Junk food advertising restrictions across the Transport for London network are estimated to have contributed to a 1,000 calorie decrease in energy from unhealthy purchases in consumers’ weekly shopping. But little of this came from soft drinks.
Millennials are more likely to perceive alcohol as ‘unappealing’ and ‘socially unacceptable’ if they display prominent health warnings, according to a new study.
A new report reveals the majority of Brits do not consider the soon-to-be implemented ‘tobacco-style’ controls of high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) products will help in the fight against obesity.
While the hard seltzer market in the UK is increasing, a large number of consumers still don't fully understand what the product is. Brands, therefore, should take extra care to ensure that consumers realize the product is alcoholic, according to...
The Commission has proposed mandatory labelling of ingredients and nutrient content of alcoholic beverages be enforced by the end of this year, and health warnings on labels by the end of 2023. FoodNavigator rounds up the pros and cons.
Sales of alcohol online are increasing: but findings from a new report suggest that online retailers are ‘failing in their responsibilities’ to ensure alcohol is not being delivered to minors.
The Australian beverage sector has hit out at veiled warnings of price increases and tax hikes for soft drinks detailed in the country’s latest obesity strategy, claiming that such policy measures are ineffective.
With just 19% of countries in the WHO European Region having introduced SSB taxes, a new study has sought to identify what works and what doesn’t – to encourage effective implementation.
On-going policy efforts to tackle high amounts of fat, salt and sugar in foods and drinks in the EU and the UK are a step in the right direction to ensure a healthy food environment and tackle skyrocketing obesity levels. But a nuanced approach that considers...
An eco-focused advertising campaign for Innocent Drinks, a brand owned by The Coca-Cola Company, has been judged by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) to be ‘misleading’.
A sector once plagued by ‘suspicion’ and ‘failed doping tests’ is turning the tide on non-compliance thanks to voluntary third-party certification programmes.
Italian wine makers have lashed out at ‘insulting’ Nutri-Score proposals to add a black ‘F’ to alcoholic drinks as a warning to consumers about the damaging effects of alcohol even in moderate amounts.
International food standards body Codex Alimentarius has adopted a Framework for steviol glycosides that encompasses four different production technologies in a move that is expected to ‘benefit the entire stevia industry’.
The new restrictions that are set to come into place on foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) in the UK will drive ‘meaningful disruption’ for food makers and retailers with high levels of exposure to these categories, according to analysts...
The European wine industry body, Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins (CEEV), is re-iterating the importance of ‘science- and evidence-based’ policies ahead of a vote on the European Parliament’s report in the Special Committee on Beating Cancer (BECA)....
Drawing on two new studies of Seattle’s soda tax, researchers from the University of Illinois Chicago say such taxes have a large, sustained impact on reducing volume and grams of sugar sold.
The Alcohol Health Alliance wants to see the UK’s Health and Care Bill – which will restrict advertising and promotion on high fat, salt and sugar products – extended to include alcohol.
Almost half (47%) of alcoholic drinks in the UK feature calorie information on labels, says the Portman Group, as it calls for such labelling to remain voluntary.
Public health messages on sugar-sweetened fruit drinks for children convinced a significant percentage of parents to avoid these drinks, according to a study from researchers at the University of Washington and the University of Pennsylvania.
A coalition of European health, medical, consumer and family organisations has called on the European Union to adopt legislation to protect children from the ‘harmful impacts’ of the ‘widespread, ubiquitous and insidious’ marketing of nutritionally poor...
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a US consumer advocacy organization, is urging the country’s top food retailers and sugary drink manufacturers to remove sugar-laden drinks from impulse buy locations in stores.
Most sugary drink taxes have a ‘fatal flaw’, suggest US researchers: they’re only effective at reducing purchases if price tags at stores tell consumers they’re paying the tax.
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has published a ‘Green Claims Code’ to help businesses ensure their green claims do not deceive their customers.
The alcohol industry in India has slammed Delhi’s new liquor excise policy as ‘disruptive’ and argues that new measures risk creating the very ‘cartels’ it aims to prevent.
Tea & Herbal Infusions Europe (THIE) has provided best practice guidance to help businesses reduce fraudulent and malicious activity by identifying the risk factors and vulnerabilities in supply chains.
The UK has said that it is going to restrict marketing, promotion and in-store placement for products that are considered high in fat, sugar and salt. Who will emerge as the winners and losers from this policy shake up?
The UK’s Soft Drinks Industry Levy is responsible for a reduction in intake of nearly 6,500 calories from soft drinks per annum per UK resident, according to a new study. And the authors say much of the reduction came from manufacturers’ reformulation...
This week, the UK’s advertising watchdog has pulled up four hard seltzers for making - or simply implying - health or nutritional claims on their products. So how should such brands navigate this territory?
The UK’s advertising watchdog has taken issue with a BrewDog Instagram post for its hard seltzer: saying the tongue-in-cheek advertising implied a nutritional claim on an alcohol drink. It also ticked off the craft brewer for implying the 5% ABV drink...
The China authorities have proposed a set of regulations to better distinguish so-called ‘solid beverages’ from infant formula and Food for Special Medical Purposes (FSMPs).
Spain’s Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) has reiterated advice to reduce energy drink consumption especially among minors due to caffeine’s effect on sleep and the cardiovascular system.
Food businesses must be prepared for enforcement action from regulators to tackle the issue of greenwashing, it has been warned, as the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority publishes draft guidance for companies about ‘green’ claims.
The European Commission has launched a probe into Coca-Cola over potential violations to competition rules. The news comes as debate over implementation of the bloc’s approach to Unfair Trade Practices (UTPs) intensifies, with retailers flagging the negotiating...
Once the ABV of kombucha exceeds 0.5%, it’s classified as an alcoholic beverage. The KOMBUCHA Act would raise that threshold to 1.25% ABV, enabling brands to sell ‘authentic’ raw kombucha using traditional methods without becoming subject to federal alcohol...
Swiss industrial mineral provider Omya International AG has launched OmyaPET, a new product family of functionalized calcium carbonates for PET applications.
Just as the man made globally famous by a Netflix documentary outlining how he conned wine collectors out of millions of dollars was deported to his native Indonesia, a team of scientists from Australia believe they have found a fast and simple method...
European spirits producers are making progress with their commitment to provide energy information on labels: with around 1 in 4 bottles now displaying such information.
Product names or descriptors such as ‘CBD gin’ or ‘rum infused with CBD’ could prove problematic in the UK, says the Portman Group, as it sets out guidance on marketing CBD.
The Australian beverages industry has expressed hopes that the government will reconsider its current stance on Health Star Ratings (HSR) for no added sugar juices after the sector emerged as the sole soft drinks growth category in the last quarter of...
South Africa has seen large reductions in purchases of sugary beverage volumes since the country’s sugar tax was announced in 2016, according to a new study published this month.
Singapore’s beverage sector is seeking increased industry engagement and a more holistic approach to sugar reduction, after the government opened public consultations for its proposed ‘Nutri-Grade’ sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) labelling scheme.
Japanese brewery giants Asahi and Kirin are reacting cautiously to the government’s push to include alcoholic content by gramme on product labels, though both will be implementing changes which experts believe will be emulated by the rest of the industry...
The ABV threshold at which kombucha switches from a non-alcoholic beverage to what is effectively 'beer' for tax purposes is currently set at 0.5%. The KOMBUCHA Act, reintroduced to Congress by Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR-3) and Senator...
