producers argue that reformulation would be too expensive given rising costs. "The proposed 2018 NPM risks undoing years of work, and investment in reformulation, to encourage healthier choices," an industry source said. The impact assessment admits there is no single source of data to monitor healthiness by the 2018 NPM score.
Much of the NPM focuses on "free sugars"—sugars not naturally present in food cells. The assessment suggests a method to estimate free sugars is feasible because it has been consulted on, but industry figures say they have already told the government this system is unworkable. "The key problem is the NPM is not workable, either for retailers or enforcers as there is currently no effective way to calculate free sugars," one industry figure noted.
BRC and Mars Weigh In
Andrea Martinez-Inchausti, Assistant Director of Food at the British Retail Consortium, said: "Retailers are concerned about various aspects of the new NPM. Re-categorising many nutrient dense products such as yoghurts, smoothies and breakfast cereals as unhealthy, risks unintended consequences. The consultation ignores the fact that the new NPM model is currently not workable, nor enforceable."
Mars, owner of Snickers, Dolmio, and Ben's rice, added: "We support moves to create a food system which helps consumers to make healthier choices. We're reviewing the recently published proposals. It will be important that they do not have unintended consequences for consumers, such as vegetable and fruit purees and pastes being replaced with ingredients of lower nutrient density."
Government Response
The government is currently consulting on the new NPM, and several leading manufacturers are expected to air their concerns. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: "As part of the 10 Year Health Plan this government committed to supporting everyone to make healthier choices and tackle the impact of poor diet on people's health. The current system is based on a nutrient profiling model more than 20 years old, which does not reflect modern dietary advice, which is why we have consulted on updating it."
