We are bombarded with an abundance of unhealthy products, often accompanied by promotions and offers to tempt us. An abundance of foods high in fat, salt and sugar can lead us to regularly consume too many calories. However, relatively small reductions of around 250 calories a day can help individuals to shift into lower BMI categories, which could make a real difference to the nearly two-thirds of adults in the UK who are overweight or obese.

This is where the potential of food reformulation comes in. If we can make the foods we eat and enjoy more healthy, then we can reduce the amount of excess calories we eat. Reformulating food wouldn’t require individuals to change what they put in their shopping basket each week, but could make our everyday items healthier by, for example, reducing the amount of fat in cakes or increasing the fibre in ready meals.

What we wanted to learn

We explored what types of foods should be prioritised for reformulation to make a meaningful difference to the amount of calories we consume. We explored the food system, analysing data to understand what foods households purchase and thinking about what kinds of policies would support and encourage industry to push forward reformulation efforts.

There have been a range of reformulation efforts by the government and industry, such as the Soft Drinks Industry Levy, a tax on sugary drinks which has been in place since 2018. In the first year after it was introduced, the levy reduced the amount of sugar consumed from soft drinks by nearly 10%. More recently, voluntary reformulation targets have also been set by the government to encourage industry to reduce the amount of calories in products most frequently consumed by children by 20%.

However, previous reformulation efforts by industry haven’t led to change at the scale we need to make a big impact. At Nesta, we want to understand more about both the barriers and opportunities of reformulating foods tand what mechanisms will be needed to see the impact we need to make a difference across the population.

We brought together insights from key stakeholders including retailers, manufacturers, research and advocacy organisations. We also looked at data on what we eat so that any solutions we develop make the most of the opportunities reformulation offers to improve health.

Our healthy life team analysed data on what different households buy and drew on insight from across the food sector to assess the potential of reformulating different types of food to improve health. We presented these findings in a report aimed at policy makers and industry and the wider sector in 2022.

We want to connect with individuals and organisations working in this area. If you work in food reformulation and would like to discuss our work, please get in touch with us.