MPs have urged the Government “stand up” to the food industry to combat England’s obesity crisis which is costing the nation tens of billions annually after decades of inaction
The Health and Social Care Committee has called for a comprehensive overhaul, including a ban on all outdoor advertising of junk food and mandatory front-of-pack labelling
Their proposals aim to rectify a food environment that steers consumers towards cheaper, high fat, sugar, and salt (HFSS) products over nutritious alternatives
Key recommendations include mandatory reporting and targets for supermarkets regarding healthy food sales, backed by penalties for non-compliance
The committee also advocates for new planning policies to prevent fast food outlets from opening near schools and improvements to the NHS’s Healthy Start cards, which assist pregnant women and parents of young children in purchasing fruit and vegetables
MPs urge government to be ‘more courageous’
MPs challenged the Government to be “more courageous” in the face of industry lobbying against restrictions, which had meant that attempts to tackle obesity through food policy “have continually failed”
Health and Social Care Committee chairwoman Layla Moran said: “When we say the ‘food environment’, we mean the constant bombardment of promotions and adverts we see and hear in our daily lives – on our screens, on children’s journeys home from school, as we set foot in shops and queue for the checkout
“The central message of this report is that we need to tackle England’s escalating obesity crisis through prevention
“That means bearing down on environmental factors that push people to eat unhealthily, that coerce struggling families to buy their children products that fill them up without nourishing them
“That is why the Government’s food policy needs an overhaul. Perversely, the worst options are the cheapest while the healthiest are harder to access
“Attitudes of obesity being purely down to the individual failings are outdated and deny the reality of those living with obesity and excess weight in this country needs robust challenge.”
She added: “We ask this Government to be bold, not to fudge and delay food restrictions
“While we acknowledge the costs of policy changes to the food industry, these are marginal compared to the huge costs of inaction on obesity to society, the economy and the health service
“The real cost is measured in how many people suffer preventable diseases linked to being overweight or malnourished
“The Government needs to dig deep and prioritise the long-term health of generations to come.”
The impact of obesity on the NHS
In 2024, 30% of adults in England were living with obesity, a further 36% were overweight, and 28% of children aged 13 to 15 were overweight or obese
Obesity costs the UK £74.3 billion per year, including £11.4 billion to the NHS, according to research by Frontier Economics cited by the Department of Health and Social Care
Between August 2024 and July 2025, nearly £680 million was spent on advertising food and soft drinks through TV, radio and outdoors
Products such as sweets, chocolates and crisps accounted for 29% of that spending, while fruit and vegetables accounted for 3%, the committee’s report said
Food and Drink Federation chief scientific officer Kate Halliwell said: “It’s good that the committee acknowledged the progress manufacturers are making to reduce salt, sugar and calories in everyday food, and to increase fibre
“We appreciate their support too for a scheme to help smaller businesses change recipes to make products healthier. However, we agree that more still needs to be done and so we support the committee’s call for government to bring forward plans to introduce mandatory reporting of healthier food sales
“However, we don’t agree that food and drink manufacturers should be excluded from discussions on health policy
“Government needs advice from the people who make food to understand if new policies are workable in practice. This expertise doesn’t exist in government departments.”
Last week, Advertisements for major takeaway brands including Domino’s, Papa John’s, KFC, and Burger King were given the green light by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), despite new regulations targeting less healthy food products
The ASA acknowledged a significant loophole, saying that “specific products that people understandably assume are less healthy are not in fact classified as less healthy under the Government’s Nutrient Profile Model”, allowing the ads to continue airing
These new rules, which came into effect at the beginning of this year, prohibit the promotion of identifiable less healthy food products on television and on-demand services between 5.30am and 9pm, as well as across all paid online media
