The UK Government has banned advertisements for junk food on TV before the watershed. The ban, which will come into force in 2025, will strip TV of adverts for high sugar, high fat and high salt food in a bid to improve childhood obesity rates.
It is hoped that it will prevent 7.2 billion calories from being consumed by UK children each year, with an estimated 20,000 cases of childhood obesity said to be stopped. According to NHS data, almost one in 10 reception-aged children are obses, and one in five children have tooth decay because of excess sugar consumption.
The legislation will also include a ban on paid online junk food adverts too. There is a surprising number of items included on the list below, mostly focussed on foods that are classed as processed or ultra-processed. Products that many may assume are healthy, like fruity yoghurts, are also banned, due to the added sugar content. For the latest health and Covid news, sign up to our newsletter here
The legislation is being introduced by the UK Government, but applies across the UK.
The full list of items impacted by the advertisement ban
The following products if they contain added sugar:
- soft drinks, including lemonades, colas and fruit-based squash drinks and energy drinks
- juice-based drinks
- fruit juices or smoothies (including smoothies with dairy)
- milk-based drinks and milk substitute drinks with added sugar or sweeteners (flavoured and unflavoured; for example, soya, almond, oat, hemp, hazelnut or rice and so on)
- milkshakes and hot chocolates
- coffee and milk-based drinks, including those with additions (such as mochas, frappes, caramel, vanilla, chai and hazelnut lattes and caramel macchiato)
- tea and coffee
- kombucha
- fermented (yoghurt) drinks, defined as a composite milk product obtained by mixing yoghurt with a liquid (milk, water or fruit juice) with or without other ingredients to create a drink (for example, kefirs, lassis, and pre and probiotic drinks)
- breakfast drinks or shakes, which could be consumed in addition to or as a substitute for breakfast. For example, a smoothie or shake with a carbohydrate component such as oats or wheat
- powders, sachets, pods or syrups:
- coffee or tea powders, sachets, pods or syrups
- 2 in 1 (coffee and milk powder) or 3 in 1 (coffee, milk powder and sugar)
- hot chocolate powders, pods and syrups
- malt drink powders
- milkshake powders
- protein powders
Savoury snacks:
- crisps
- savoury crackers, rice cakes and biscuits sold and eaten as alternatives to crisps
- corn puffs
- potato hoops
- tortilla chips
- chickpea or lentil-based crisps
- fried, flavoured or seasoned chickpeas
- seaweed-based snacks
- Bombay mix
Breakfast food:
- granola
- muesli
- ready-to-eat cereals
- porridge oats, including instant porridge and other hot oat-based cereals
Confectionary including chocolates and sweets:
- sweet popcorn, and mixed sweet and salty popcorn
- chocolate coated nuts, peanuts, seeds and fruit
- white, milk and dark chocolate
- cooking chocolate
- chocolate bars and boxed chocolates
- bagged slabs or tubed sweets
- jellied fruit sweets
- chewing gum
- marshmallows
- chocolate covered products - for example, chocolate covered pretzels
Iced deserts
- ice cream (including vegan and lactose-free alternatives)
- ice lollies
- choc ices
- frozen yoghurt
- sorbets
- gelato-style ice cream
- ice cream desserts - for example, arctic roll and ice cream sundaes
- alcohol-flavoured products - for example, rum and raisin flavoured ice cream - that are below 1.2% ABV or alcohol-free
Cakes and cupcakes
- all sponge cakes
- cupcakes
- cake bars and slices
- doughnuts
- American muffins
- flapjacks
- Swiss rolls
- brownies
- traybakes
- cream cakes
- mini rolls
- éclairs
- frozen cakes
Biscuits and bars
- cereal bars (cereal bars may be similarly shaped to a chocolate bar, made of cereals and typically other ingredients such as fruits and nuts, but can also include nut and seed-based bars)
- sweet toaster pastries
- sweet flavoured rice or corn cakes
- filled and unfilled sweet biscuits and cookies
- breakfast biscuits
- shortbread
- ice cream wafers or cones
- coated chocolate biscuit bars
Baked goods:
- Danish pastries
- croissant, pain au chocolat and similar pastries
- crumpets
- pancakes
- buns (includes fruited and sweet non-fruited buns, such as iced buns)
- teacakes
- scones
- waffles
- English muffins
- bagels (plain and sweet)
- fruit loaves
- hot cross buns
- brioche
- malt loaf (both sweetened with sugar or fruit)
Deserts:
- sweet pies - for example apple pie, mince pies and so on
- tarts and flans
- cheesecake
- gateaux
- dairy desserts, such as chocolate pots
- sponge puddings
- rice pudding
- crumbles
- fruit fillings
- roulade
- powdered dessert mixes
- custards
- jellies
- meringue desserts
- choux pastry desserts
- mousses
- Christmas pudding
- trifle
- roly poly
- dessert pizzas
Yoghurts that have been 'sweetened'
- flavoured Greek-style yoghurts
- probiotic yoghurts
- split yoghurts or twin chamber pots
- kids’ yoghurts
- fat free and low-fat yoghurts
- dairy-free yoghurts
- fromage frais
- drinking yoghurts - defined as a drinkable product that meets the definition for yoghurt, with no additional liquids (milk, water or fruit juice)
Other savoury food:
- Roast potatoes
- potato and sweet potato chips
- fries and wedges
- potato waffle
- novelty potato shapes (smileys)
- hash browns
- rostis
- crispy potato slices
- potato croquettes
- ready meals
- any ready-made food that requires reheating like burger in a bun etc
- products that contain pastry
- breaded or battered foods
- sandwiches of any kind
- fish fingers
- chicken nuggets
- battered fish
- fish or chicken goujons
- breaded meat substitutes
- scampi
- Kievs
- breaded chicken fillets
- also includes ‘lightly dusted’ products, cereal-coated products and gluten-free alternatives
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