Restrict advertising of HFSS products

This policy restricts advertising of food and drinks classified as high in fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS). As outlined in government reports and previous localised policy implementations the policy would:

Introduce a 21:00 TV watershed for advertising HFSS products and a restriction of paid-for HFSS advertising online

This means all on-demand programme services (ODPS) under the jurisdiction of the UK, and therefore regulated by Ofcom, would be included in the TV watershed for HFSS advertising and non-UK regulated ODPS would be included in the restriction of paid-for HFSS advertising online because they are outside UK jurisdiction.

Introduce a national rollout of the restriction of all outdoor advertising of HFSS on public transport, as done in London.

This means advertisers who produce, sell, retail, distribute or promote food or non-alcoholic drinks must ensure the product featured is HFSS compliant (according to the Nutrient Profile Model). The restriction would apply to HFSS advertising on buses, bus stops, and railway and tram stations.

Evidence suggests that HFSS foods and drink adverts can influence food behaviours by changing dietary norms and shifting population-level food and drink preferences. Advertising can affect adult behaviour as well as children’s food choices, resulting in pressure being put on parents to buy unhealthy foods.

The regulation of advertising in the UK is the responsibility of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). In 2007, Ofcom initiated a ban on TV advertising for HFSS products during children’s programming. Fully enacted by 2009, these restrictions prevent the airing of adverts for HFSS products during timeslots dedicated to children’s shows and around programmes that attract a significantly large young audience. Following an initial consultation in 2019, the UK Government announced its intention to extend these existing advertising restrictions and implement a 21:00 watershed on TV for advertising HFSS products in July 2020. The implementation of extended restrictions was initially scheduled for January 2023. It was postponed by a year and has now been further delayed to 1 October 2025. 

Advertising laws are established for the whole of the UK and are not devolved. Accordingly, the context is the same in both Scotland and Wales. There are currently no regulations that restrict the advertising of ‘less healthy’ foods outdoors. The Welsh Government’s Healthy Weight, Healthy Wales strategy pledged to restrict unhealthy food and drink advertising, sponsorship and promotions in public spaces by 2030. This includes bus and train stations, sporting events, school zones, hospitals and leisure centres. The Scottish Government’s Diet and Healthy Weight Delivery Plan contains an action to engage with local authorities, transport companies and media agencies to develop a code of practice to restrict the marketing and promotion of HFSS, particularly to children. This has yet to be developed. 

Some groups have been found to be more exposed to HFSS advertising, including socioeconomically disadvantaged groups. This may contribute to the higher prevalence of obesity and diet-related diseases we see in disadvantaged groups. Secondary analysis of the TfL evaluation described above found that greater benefits (eg, a 37% higher gain in quality-adjusted life years) were expected to accrue to individuals from the most socioeconomically deprived groups.

There is a risk that continuation of this policy could exacerbate weight stigma.

We asked experts working in the fields of obesity, food, and health research to rate the strength of the evidence base for each policy, taking into account both reliability (size and consistency) and validity (quality and content) of the evidence. Policies were rated on a Likert scale of 1–5 (none, limited, medium, strong, and very strong evidence base). The Blueprint Expert Advisory Group rated this policy as having a Strong evidence base.