Overview
- The three-part analysis compiles extensive evidence that high-UPF diets promote overeating, degrade nutrient quality, increase exposure to additives, and raise risks for obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and depression.
- Authors call for a coordinated global response modeled on tobacco control to rein in corporate power over production and promotion of UPFs.
- The UPF sector generated about $1.9 trillion in 2023, with products accounting for up to half of daily intake in the U.S. and U.K. as affordability and convenience drive consumption.
- German data indicate roughly half of supermarket offerings are classified as UPFs and per-capita sales are among the highest, highlighting the scale of the issue in high‑income markets.
- UNICEF and WHO support measures such as targeted taxes, advertising restrictions and institutional food standards, with researchers warning that lobbying and front groups are stalling regulation and urging protections for low‑income households.