Improving the nation’s health

Last week, we hosted a cross-sector roundtable alongside the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), intended to address practical challenges in consistently and credibly calculating free sugars for the Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) 2018. The objective was to focus on solutions to the challenges presented by using free sugars, ensuring that businesses could practically deliver the changes required to adopt NPM 2018. Nutrition and technical experts from food and drink businesses participated, alongside NGOs, trade associations, academics and Government stakeholders.   

Following this roundtable, our wider engagement with technical experts and IGD’s Industry Forums, we are concerned that implementation of the current NPM 2018 will delay the introduction of mandatory reporting beyond the Government’s 2029 deadline, specifically due to the inclusion of the free sugars metric.  This is because of the complexities of measuring consistently, accessing proprietary data and implementing the free sugar calculation at scale. 

We will publish a comprehensive summary of the Free Sugars Roundtable in the coming weeks, discussing the key challenges identified and highlighting various solutions proposed for further exploration. 

IGD is now committed to working on the following two areas: 

 Identifying a solution to calculating free sugars at pace 

1. Following the roundtable discussions, we want to further interrogate if a solution for the free sugars calculation can be implemented consistently at scale. We invite solution providers and industry partners who are interested in collaborating to contact the IGD health team if you think you can help, by emailing [email protected] 

Exploring the potential of using total sugars within NPM 2018 

2.  Acknowledging the challenges of implementing free sugars, total sugars, which are labelled on pack, were considered as an alternative component of NPM 2018 by the expert working group convened by the Government from 2016 to 2018. In this approach, total sugars are limited to 18% of food energy intake, reflecting the Eatwell Guide. If a solution can’t be found to using free sugars at pace, we suggest the reconsideration of using total sugars within NPM 2018 as a compromise between practical and scientific ambitions. This model would be stricter than the currently used 2004/05 NPM and would reflect updated dietary guidance on energy, fibre and seeds. 

We are doing this as we believe the introduction of mandatory reporting and subsequent targets will be the most effective tool to improve the population’s diet, and we are aligned to the intention of having mandatory reporting in place by the end of this parliament (2029). For this to be effective, the underpinning Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) will need to be scientifically aligned, clearly defined, operationally feasible and consistently applied. Ultimately, the most serious consequence for public health is food industry inaction as a result of a protracted debate on models and policies.     

The priority must be improving public health, which requires a pragmatic approach, to make it work and move at pace, without incurring unnecessary additional cost and food price inflation. 

Our purpose is clear: to unite and inspire everyone to deliver a thriving food system. We act as a trusted convener, uniting stakeholders from across the agrifood supply chain to address critical challenges. Obesity is a critical challenge and therefore, we advocate for shifting the nation towards the latest government dietary guidelines at pace to improve health outcomes, and welcome working together with industry, government and scientific experts on this topic.