Today (27th January 2026) an update to the Nutrient Profiling Model has been published, ending the long wait for this fundamental tool to be brought in line with the latest dietary guidance.
The Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) is an important tool in health and food policy, forming the basis of how we determine the healthiness of foods. Originally developed by the Food Standards Agency in 2004-2005 to guide advertising policy, it categorises food and drinks as ‘healthier’ or ‘less healthy’ based on the score they receive. Since 2007, products classed as less healthy (or high in fat, sugar and salt – HFSS) have not been allowed to be advertised directly to children. Subsequently, the NPM has also been used to underpin other important pieces of legislation that have followed, including Less Healthy Food Advertising Regulations and The Food (Promotion and Placement) Regulations.
In 2018, a significant amount of work was undertaken by Public Health England (now Office for Health Improvement and Disparities) with the input of an expert group and a reference group, to develop a modified version of the NPM that reflects dietary guidance.
You can read all about exactly why the NPM is in severe need of an update in our recent blogs from our Executive Director, Kat Jenner and OHA Steering Group Member, Dr Kath Roberts.
Today, as part of the NHS 10 Year Health Plan, the government is moving forward with publishing the updated model, issuing technical guidance and a consultation on how the updated model might be applied to existing policy “in due course” – including on an appropriate timeline for implementation as well as the advice and guidance that businesses need to apply the new NPM to their portfolios.
Access the updated technical guidance here
Katharine Jenner, Executive Director, Obesity Health Alliance and co-chair of the NPM working group responded:
“Updating the Nutrient Profiling Model isn’t moving the goalposts – it’s making the game fairer. This measured, long-overdue update better reflects modern dietary guidance and ensures genuinely healthier foods are recognised, and that more highly processed, high-sugar products can no longer hide behind outdated definitions.”
“This updated model has been sitting on the shelf since 2018. Publishing it now, with a view to bringing it into use, will finally allow policy to shine a light on the foods that genuinely support people’s health.”
OHA is available for comment, please email press@obesityhealthalliance.org.uk / 07740553298 kat.jenner@obesityhealthalliance.org.uk
The OHA is facilitating a dedicated NPM working group including members of the alliance who have experience and expertise on the model. Members of this group and the wider alliance also welcomed the update:
Dr Kath Roberts, Senior Lecturer in Public Health Nutrition, University of York and co-chair of the NPM working group
The updated Nutrient Profiling Model reflects where the science is now, not where it was fifteen years ago. It provides a far more accurate way of identifying foods that undermine health, particularly for children, and if it is applied to policy in the future, will ensure that advertising and promotions are based on evidence rather than outdated thresholds. Delaying its implementation would mean knowingly maintaining a food environment that drives poor diet and widening health inequalities.
D’Arcy Williams, CEO of Bite Back
“Right now, too many parts of the food system are set up to fool young people instead of fuel them. Chocolate cereal, porridge soaked in golden syrup and sugary yoghurts are masquerading as healthy options, at a time when a third of 10/11-year-olds leave primary school at risk of food related ill health in their future, and children are consuming 50% more free sugars than recommended. We welcome the Government’s move to update the Nutrient Profiling Model so that products containing sneaky sugars are taken out of the spotlight, making room for healthier products to be promoted instead.”
Lindsey Marston, Policy and Campaign Manager, British Dietetic Association
“Updating the model in line with the latest science is an important step forward. It helps close loopholes and ensures our approach reflects current nutrition evidence. This clarity strengthens efforts to improve our overall food environment. Crucially, it supports healthier options coming more to the forefront. We’re excited to see this progress shaping a healthier future.”
Sonia Pombo, Head of Research and Impact, Action on Salt & Sugar
“We welcome the government’s long-awaited update to the Nutrient Profile Model (NPM), which represents a clear improvement on the outdated 2004 model and better reflects current evidence on free sugars. No model is perfect, but this update is a necessary step forward and provides a stronger, more evidence-based foundation for food policy – and one that should come as no surprise to industry, having first been consulted on in 2018.
To deliver meaningful public health impact, the NPM must now be applied more consistently across food policy and to all food and drink deemed less healthy, helping to capture a wider range of products, including major contributors to high salt diets. That also means going beyond the advertising and promotion rules to regulate health and nutrition claims, and labelling.
Products that are too unhealthy to advertise should not be allowed to present themselves as ‘healthy’ through misleading on-pack claims. Now’s the time to close those loopholes, apply the model consistently, and let the product speak for itself, not the marketing.”
Dr Kawther Hashem, Senior Lecturer in Public Health Nutrition, Queen Mary University of London,
“The independent Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition recommended cutting free sugars intake and increasing fibre back in 2015, advice that was accepted by the UK Government. In principle, this should have triggered immediate updates to food and nutrition policies to ensure we were doing everything possible to reduce free sugars and boost fibre intake, especially in children’s diets.
Yet most children are still consuming more than double the recommended amount of free sugars, and an alarming 90% are not getting enough fibre.
That’s why it is both welcome and long overdue to see the Nutrient Profile Model updated to reflect these recommendations. Shifting from total sugars to free sugars and introducing a lower threshold is a crucial step forward, particularly as this model underpins key food and nutrition policies. This change has the potential to drive meaningful improvements in children’s diets.”
Dr Giota Mitrou, Executive Director of Research and Policy at the World Cancer Research Fund
“The new Nutrient Profile Model published by the UK Government is a long-overdue step forward. For over 20 years, food policy in the UK has relied on the 2004 model which no longer reflects the latest evidence on diet, nutrition, overweight and obesity, and cancer risk. This update therefore marks a turning point, and we look forward to supporting the Government in applying the updated UK Nutrient Profile Model across food policy, so it delivers real progress for cancer prevention and overall public health.”