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UK to ban junk food TV advertisements before 9pm

In a bid to reduce childhood obesity, the UK government has introduced a policy, coming into effect on 1 October 2025, banning junk food advertising on television before the 9pm watershed.

The primary goal of the ban is to prevent children from being influenced by unhealthy advertisements, which have been shown in numerous studies to directly impact children’s eating habits.

A 2022 study, published in Preventive Medicine Reports, conducted a rapid overview of reviews published since 2006, concluding that exposure to unhealthy TV and online food advertising is a contributing factor to childhood obesity, particularly for children aged between three and 12 years of age and for those from minority ethnic and socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Ban aimed at reducing childhood obesity

In a written statement, Andrew Gwynne, UK parliamentary under-secretary of state for public health and prevention, emphasised the urgent need to fix the country’s “broken” National Health Service (NHS) and tackle the childhood obesity crisis, which he said sets children up for an unhealthy life and generates further pressures on the NHS.

“More than one in five children in England are overweight or living with obesity by the time they start primary school, and this rises to more than one third by the time they leave. We want to tackle the problem head on and that includes implementing the restrictions on junk food advertising on TV and online without further delay.”

The ban, which aims to reduce childhood obesity and the long-term health implications of less healthy food choices, will see junk food ads on all UK television networks banned before 9pm, alongside a total ban on paid-for online advertisements for foods high in fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS). Ofcom, the regulator and competition authority for the UK’s communications industries, has confirmed that Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) services will also follow the 9pm watershed rules.

What types of foods will be included in this ban?

The government has implemented a two-stage approach for classifying a product as "less healthy". A product must comply with the ban if it meets the following criteria:

• Falls under one of the product categories in the draft regulations schedule;
• When applying the 2011 technical guidance to the 2004 to 2005 nutrient profiling model (NPM), the product scores a one or above for drink, and a four or above for food.

According to the BBC, the foods that may be banned fall under 13 categories:

• Soft drinks: This includes any beverage containing added sugar, such as canned sodas, as well as smoothies, fruit juices, and energy drinks.
• Savoury snacks: Primarily potato chips, but also includes tortilla chips, crackers, and rice cakes. Jerky, dried fruit, and flavoured nuts are exempt.
• Breakfast cereals: This category encompasses many items in the breakfast aisle, for example, granola, muesli, and ready-to-eat porridge oat sachets, all of which often contain high/added sugar.
• Chocolates and sweets: The category covers most confectionery items, including chewing gum and popcorn.
• Ice cream: Covers dairy and non-dairy frozen treats and desserts, including iced popsicles, and frozen yoghurts.
• Cakes and pastries: Includes cupcakes, and doughnuts, but does not include icing.
• Biscuits and bars: Covers cereal and protein bars, as well as items such as wafers and toaster pastries.
• Morning goods: Mostly covers pastries, but extends to scones, crumpets, and fruit loaves.
• Desserts and puddings: Covers items like custard, mousse, and jelly, but exempts tinned fruit, syrups and creams.
• Yoghurt: Refers to any sweetened yoghurt, including probiotic and non-dairy varieties.
• Pizza: Covers all types and sizes, except plain bases and garlic bread.
• Potato-based products: Includes a variety of processed items like chips/fries, croquettes, and hash browns.
• Ready meals: Encompasses any prepackaged meal intended to be eaten as a main meal and requires no further preparation beyond heating. Sandwiches, and burgers are also included in this category.

The following products are exempt from the ban, as they are already subject to separate regulations: infant formula; baby food; follow-on formula; and processed-cereal based foods for infants; total diet replacements for weight control products; meal replacement products with an approved health claim; food supplements; and drinks used for medicinal purposes.

‘Robust enforcement’ needed to ensure success of ban, says food policy expert

Food policy expert and professor Christina Vogel, director of the centre for food policy at City St George’s, University of London, commented on the ban, hailing it as a crucial step toward improving public health. She highlighted that the ban helps to protect vulnerable populations, particularly children, from the pervasive influence of unhealthy food ads.

Vogel said that while the ban aligns with efforts to reduce the nation’s health challenges and alleviate economic burdens on the healthcare system, she called for further work to be done around the revised Nutrient Profile Model.

“[...] it’s critical that the government now sets a clear timeline for implementing the revised Nutrient Profile Model, which accounts for updates to our national dietary guidelines, particularly on reducing free sugars and increasing fibre intake. While it’s encouraging to see action on product reformulation from industry, we need our standards for healthy products to continue to nudge forward to more closely reflect the government’s current dietary recommendations,” Vogel said.

She went on to call for robust enforcement mechanisms to ensure the success of and compliance with the ban, noting that previous regulations, like the food promotion and placement regulations and calorie labelling laws, had inconsistent enforcement.