A report released today by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF)
celebrates the work of UK food and drink manufacturers to support
the health of the nation by improving the nutritional status of
their products and offering consumers a wide variety of options
to support sustainable healthy diets.
The Celebrating Food and
Nutrition report includes fresh data from Kantar Worldpanel
showing that, compared to 2017, FDF member products contribute
10% fewer calories, 12% fewer sugars, and 16% less salt to the
average shopping basket[1].
The report highlights innovation by companies – large and small –
to improve the nation’s diet using methods such as reformulating
product recipes, providing appropriate portion sizes and bringing
healthier options to market. It celebrates the success of the
Reformulation for Health programme, run by FDF Scotland and
funded by the Scottish Government, to support SMEs across
Scotland to make their products and recipes healthier.
The report also sets out the fantastic commitments of companies
to help bridge the fibre gap
as part of FDF’s Action on Fibre initiative; to tackle food
poverty with pioneering projects within local communities across
the UK; as well as helping consumers to achieve more
sustainable diets on the road to Net Zero.
The food industry has made great strides in supporting balanced
diets. In fact, the average shopping basket in the UK is
categorised as healthy, and there has been a 14% reduction in the
HFSS score[2] for the total food and
drink market since 2017[3]. Alongside continued
efforts by companies to improve the nutritional profile of food
and drinks, targeted initiatives to support communities is vital
to reducing health inequalities across the UK.
The industry stands ready to work with government and other
agencies to drive further innovation within our sector, and to
champion positive messaging about the role of food and drink in a
healthy and sustainable diet. We are committed to working in
partnership with the UK Government through the forthcoming
National Food Strategy and Health Disparities White Paper on
targeted, evidence-based initiatives which support the UK
Government’s ambition to level up the country. We remain
committed too to our work with the devolved administrations
across the UK’s four nations to the same end.
We are delighted that the report is supported with expert
insights from FareShare, the British Nutrition Foundation
and Leatherhead Food Research.
The Food and Drink Federation’s Chief Executive, Karen
Betts, said:
“UK food and drink manufacturers make a wide range of products
that appear in households across the country and that are at the
heart of everyone’s daily lives. Companies in our sector are
committed to helping people and communities achieve healthier and
more sustainable diets, and we are working hard to make our
products better for people and better for the planet. This
includes improving our product recipes, re-looking at portion
sizes and improving the information available to shoppers about
what they are buying.
“We know there’s more to do, and we’re committed to continuing to
make progress across the breadth and diversity of our industry
and our wide range of products. This includes working with
governments, including through the UK Government’s new National
Food Strategy and its Health Disparities White Paper.”
The Food and Drink Federation’s Chief Scientific Officer
Kate Halliwell said:
“These latest figures show the fantastic achievements the UK food
and drink industry continues to deliver, throughout a challenging
period of uncertainty, and we should celebrate this.
“Manufacturers have continued to innovate and bring new healthy
and affordable products to market. This has had a real
demonstrable impact on the average shopping basket, supporting
the nation to have access to a healthy balanced diet.”
