Ultra-processed foods should not be targeted for blanket avoidance in national dietary guidelines, according to the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF).
In a new position statement on ultra-processed foods (UPF) the BNF, whose corporate members include Greggs, McDonald’s and Coca Cola, said that in countries such as the UK, UPF currently make a significant contribution to total dietary intake. It argued that while support to reduce intakes of less healthy processed foods is important, blanket advice to avoid UPF “may have unintended consequences that have not been fully investigated for different groups within the population”.
The BNF’s position is likely to prove controversial among some health campaigners who have highlighted the risks caused by high levels of UPF consumption. A number of countries already advise the reduction or avoidance of UPF in dietary advice based on the NOVA classification, a system of grades from one to four that compares the degree of processing of food and drink products. It ranges from unprocessed or minimally processed foods like fruits and eggs in grade one to ultra-processed foods like cereals, biscuits and cakes in grade four.
However the BNF noted that the definition of UPF can also include foods such as sliced wholemeal bread and lower sugar wholegrain breakfast cereals which it argued “can contribute to an affordable healthy, balanced diet”.
Previous studies have linked high consumption of UPF with poor health outcomes including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity and cancer risk. The BNF, however, contended that although such studies have shown consistent associations, “it is difficult to untangle the impact of less healthy dietary patterns and lifestyles and they do not provide clear evidence of a causal association between processing per se and health”.
The BNF released a new survey alongside its position statement showing public concern about UPF has increased. Compared to the same survey from 2021, more people had heard of the term ‘ultra-processed food’ (46% versus 30%) and were trying to reduce these foods in their diet (33% versus 25%).
Increased consumption of UPF has also been linked to worsened environmental impacts, including contribution to climate change.
