Overview

• New guidance sets caps including under 10g total sugar per 100g for desserts and breakfasts, and salt limits of 60mg per 100 kcal or 100mg with cheese, requiring reformulation without sweeteners.
• Packaging must drop misleading claims such as “contains no nasties” and remove snack cues for seven-month-olds that conflict with NHS advice on weaning.
• The measures are voluntary, with manufacturers expected to comply within 18 months as the government warns it may introduce tougher rules if companies do not act.
• Researchers caution that many pouches and purees are low in energy and key nutrients, raising concerns about their use as first weaning foods.
• National data show about two thirds of 18-month to three-year-olds consume too much sugar and more than a fifth of four- to five-year-olds are overweight or obese in England.