ISBA has joined 25 other leading advertisers, media owners, food and drink manufacturers and trade bodies in calling on the Prime Minister to intervene over the decision to switch to a Nutrient Profiling Model which would amend the 'Less Healthy' Food rules just months after they took legal effect.
The Department for Health and Social Care ran a consultation in March on amending the Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) which underpins the restrictions and determines which food and drink products are classified as ‘less healthy’.
The Department also consulted on expanding the list of categories of products which would be impacted. Under the proposals, breakfast cereals, pure fruit juices and many dairy products would be classified as ‘less healthy’ - and would be subject to a watershed advertising ban on TV and a total ban for paid-for advertising online at any time.
The 26 businesses and trade organisations who have signed the letter collectively represent billions of pounds of advertising spend. We warn that the proposals are not based on evidence, that they risk creating business costs which could be passed on to consumers at a time of a cost of living crisis, and that moving the goalposts so quickly after the LHF restrictions were brought in is poor regulatory policymaking which could undermine business and investor confidence in the UK.
The letter also reiterates the analysis conducted by Oxford Economics over the summer, which found that up to £600m of advertising spend on affected media channels has already been affected from the existing restrictions - and that an additional £400m of spend could be at risk.
This analysis was never conducted by the Government as part of its original impact assessment. Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Social Care has claimed that this is merely a “technical update” to the regulations which would have no impact on business.
All the signatories reaffirm that they support the Government’s health goals around childhood obesity and would welcome further engagement across government on how they can work in partnership to tackle the crisis, with a focus on evidence-based policymaking.
The letter to the Prime Minister says:
"The LHF restrictions were only introduced in January of this year. Industry has worked hard to implement and comply with these changes, having worked in partnership with government to help it adhere to its manifesto commitments. Ministers committed to review the impact of the LHF changes after five years; but now, only a few months in, industry is faced with plans to fundamentally alter the policy.
" At a moment when growth is the Government’s stated priority, and when every part of the economy needs the confidence to invest for the long term, this proposal adds fresh uncertainty and cost to an industry that itself underpins that growth. We do not believe this is a sensible or helpful course, for our industries or for the country."
You can read the full letter via the link below.