'Buy one, get one free' deals for unhealthy food banned in England. This isn't going to solve the obesity crisis

[Antimimisti]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c89d54gv44qo

"Multi-buy promotions do not save people money – in fact, they encourage them to spend more.
"They are designed to encourage impulsive purchases and to normalise buying more and more frequently."
He [Greg Fell, president of the Association of Public Health Directors] said he hoped retailers would now turn towards promoting healthy products more, to make healthier choices easier and more accessible.

Is this true? I don't think it reflects my shopping habits. If I buy something on a multi-buy it's because I'd be buying more than one anyway and it's a bonus to get it cheaper. It isn't the case that because I buy two, I eat two in the same timeframe I'd only normally have eaten one.

My thoughts are this initiative is likely to make things harder for people, especially those with large families to feed. I'm all for restricting advertising of junk food, but supermarkets should be able to set their own pricing.

If the government is worried about junk food consumption in England, why don't they stop councils allowing multiple fast food outlets and Drive Thru McDonalds to spring up in towns? Why don't they start a junk food tax on Deliveroo etc.?

No, it won’t, but it’s a start.

They need to focus on making sure good food (vegetables, fruits, good carbs, lean meat), is more affordable.

I haven’t seen bogof for years. Where are they?

Maybe supermarkets could switch to putting healthy foods on buy one get one free to make things cheaper for families. Advertising definitely does affect purchasing behaviour otherwise companies wouldn't bother spending so much money on it.

I do agree however there is a lot more to be done and there needs to be more incentives stop fast food outlets and support for healthier alternatives.

Retailers will find ways around it. The multipacks being cheaper than two individual packets, or bigger packets etc.

Are they going to target meal deals? I was surprised that pasties count as snacks for example.

Or things like the coops 2 pizzas and a tub of ice cream for a fiver when the ice cream costs £6 individually?

It says "Price or multibuy promotions" - I would take that to include price reductions for buying more than one as well as 'BOGOF' but happy to be corrected.

Maybe supermarkets could switch to putting healthy foods on buy one get one free to make things cheaper for families.

They'll only do it where there's enough profit margin for it to be cost effective. I've never seen that kind of deal on basic meat or veg, for example.

No single measure will solve it. It’ll take a whole panoply of measures.

Tackling UPF will be a big part of it.

It is on fruit and veg though? Morrisons have three for five pounds on grapes 🤷‍♀️

The issue is that’s just not practical.

who will go through three punnets of fresh grapes in the 5 days they last?

They often have buy 2 get 1 free on fruit. By getting rid of prominent end of aisle offers on unhealthy foods they could be making these healthy offers more prominent.

Do supermarkets make more profit on the 'junk'/upf type food that they would have sold using BOGOF than they make on veg and meat?

I can't believe there is huge scope for deals on carrots or onions as they still seem quite cheap, although maybe I'm wrong as they seem to be able to sell some veg for 15p at Xmas?

Loss leaders. You go in for your 7p potatoes and work out with ££££ worth of crap

Just thought the same thing. Genuinely can’t remember last time I saw one

The 15p veg at Christmas is a loss leader - it's in the hope you'll go to buy a bag of 15p sprouts and pick up other Christmas food while you're there.

It tends to be more - normal price, £3, buy 2 for £5 on a loyalty card deal these days. But the article implies all multi buy deals on 'unhealthy food' will be banned.

You cannot predict the future. In your opinion it will do nothing, but, as you say, this opinion is based solely on your shopping habits.

In any event, it's a start.

I was under the impression that supermarkets couldn't sell items at a loss but perhaps I was wrong.

Obesity is so bad that I would consider the government negligent not to try to find ways to tackle it.

Almost 2 in 3 adults in England in 2023 to 24 were either overweight or obese. (See link below). Shocking! So bad for all aspects of your health.

No idea whether this particular plan will help but it's worth a try.

www.gov.uk/government/statistics/obesity-profile-may-2025-update/obesity-profile-short-statistical-commentary-may-2025#:~:text=Prevalence%20of%20overweight%20and%20obesity,a%2026.9%20percentage%20point%20gap.

And what’s wrong with this Coop offer?
just spread pizzas and ice cream over few weeks, no need to eat everything at once

I'm not saying there is something wrong with it, I wass asking if it would be foul of the legislation.

@pizzaHearti think the point is maybe that 2 pizzas and a tub of ice cream being sold for a fiver is very cheap. If they can do it for pizza, why not do it for 2 packs of vegetables and a chicken for a fiver (for example)?

The idea that every measure taken to reduce harm or risk should "solve" whatever problem they're addressing - and if it doesn't then it's not worth doing - is extremely childish thinking.

That said, I'd be happy if the offers were changed so that more veg etc were included. I suspect they'll simply vanish. I probably buy a bit more "treats" than I intend to due to offers but I'm happy being responsible for what I eat.

Lets see some "Buy one get one free" on healthy foods: wholemeal bread, healthy cereal, lean meat, pulses.

Food manufacturers of processed foods are big business, hugely wealthy and powerful, fruit, veg and salad growers and providers just cant compete

There is a slide on an online article on Pound Of Cure, on facebook, Matthew Weiner I think his name is, he is a bariatric consultant in the US. He sets out the statistics for the sugar industry and soft drinks industries compared to fruit and veg lobbying power. Its really stark

Also the amount of sugar consumed now compared to 100 years ago. They are US stats but wont be hugely different for us.

We are overweight in this country due to our terrible food culture.

What I'd like to know is why glucose fructose syrup is in everything yet ordinary sugar is demonised and why is everything so sickly sweet? I can't eat or drink things with gf in because it spikes my blood sugar, yet sugar doesn't have this effect. Things also don't need to be so sweet.

Using xylitol in sugar free foods would also be far better than using maltitol, which most people can't tolerate and which causes gut issues and diarrhoea. It might cost a bit more, but would be better in terms of calories and health. You can buy chocolate with xylitol in, but it's very expensive and has to be bought online.

There are things that can be done, yet they're never addressed.