Health, Social Care and Sport Committee 10 June 2025
You are absolutely right. We are keeping a watching brief on the evidence base because it is emerging all the time. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition published an updated position statement a few months back, which we can send to you. It is not recommending a change at this time, but we are aware that the evidence base could shift, so we are keeping an eye on it.
There is a very large cross-over between ultra-processed foods and foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar. We are not entirely sure of the percentage, but 80 to 90 per cent of ultra-processed foods could be high in fat, salt and sugar. There is a large body of evidence on that. We continue to focus our efforts on reducing foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar, many of which are ultra-processed, as I said.
This may come up later, but food fortification is an example of a means by which industry can enhance foods, which will then almost always be termed ultra-processed. An example is alternatives to milk. A plant-based alternative to milk will be very poor in terms of nutritional composition compared with cow’s milk unless it is fortified, which is when things such as iodine and calcium are put into the product. Those alternatives to milk tend to be consumed in similar ways to cow’s milk. For that reason, not all ultra-processing is bad.
You mentioned some of the aspects of ultra-processing. We have to say that ultra-processed foods are all safe. These products have gone through all the safety checks that need to be done and they meet the regulations. However, there is quite a big disparity in relation to inequalities. If we took a very hard line on ultra-processed foods, it could mean that people in more deprived areas would find it more difficult to eat healthily. Things such as wholemeal bread that is bought in a supermarket would be deemed ultra-processed, yet we would deem it a healthy food. Tinned baked beans are a similar example. There are many areas where we need to be careful and look not just at the processing but at the nutritional composition as well.