Healthy Eating and Drinking - UK - September 2007

Abstract

The central theme of this report is the rapid expansion of the healthy eating market in the UK and its growing sophistication - in a very real sense, healthy eating has moved from niche to mainstream.

Growth has undoubtedly been driven by high-profile campaigns to lower obesity levels and radically improve eating habits, particularly amongst children. The UK, literally, has been eating itself ill - while there are indications that the situation is improving a little, there remains much to be done.

The food industry is now dominated by global multinationals, most of which have been in the firing line of the health lobby, accused at best of inertia and indifference and at worst of cynicism and a relentless dedication to profit. The food giants have been obliged to assert their healthy credentials and this has helped healthy eating move into the mainstream - many companies are lowering fat, salt and sugar levels across the board, not merely in their ‘healthier' ranges.

Food retailers, too, have not escaped censure. The major UK multiples dominate food distribution and have been at the forefront of developments in healthy eating, offering extensive own-label ranges and plethora of product advice, both instore and through their websites.

The healthy eating concept loses power through an inconsistency of definition and the ongoing lack of common standards. What exactly constitutes a ‘healthy' food option remains open to debate - a low-fat product may well be high in sugar and consumers continue to experience great difficulty not only in deciphering food labelling, but in applying the deciphered information to their own situation.

UK consumers are the keenest in Europe on reading food labels, but continue to feel that the entire area lacks clarity. Whilst food manufacturers have embraced the healthy eating concept, much more needs to be done to communicate it effectively to the consumer.

The countries examined within the Consumer Goods Intelligence series of reports are France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.