Most of the food sold by the largest companies is unhealthy

Two-thirds of the products sold by the world’s 30 largest food companies are unhealthy, according to a report released Thursday by the Access to Nutrition Foundation (ATNi).

“When you go into your supermarket, on average, almost 70 percent of the products you see are going to be unhealthy, no matter what the label says, no matter what the advertising says,” said Philip Eisenhart, ATNi’s head of media Newsweek.

ATNi CEO Greg Garrett said Newsweek that there have been minor improvements – 34 percent of sales this year came from healthy foods, instead of 27 percent as in 2021.

“But that’s not even half of it,” he said. “If we want to reach 50 percent by 2030, it has to happen much faster.”

“It’s still a bleak picture,” Eisenhart said. “And what’s more, none of these companies are willing to stop marketing these unhealthy products to children.”

Garrett said ATNi views the top 30 food and beverage companies as “a good indicator of what’s happening with the rest of the market.” These companies account for nearly a quarter of all food and beverage sales worldwide, nine of which are based in the United States

“We analyzed how healthy or unhealthy the products are using evidence-based nutritional profile models,” said the group leader, explaining that ATNi and a team of experts examined about 400 ways to measure food health and narrowed the number down to three: Australian, British and European national Nutrition models.

These calculate overall health by measuring macronutrients (fat, carbohydrates and protein), micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), salt and sugar.

Eisenhart said disagreements over categorization of health have been “one of the things that has hindered so many advances in public health.”

“There just has to be a certain level of agreement so that you can have a proper debate,” he said. “This enables us to align industry, politics and investor activities towards a common goal.”

According to this metric, only nine of the 30 companies achieved 50 percent of their sales with “healthier” products, as ATNi’s analyzes showed.

“If you are a mixed foods company and claim to produce foods for everyday consumption, you have an obligation to ensure that at least half of your offering is healthy,” Garrett said. “If you’re a candy company… the limitation is that you don’t market those foods to children. They label them accordingly.”

ATNi’s report found that none of the top 30 food companies followed suit all the World Health Organization’s recommendations for responsible marketing.

“We truly believe that it is unfair to expect consumers to make informed decisions when they are not provided with balanced information,” Eisenhart said. “It’s because of the food environment.”

He explained that the report calls on companies to “treat children fairly” with their marketing so that they are not “terribly influenced from a young age” and fall victim to related lifestyle diseases such as obesity or type 2 diabetes and poor nutrition.

But there is power in knowing how healthy or unhealthy your food is, he added.

“An informed consumer is probably the person with the most power,” Eisenhart said. “They can change corporate behavior through their spending.”

Food companies are responding

Newsweek reached out via email to the companies involved in the report – all but two of which did not have publicly available email addresses – and received six responses.

A Nestlé spokesman said this Newsweek: “We are disappointed that ATNi has not recognized the significant progress Nestlé has made.”

They said Nestlé shares the “common goal of supporting a healthy and balanced diet” but that ATNi’s Global Index methodology disadvantages “companies with more diverse offerings” and therefore “ATNi’s valuation does not do justice to our portfolio.”

A spokesman for Flora Food Group said Newsweek: “Flora Food Group is committed to continuous improvement through our comprehensive nutritional benchmarking program, which goes beyond standard nutritional profiling models to ensure our products deliver key nutrients as part of a balanced diet, including Omega-3 and 6 as well enriched vitamins A and D.”

They said that Flora Food Group has “strict responsible marketing policies” and that ATNi’s methodology underestimates the nutritional benefits of products such as spreads that are consumed in small portions.

A spokesman for FrieslandCampina said this Newsweek that they were “proud” of the company’s improvement as they were among the companies that generated at least half of their sales from healthier products.

“This success reflects our strong commitment to health and nutrition,” the spokesperson said, adding that FrieslandCampina followed a “comprehensive” marketing framework and had recently raised the age limit for marketing to children from 12 to 16 years.

A spokesman for Kellanova said Newsweek: “Kellanova takes a holistic approach to health and wellness that focuses on eating habits, social connectivity and improved food security.

“We are continually looking to improve the nutritional value of our food and have innovated many brands to improve the nutritional profile of the food while maintaining the great taste that our consumers know and love.”

Masamichi Hirokawa from Meiji’s Sustainable Management Department said Newsweek that Meiji would “continue to reformulate our products” after 58 percent of sales came from “healthier” products – which is above ATNi’s target.

“We will also continue to follow the World Health Organization’s recommendations on responsible marketing and industry association guidelines to strengthen our commitment.” [to be] beneficial and transparent for our consumers.

A spokesman for Arla said Newsweek: “Arla is committed to shaping the future of dairy farming and bringing health and inspiration to the world naturally.”

They said 58 percent of Arla’s products achieved a “healthier” rating in 2024, compared to 56 percent in 2021, which they said reflected Arla’s “steady progress.”

A spokesman for Barilla said this Newsweek: “At Barilla, we source high-quality, safe and nutritious ingredients from responsible supply chains that meet strict criteria to ensure that our products are not only tasty and healthy, but also safe and contribute to a balanced diet.”

They added that Barilla is committed to improving the nutritional profile of its portfolio and that its communication efforts aim to prioritize transparency.

A spokesman for Danone said this Newsweek: “We are proud to have received the top position in the Access to Nutrition Initiative (ATNi) 2024 global index.”

“This recognition reflects our strategy and commitment to bringing health through food to as many people as possible.

“Food companies play an important role in addressing global health challenges by making nutrition accessible and tailored to the needs of people worldwide at every stage of life.”

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