Overview
- The University of Liverpool’s modeling, published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, simulated outcomes for adults in England from 2024 to 2043.
- Making traffic-light nutrition labels compulsory was estimated to cut obesity prevalence by 2.34 percentage points and prevent or postpone about 57,000 deaths.
- Mandating nutrient warning labels was projected to reduce obesity prevalence by 4.44 percentage points and avert roughly 110,000 deaths, with gains seen across socioeconomic groups.
- Front-of-pack labeling remains voluntary in the UK, and retailers say they use traffic-light labels on own-brand products while back-of-pack nutrition information is required by law.
- The Department of Health and Social Care highlights a planned modernised nutrient scoring system and other obesity measures, and no decision on mandatory warnings has been announced.