‘Ultra-Processed’ Foods: the Scope for Government Action

A conference jointly organised by the Centre for Health Economics & Policy Innovation at Imperial College `Business School, the NIHR School of Public Health Research and the Imperial Policy Forum.

The concept of ‘ultra-processed’ food is a shorthand to identify a range of foods based on the degree and purpose of their industrial processing, which have been linked to an increased risk of weight gain and chronic diseases. Industrial processing in ultra-processed foods often disrupts the original food matrix and involves a large use of additives to increase shelf life, palatability, texture, visual appeal and other characteristics that typically play a role in consumer choices and habits. Ultra-processed foods are often heavily branded and marketed to create brand loyalty and increase consumption, with a major focus on young consumers and families with children. Ultra-processed foods are typically highly standardised and produced on a large scale at a low cost, with high profit margins that fuel intense marketing for their promotion and sale in a wide range of markets, causing a steady increase in their consumption in countries at all levels of income. Evidence of the contribution of ultra-processed foods to increasing body weight, obesity and chronic diseases has piled up from observational studies and at least one trial. Yet, governments have been struggling to devise and implement effective policy approaches to address the detrimental health impacts of ultra-processed foods. However, attempts to regulate or tax these foods in order to rebalance dietary patterns towards an increased consumption of minimally processed foods and away from ultra-processed foods have begun to emerge, amid major policy challenges.

Host or Publisher Centre for Health Economics & Policy Innovation