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Tesco restricts or bans over 100 additives in UPF reformulation response

Consumer concerns over ultra-processed foods have led Tesco, one of the world’s largest supermarkets, to ban or restrict 114 additives from its own-brand products.

Tesco, the UK’s largest supermarket chain and one of the top five food retailers globally, has restricted or “outright banned” some 114 additives in its own-brand products.

At a glance:

• 114 additives will be restricted across Tesco’s range of own brand products, up from 65 last year.
• Artificial colours, aspartame, and monosodium glutamate have all been banned “outright”.
• Premium retailer Waitrose also announced that it has removed 220 additives from its products over the past 20 months.

Artificial colours, aspartame, and monosodium glutamate have all been banned, for example, with dozens of other additives “subject to restrictions and prioritised for innovation and supplier engagement”, according to a statement sent to Ingredients Network.

The grocer’s own brand suppliers also have specific requirements on the use of additives, the grocer explained, with them only used “where necessary for food safety, shelf life or quality, and in the minimum amount needed”.

The restrictions are tightening though, with 114 additives banned or restricted, up from 65 last year.

“Over 80% of customers tell us they’re trying to eat fewer ultra-processed foods but we know it can be really tricky to navigate,” explained Alice Ritchie, Tesco head of healthy and sustainable diets in a video posted on social media in September. “So, we’re really focused on making it easier and more transparent. Healthy food used to be a section of the store. Now it runs through almost every category decision we make,” she added.

The most recent example came last month (September), when Tesco launched an own-brand range called Made Without Added Nitrites. Again, consumer concerns were at the heart of the reformulated products: online searches for products without added nitrites rising by over 360% year-on-year.

Tesco: Health and commercial goals part of the same conversation

At Tesco, the proportion of food sales classified as healthy has moved from 58% in 2019 to 65% by the end of last year. Tesco said the change has been driven by reformulation to offer healthier products – an expansive programme has been underway since 2018 – as well as a “supportive” regulatory environment.

However, the biggest driver is that health stopped being a separate conversation and started sitting inside the commercial one, Ritchie explained. “What is changing now is the demand side. GLP-1 medications are altering appetite and portion expectations.”

The medication, as Ingredients Network recently reported, is also changing food cravings.

Waitrose rushes to make additive reduction claim

Just a few days after Tesco’s announcement, upmarket UK food retailer Waitrose announced on 1 October that its additive reduction programme “has improved the recipes of 110 own label products, removing 220 unnecessary additives over the past 20 months”.

Waitrose strictly prohibits artificial colours and flavourings and the use of 146 specific additives, including 16 which have been added in the last 20 months across the company’s entire own label portfolio. The full list is published on its website. Suppliers have to provide formal rationales for any functional additives.

The retailer’s ‘Good Health’ logo has also been revamped, shifting the focus from traditional low-calorie and low-fat metrics toward positive nutrition and ingredient transparency. Research by the company revealed that 93% of its customers prioritise avoiding ultra-processed foods and actively check product ingredient lists.

A statement reads: “This marks another step by Waitrose to reduce unnecessary industrial stabilisers, emulsifiers, and hidden additives across ready-made meals and everyday staples and to increase transparency of the ingredients that we use.”

Adding positive nutrients as well as removing certain additives

Tesco said it is “not just taking away” certain additives but its product development teams working to increase “positive nutrients” by adding vegetables, fruit, and increasing fibre as well as “ensuring our products taste great too”.

In her interview for social media, Ritchie picked up on the ubiquity of the phrase ‘nutrient dense’ currently, as well as the focus on added protein. “Customers are thinking differently about satiety, nutrient density, and what represents value,” she said. “People are so invested in what’s in their food, where it comes from and their own personal health journeys as well.”

Ultra-processed food is an area that Tesco – much like other retailers and manufacturers – is currently grappling with. The supermarket has committed to improving transparency and making choices simpler for consumers.

For example, a dietary and lifestyle filter has been added to its website allowing customers to filter for products without additives.

“As we navigate our role in the conversation around UPFs, our commitment to food safety and quality remains paramount. We will continue our work to make health as simple and accessible as possible – making it easy to shop quality whole foods (including fruit and vegetables, whole grains, beans and pulses) at prices customers can afford,” the grocer said in a statement.

Retailer reformulation programmes approach UPFs in ‘different’ ways

Tesco’s reformulation programme and in particular the bans and restrictions on a growing number of additives, attracted a lot of attention. The approach is different from fellow UK food retailer Marks and Spencer, which has focused on simplified ingredients lists through its ‘Only … ingredients’ range.

These are “two different approaches to the same broad concern, appearing in very different ways”, explained Carly Davies, industry relationship at the Future Food Movement, a UK network of food-system experts and leaders from companies including Tesco, Sainsbury’s PepsiCo, Quorn and Warburton’s. “The ultra-processed food (UPF) debate is no longer just about nutrition,” she added.

Indeed, this debate now shapes what retailers put on shelves, how products are formulated and, perhaps most importantly, what consumers trust, Davies noted. The 114 additive question: what exactly are consumers being asked to trust?

“There isn’t one universally agreed definition of UPF. We’re using a single term to talk about some quite different things: processing, ingredients, additives, nutrition, simplicity, even what we think of as ‘real food’. And you can see those different ideas playing out in the choices retailers are making. [Tesco and Marks & Spencer are taking] different routes to what I think is the same question: what makes food feel trustworthy?”