The full list of 'junk food' banned from evening ads – and the products that aren't
Food advertising in the UK is set for a shake up thanks to new rules, but which products will be affected?
Tough new rules on food advertising have been unveiled by the government in an attempt to crack down on Britain's obesity rates.
A slew of products, including porridge, crumpets and croissants, have been branded junk food for the purposes of the revised regulations.
According to the guidelines, restrictions will apply to foods and drinks deemed to be 'less healthy', determined by its score on the government's nutrient profiling model (NPM).
This is calculated by comparing a product's score for 'A' nutrients (energy, saturated fat, total sugar and salt) to it's 'C' nutrients (fruit, vegetables and nut content, fibre and protein). The score for C nutrients is subtracted from that for A nutrients to give the final nutrient profile score.
Foods that score four or more points, and drinks scoring one or more, are classified as 'less healthy' and subject to Ofcom’s controls on the advertising of foods to children on TV.
While this means some foodstuffs including breakfast products and yoghurts could be hit by the pre-watershed ban of junk food ads, in practice healthier versions of products will continue to be advertised.
For example, while promotion of pre-packed pots of instant porridge with added sugar, salt or fat could be affected, porridge oats could continue to be advertised an normal.
The government has said it hopes to prevent 20,000 cases of childhood obesity and remove 7.2 billion calories a year from British children’s diets.
Here, Yahoo News UK rounds up the the new rules and which products are likely to be affected.
Category one - added sugar drinks
Soft drinks, including lemonade, cola and energy drink such as Red Bull
Fruit juices, smoothies and milkshakes, including 'breakfast drinks' with a "carbohydrate component"
Hot chocolate
Teas and coffees, including mochas, frappes, chai macchiato
Fermented drinks such as kombucha, kefir or lassi
Powders, sachets, pods and syrups for any of the above
Drinks without added sugar, such as milk, or which have been sweetened with "natural fruit or vegetable juice", are not covered by the regulations.
Category two - savoury snacks
Crisps, including alternatives such as "potato hoops", tortilla chips and "chickpea or lentil-based crisps"
Savoury crackers
Corn puffs
Fried, flavoured or seasoned chickpeas
Seaweed-based snacks
Bombay mix
Not included:
Raw, coated, roasted or flavoured nuts and seeds, including pressed seed bars
Fruit-based snacks such as dried fruit, fruit crisps or chips (sweetened or unsweetened)
Trail mix made of dried fruit and nuts or seeds
Meat jerky
‘Dunker’ products, which include breadsticks and a dip
Wasabi peas
Larger packs of breadsticks "not intended to be eaten in the same way or on the same eating occasion as crisps or other savoury snacks"
Category three - ready to eat 'breakfast' products
Granola
Muesli
Ready-to-eat cereals
Porridge oats, including instant porridge and other "hot oat-based cereals"
Category four - confectionary
Sweet popcorn, including mixed sweet and salty popcorn
Chocolate coated products, such as nuts, peanuts, seeds, fruit or pretzels
White, milk and dark
Chocolate, including bars and boxed chocolates, whether made from white, milk, dark or cooking chocolate
Jellied fruit sweets
Chewing gum
Marshmallows
Not included:
Dried fruit
Nuts with sweet coverings other than chocolate, such as honey, sweet chilli or yoghurt
Sugar-free sweets and chewing gum
Category five - ice cream
Ice cream and ice cream products, such as choc ices or arctic roll, including vegan and lactose-free alternatives
Ice lollies
Frozen yoghurt
Sorbets
Alcohol-flavoured products, such as rum and raisin flavoured ice cream, that are below 1.2% ABV or alcohol-free
Category six - cakes
All sponge cakes, including cupcakes, cake bars, cake slices, mini rolls and American muffins, whether fresh or frozen
Doughnuts
Flapjacks
Swiss roll
Brownies
Traybakes
Cream cakes and éclairs
Category seven - biscuits and bars
Cereal bars
Sweet toaster pastries
Sweet flavoured rice and corn cakes
Sweet biscuits and cookies, including shortbread, breakfast biscuits and chocolate coated biscuits
Category eight - pastries and buns
Pastries such as Danish, croissant and pain au chocolate
Crumpets
Pancakes
Buns, such as iced buns, including fruited and sweet non-fruited buns
Teacakes and hot cross buns
Scones
waffles
English muffins
Bagels
Fruit loaves, including malt loaf
Brioche
Category nine - desserts
Sweet pies, such as apple pie or sweet mincemeat pies
Tarts and flans
Cheesecake
Gateaux
Dairy desserts, such as chocolate pots
Sponge pudding
Rice pudding
Crumbles
Fruit fillings
Roulade
Powdered dessert mixes
Custards
Jelly
Meringue desserts
Choux pastry desserts
Mousses
Christmas pudding
Trifle
Roly poly
Dessert pizzas
Category 10 - sweetened yoghurt (including fat-free, low-fat and dairy-free versions)
Flavoured Greek-style yoghurts
Probiotic yoghurts
Split yoghurts or twin chamber pots
Fromage frais
Drinking yoghurts
Category 11 - pizza
Deep pan, deep dish, thin crust and stuffed crust pizzas, including all topping varieties and all sizes
Flatbread pizzas
Category 12 - potato products
Roast potatoes
Potato and sweet potato chips
Fries and wedges
Potato waffles
Novelty potato shapes, such as smiley faces
Hash browns
Potato rostis
Crispy potato slices
Potato croquettes
Category 13 - ready meals
This section in the regulations is intended to cover products which are "ready for cooking or reheating without requiring further preparation".
Due to the diversity of this sector of the food industry, the regulations are particularly complex, but some foods covered include:
Pasta, rice or noodles with added ingredients and flavours, including filled or stuffed pasta such as ravioli and tortellini
Potato-topped pies
Fish fingers
Chicken nuggets
Breaded or battered fish, chicken, meat or meat substitutes
Kievs
Exempt from the new regulations:
Baby and infant food products, such as infant formula, follow-on formula and baby food
Total diet replacement products
Meal replacement products which use an approved ‘health claim’
Foods intended for special medical purposes