by Two-thirds of the products sold by the world’s 30 largest food companies are unhealthy, according to a report published by the Access to Nutrition Foundation (ATNi) on Thursday.
“If you go to your supermarket, on average, almost 70 percent of the products you’re going to see are going to be unhealthy, no matter what the labeling says, no matter what the advertising says,” said Philip Eisenhart , ATNi media director. News Week.
Greg Garrett, executive director of ATNi said News Week that there were marginal improvements—with 34 percent of sales coming from healthy foods this year, rather than 27 percent, as in 2021.
“But that’s not even close to half,” he said. “If we’re going to reach 50 percent by 2030, things have to move much faster.”
“It’s still a bleak picture,” Eisenhart said. “And on top of that, none of these companies are willing to stop marketing these unhealthy products to children.”
Garrett said ATNi looked at the top 30 food and beverage companies as “a good indicator of what’s happening with the rest of the market.” These companies account for nearly a quarter of all food and beverages sold worldwide, and nine of them are located in the US
“We analyzed, using evidence-based nutritional profile models, how healthy or unhealthy the products are,” said the group’s chief executive, explaining that ATNi and a team of experts looked at about 400 ways to measure food hygiene, and narrowed it down to three. : National nutrition patterns of Australia, the United Kingdom and Europe.
These calculate overall health by measuring macronutrients (fat, carbohydrates and protein), micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), salt and sugar.
Eisenhart said that disagreements about how to categorize health have been one of the things that have hindered so much progress in public health.
“There just needs to be some proportionality in that so you can have a proper debate,” he said. “That allows us to steer industry and policy and investor activity towards a common goal.”
By that metric, only nine of the 30 companies gained 50 percent of their sales from “healthier” products, ATNi analysts found.
“If you are a mixed food company and you claim to produce foods for everyday consumption, you have an obligation to ensure that at least half of your offerings are healthy,” said Garrett. “If you’re a confectionery company … the caveat is, you don’t market those foods to children. You label them appropriately.”
Nodar Chernishev/Getty Images
The ATNi report found that none of the top 30 food companies were following the World Health Organization’s recommendations for responsible marketing.
“We really believe it’s unfair to expect consumers to make informed decisions when they don’t get fair information,” Eisenhart said. “That goes back to the food environment.”
He explained that the report wanted companies to “give children fair treatment” with their marketing, so that they were not “horribly influenced from a young age” and fell victim to lifestyle diseases – such as obesity or diabetes type 2 – connected to. poor diets.
But knowing how healthy, or unhealthy, your food was was empowering, he said.
“The informed consumer is probably the person with the most power,” Eisenhart said. “They can change the behavior of a company by spending it.”
Food Companies Respond
News Week contacted by email the companies involved in the report – all but two of which did not have publicly available email addresses – and received a response.
A spokesperson from Nestlé said News Week: “We are disappointed that ATNi did not recognize the significant progress Nestlé has made.”
They said that Nestlé shared the “common goal of supporting healthy and balanced diets” but that the methodology of the ATNi Global Index “disadvantages companies with more diverse offerings,” and therefore, “ATNi’s assessment does not do our portfolio justice. “
A spokesperson from Flora Food Group said News Week: “Flora Food Group is committed to continuous improvement through our comprehensive Nutrition Benchmarking Program, which goes beyond standard nutritional profiling models to ensure our products deliver essential nutrients as part of a balanced diet, including omega-3 and -6 and fortified vitamins A and D.”
They said Flora Food Group maintained “strict responsible marketing policies” and ATNi’s methodology did not adequately represent the nutritional benefits of products such as sheets, which are consumed in small portions.
A spokesperson from FrieslandCampina said News Week that they were “proud” of the company’s improvement because they were among the businesses that derived at least half of their sales from healthier products.
“This achievement shows our deep commitment to health and nutrition,” the spokesperson said, adding that FrieslandCampina followed a “comprehensive” marketing framework and raised the age threshold for marketing to children from 12 to 16 years. recently.
A spokesperson from Arla said News Week: “Arla is committed to creating the future of dairy, bringing health and inspiration to the world naturally.”
They said 58 per cent of Arla’s products achieved a “healthier” rating in 2024, compared to 56 per cent in 2021, which they said showed Arla’s “steady progress”.
A spokesperson from Barilla said News Week: “At Barilla, we source high-quality, safe and nutritious ingredients, from responsible supply chains, that meet strict criteria to ensure that our products are not only tasty and wholesome, but also safe and contribute to a balanced diet.”
They added that Barilla was committed to improving the nutritional profile of its portfolio and that its communication efforts aimed to prioritize transparency.
A spokesperson from Danone said News Week: “We are proud to have been awarded the top position in the Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNi) 2024 Global Index.
“This recognition demonstrates our strategy and commitment to bringing health through food to as many people as possible.
“Food businesses have an important role to play in addressing global health challenges by making nutrition accessible and tailored to the needs of people around the world, at all stages of life.”
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