Public supports taxes on companies producing unhealthy food

Unhealthy food, alcohol and tobacco remain the current highest risk factors for ill health, and new research from think tank the Health Foundation reveals that there is a strong public appetite for even bolder policy making.

Polling conducted by Ipsos for the Health Foundation found that:

• the majority of British people (59%) support expanding food industry levies beyond soft drinks to other unhealthy products and ultra-processed food and drink high in salt and sugar, with revenues invested in providing more fruit and vegetables to families on low incomes. Just one in five (20%) people opposed this measure.
• Almost two-thirds (61%) also support the introduction of a 9pm watershed and online paid-for advertising ban for products high in fat, salt and/or sugar - a measure already passed in legislation, mentioned in the recent King's Speech, and due to come into force in October 2025.

The findings on unhealthy food taxes support the call from our Recipe for Change campaign to build on the success of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy and expand it to include other food and drink products. The Health Foundation has called on government to consider including confectionery, cakes, biscuits and crisps in the next phase of food levies, but also consider applying measures to ready meals and pizzas as major contributors of excess salt.

Adam Briggs, a senior policy fellow and public health expert at the Health Foundation, said:

“The new government should be emboldened by this type of polling and understand that this is something that does enjoy broad support and is likely to lead to important health benefits. The public are basically saying: it’s time for tough action.”

Responding to the findings, Children's Food Campaign Manager Barbara Crowther says:

"The new government has already set out a powerful vision to shift focus towards prevention of ill health including obesity and food-related disease. Our modelling shows how an industry-wide levy on salt and sugar could help prevent up to two million cases of heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disease and cancer.

The Treasury is a powerful actor in the government's new health mission, but also has major spending challenges, as the Chancellor has pointed out. The brilliance of levies is that they force companies to change their recipes, or pay additional tax. The Soft Drinks Industry Levy has played a brilliant role in both reducing sugar in drinks whilst also raising over £300 million a year in revenues, which have helped to finance breakfast clubs, holiday activity and food programmes and primary school PE programmes.

Expanding this model to other excessively sweet and salty food and drink is exactly the bold idea that will give a big incentive to companies to go further to reduce salt and sugar, whilst also potentially increasing the government's ability to invest in programmes to support children to access healthier food.

For more information:

Read the Health Foundation's full report here.

Check out New Government, New Opportunity, Recipe For Change's briefing with Future Health on options for expanding unhealthy food taxes.