Media release

From: Springer Nature

Health: Assessing the effect of calorie labelling in England

The introduction of mandatory calorie labels in out-of-home food outlets in England was not associated with fewer calories being purchased or consumed, a study published in Nature Human Behaviour suggests. The findings are based on self-reported data from over 6,000 individuals both before and after implementation.

Obesity is a major public health issue, and one risk factor is the consumption of calorie-dense foods from out-of-home food outlets, which include takeaway cafes and restaurants. In April 2022, following similar policies in the parts of the USA and Canada, the UK government introduced a policy in England that mandates the use of calorie labels by all out-of-home food outlets with more than 250 employees.

To assess the effect of this policy in England, Megan Polden and colleagues conducted two surveys before and after implementation of the law to see whether it had led to behaviour changes among consumers. From August to December 2021, they surveyed 3,308 individuals ranging in age, gender, ethnicity, and educational level, who had purchased food from 330 outlets — these included pubs, restaurants, cafes, fast food outlets and entertainment venues — and collected data on purchases and self-reported consumption. The researchers repeated their survey with 3,270 individuals who purchased food from 325 of the same venues from August to December 2022. Polden and colleagues indicate that, after implementation, consumers underestimated the energy content of their meal less and also reported they were more likely to notice and use the calorie labelling. However, they found no significant difference in calories purchased or consumed following the implementation of the policy. They found this result did not differ across participant age, gender, ethnicity or education level.

The authors note that their findings are based on self-reported data and the initial surveys were conducted shortly after the COVID-19 restrictions were removed in England, which may have influenced the results. They conclude that further research is required to understand the effects of calorie labelling on consumer behaviour and its wider effects.