Benchmarking the Nutrition-Related Policies and Commitments of Major Food Companies in Australia, 2018

A comparative analysis of nutrition-related assessment criteria and associated nutrition performance scores of food companies across three prominent corporate sustainability assessment tools

OBJECTIVE

Corporate sustainability assessment tools are increasingly used to evaluate company performance on environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. Given the growing burden of diet-related disease and nutrition-related business risks, it is important to understand the scope of nutrition-related ESG data currently available. This study aimed to compare the nutrition-related assessment criteria and associated food company performance across three prominent assessment tools.

DESIGN

Key attributes and assessment criteria of two civil society-led and one commercially available corporate sustainability assessment tools were extracted and compared for the year 2021. Company performance scores for twenty-five major food and beverage manufacturers using these three tools were analysed by nutrition domain: 'Product Portfolio', 'Labelling', 'Marketing', 'Accessibility and Affordability', 'Governance and Reporting', 'Stakeholder Engagement' and 'Employee Health'. To enable comparison between tools, company performance scores were assigned to categories of low (score = 0-25 % score or D), moderately low (25-50 % or C), moderately high (50-75 % or B) and high (75-100 % or A).

SETTING

Global.

PARTICIPANTS

N/A.

RESULTS

The tools covered similar nutrition domains; however, there was heterogeneity in the assessment criteria used to evaluate each domain. When applied to assess the performance of twenty-five major food and beverage manufacturers, a median nutrition-related performance score of moderately low or low was observed across all tools. The highest scoring domain was 'Governance and Reporting', and the lowest scoring domains were 'Product Portfolio' and 'Accessibility and Affordability'.

CONCLUSIONS

Greater standardisation of the nutrition-related criteria against which food companies are assessed is needed as part of efforts to drive improvements in food company practices.

Front-of-Package Nutrition Labeling and Its Impact on Food Industry Practices: A Systematic Review of the Evidence

The obesity epidemic has become a major public health concern globally, and the food supply is a significant driver of this trend. Front-of-package (FOP) labels have been implemented in many countries to encourage healthier food choices. This systematic review aimed to examine the effect of FOP label implementation on food manufacturers' practices. A comprehensive search of multiple databases was conducted following PRISMA guidelines, identifying 39 relevant articles from 1990 to 2021. The studies indicated that FOP labels conveying intuitive information influenced product reformulation, whereas those with numerical information without specific guidance had no impact on reducing unhealthy nutrients. The most common outcomes were sodium, sugar, and calorie reduction. Mandatory policies reported higher and more consistent effects on product reformulation compared to voluntary approaches. Voluntary FOP labeling resulted in low uptake and tended to be applied to healthier products. Food manufacturers responded to FOP labeling heterogeneously, depending on the label design and type of enforcement. FOP label implementation can reduce nutrients of concern but food manufacturers behave strategically by labeling healthier choices. This review provides recommendations for maximizing the benefits of using FOP labels to prevent obesity, and findings can inform future public health research and policymaking.

The structure of the Canadian packaged food and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturing and grocery retailing sectors through a public health lens

BACKGROUND

Corporate power has been recognized as an important influence on food environments and population health more broadly. Understanding the structure of national food and beverage markets can provide important insight into the power held by leading corporations. This study aimed to descriptively analyze the structure of the Canadian food and beverage manufacturing and grocery retailing sectors as of 2020/21.

METHODS

Packaged food manufacturers, non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers and grocery retailers with ≥ 1% market share in 2020/21 in Canada as per Euromonitor International were identified and characterized. Proportion of market share held by public vs private, multinational vs national, and foreign multinational companies was assessed for the 3 sectors. The concentration of 14 packaged food, 8 non-alcoholic beverage and 5 grocery retailing markets was assessed using the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) and the four firm concentration ratio (CR4) (HHI > 1800 and CR4 > 60 suggest high market concentration). Company ownership structure was also assessed, including common ownership of public companies by three of the largest global asset managers using data from Refinitiv Eikon, a financial market database.

RESULTS

The Canadian non-alcoholic beverage manufacturing sector, and, to a lesser extent, the packaged food manufacturing sector were dominated by foreign multinational companies, in contrast with the grocery retailing sector which was dominated by national companies. Market concentration varied across sectors and markets but was substantially greater within the retailing (median CR4 = 84; median HHI = 2405) and non-alcoholic beverage sectors (median CR4 = 72; median HHI = 1995) compared to the packaged food sector (median CR4 = 51; median HHI = 932). There was considerable evidence of common ownership across sectors. Overall, the Vanguard Group Inc owned at least 1% of shares in 95% of publicly listed companies, Blackrock Institutional Trust Company 71%, and State Street Global Advisors (US) 43%.

CONCLUSIONS

The Canadian packaged food and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturing and grocery retailing sectors include several consolidated markets, with a high degree of common ownership by major investors. Findings suggest that a small number of large corporations, particularly in the retailing sector, have extensive power to influence Canadian food environments; their policies and practices warrant substantial attention as part of efforts to improve population diets in Canada.

Public Support for Nutrition-Related Actions by Food Companies in Australia: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Findings from the 2020 International Food Policy Study

Unhealthy food environments contribute to unhealthy population diets. In Australia, the government currently relies on voluntary food company actions (e.g., related to front-of-pack labelling, restricting promotion of unhealthy foods, and product formulation) as part of their efforts to improve population diets, despite evidence that such voluntary approaches are less effective than mandatory policies. This study aimed to understand public perceptions of potential food industry nutrition-related actions in Australia. An online survey was completed by 4289 Australians in 2020 as part of the International Food Policy Study. The level of public support was assessed for six different nutrition-related actions related to food labelling, food promotion, and product formulation. High levels of support were observed for all six company actions, with the highest support observed for displaying the Health Star Rating on all products (80.4%) and restricting children's exposure to online promotion of unhealthy food (76.8%). Findings suggest the Australian public is strongly supportive of food companies taking action to improve nutrition and the healthiness of food environments. However, given the limitations of the voluntary action from food companies, mandatory policy action by the Australian government is likely to be needed to ensure company practices align with public expectations.

Integrating nutrition and obesity prevention considerations into institutional investment decisions regarding food companies: Australian investment sector perspectives

Background:

There is growing recognition that current food systems are both unhealthy and unsustainable, and are increasingly shifting toward the supply and marketing of unhealthy, ultra-processed foods and beverages. Large food companies hold substantial power within food systems and present a significant barrier to progress on addressing issues related to nutrition and obesity prevention. Institutional investors (such as pension funds) play a key role in influencing corporate governance and practices, and are increasingly incorporating environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations within investment decisions. By considering nutrition and obesity prevention, institutional investors present a potential avenue for driving increased food industry accountability for their population health impact. This study investigated views of stakeholders in the Australian investment sector on the incorporation of nutrition and obesity prevention considerations within institutional investment decision-making regarding food companies.

Methods:

Fifteen in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted in 2020-21. Participants were predominantly Australian-based, and included representatives from asset management companies, superannuation funds, ESG advisory/consultancy firms, ESG research providers, and relevant advocacy groups. Interviews examined challenges and opportunities to the integration of nutrition and obesity prevention considerations within institutional investment decision-making. Interviews were analysed using deductive thematic analysis, informed by a theoretical change model.

Results:

Several participants reported that their institution factored nutrition and obesity prevention considerations into their investment decisions; however, attention to nutrition-related issues was limited, generally perceived as ‘niche’, and not yet institutionalised. Key challenges and opportunities were identified at the employee, investment organisation, investment sector, government and non-government levels. These challenges and opportunities centred around experience and knowledge, quality and availability of ESG data and benchmarks, importance of investor coalitions, and demonstration of financial risks related to nutrition and obesity.

Conclusion:

There are a range of steps that could be taken to help ensure more systematic and effective consideration of issues related to nutrition and obesity prevention within institutional investment decision-making in Australia, including: (1) improved nutrition-related reporting metrics and benchmarking criteria for food companies; (2) better articulation of the financial risks that unhealthy diets and obesity pose to investors; (3) enhanced investor advocacy on unhealthy diets and obesity through investor coalitions and; (4) detailed guidance for investors on how to address unhealthy diets and obesity. Better engagement between the Australian public health community, institutional investors and government regulators is critical to drive changed investor practice in this area.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12992-022-00885-7.

Benchmarking the nutrition-related commitments and practices of major French food companies

Background

This study benchmarked and quantitatively assessed the transparency, specificity and comprehensiveness of nutrition-related commitments and related practices of the major companies within the French food industry.

Methods

To evaluate the nutrition-related commitments and practices across policy domains such as product reformulation, labelling, marketing, and accessibility, the ‘Business Impact Assessment on Obesity and population-level nutrition’ (BIA-Obesity) was applied. A total of 33 French food companies were selected using Euromonitor 2018 market share data, including major packaged food and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers (N = 20), quick-service restaurants (N = 7), and supermarkets (N = 6). During 2019-2020 the publicly available commitments were collected for each company, scored according to the BIA-Obesity, and company representatives were provided with the opportunity to complete and verify the collected data. The following performance metrics were included to assess company practices: the median Nutri-Score of product portfolios, the proportion of products with Nutri-Score A or B, the percentage of products (not-)permitted to be marketed to children according to the World Health Organisation Europe nutrient profile model and the proportion of ultra-processed food products as determined by the NOVA-classification. In addition supermarket flyers were collected over a 6-months period to assess the healthiness of product promotions. Correlations between commitments and performance metrics were assessed applying the Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient.

Results

Among the selected food companies, 13 companies verified and completed the publicly available data (response rate = 39%). Overall BIA-Obesity scores for company commitments varied between 2 and 74% with a median score of 28%. Scores for packaged food and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers were higher than those for supermarkets and quick-service restaurants. The median proportion of foods with Nutri-Score A or B within product portfolios was 38% (range = 1-95%), while the median proportion of non-permitted products was 84% (range = 7-100%) and the median proportion of ultra-processed food products 63% (range = 5-100%). Stronger company commitments did not translate into better performance metrics.

Conclusions

There is room for significant improvement of both company commitments and performance. Current food industry action does not meet recommended best practices. The French government is urged to regulate food industry practices to create healthier food environments.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-022-13780-y.

Consumption Frequency and Purchase Locations of Foods Prepared Outside the Home in Australia: 2018 International Food Policy Study

BACKGROUND

Foods prepared outside the home (e.g., fast-food chains, restaurants) represent increasing proportions of diets worldwide, and have been associated with higher energy intakes and BMIs. To improve the healthiness of population diets, it is important to understand patterns of consumption of these foods, and whether related policy measures are effective.

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to identify the frequency and sources of consumption of foods prepared outside the home in Australia, and to understand the impact of nutrition information in restaurants on related food choices.

METHODS

Data were from a web-based survey (the International Food Policy Study) completed in 2018 by Australian adults aged ≥18 years (n = 4103). The number of meals prepared outside the home, their purchase locations, and the extent to which nutrition information was noticed and influenced purchasing decisions were each analyzed by sociodemographic characteristics and BMI, with linear models also adjusted for sex, age group, education, ethnicity, and BMI.

RESULTS

An average of 2.73 (95% CI, 2.61-2.86) meals per week were prepared outside the home, with higher frequencies among men, younger ages, and more highly educated participants. A wide variety of sources for these foods was observed, with fast-food outlets being most common. Around one-quarter of all foods prepared outside the home were delivered. A small percentage (14.9%; 95% CI, 13.3%-16.7%) of participants reported noticing nutrition information, but among those who did, around half reported that it influenced their behavior.

CONCLUSIONS

Foods prepared outside the home are commonly purchased in Australia, particularly by young adults, from a variety of outlet types. While current menu energy labeling regulations may provide some population health benefit, a broader policy focus on foods prepared outside the home is needed as part of efforts to improve population diets.

Assessment of the Commitments and Performance of the European Food Industry to Improve Population Nutrition

Objectives: Food companies could play an important role in improving population diets, but often escape accountability through unspecific commitments. This study evaluated nutrition-related commitments and estimated performance of the largest packaged food and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers, supermarkets and quick-service restaurants (QSR) in Europe.

Methods: To quantitatively assess companies’ publicly available commitments in 2020, the “Business Impact Assessment on Obesity and Population Nutrition” was applied. The proportion of sales from ultra-processed and “unhealthy” food categories (product categories not-permitted to be marketed to children) and over time changes in the number of QSR transactions and QSR and supermarket outlets were calculated.

Results: Company commitments fell short of best practice recommendations (median overall score of 21%, range: 1%–62%). Food and beverage companies generated 82% (15%–100%) and 58% (1%–100%) sales from ultra-processed and “unhealthy” products, respectively. The number of QSR outlets and transactions substantially increased in Europe since 2011, while QSR commitments to improve population nutrition remained limited.

Conclusion: Whilst most companies made some nutrition-related commitments, they did not comply with best practice recommendations. A large proportion of sales was generated from ultra-processed/unhealthy products and QSR outlets increased. Government regulations are urgently needed.

Benchmarking the nutrition-related commitments and practices of major Belgian food companies

Background

To benchmark and quantitatively assess the transparency, specificity and comprehensiveness of nutrition-related commitments, as well as related practices of the largest Belgian food companies.

Methods

The ‘Business Impact Assessment on Obesity and population-level nutrition’ (BIA-Obesity) was applied to evaluate nutrition-related commitments and practices concerning product formulation, labelling, promotion and accessibility by the biggest Belgian food and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers (n = 19), supermarkets (n = 5) and quick-service restaurants (n = 7). Publicly available commitments were collected and company representatives given the opportunity to verify and complete the information (2019–2020). Commitments were scored according to the BIA-Obesity. To assess company practices, the following indicators were calculated: median Nutri-Score of product portfolios, the proportion of products not-permitted to be marketed to children (using the World Health Organisation Regional Office for Europe nutrient profile model), the proportion of ultra-processed food products (using the NOVA-classification) and the proportion of products displaying Nutri-Score on the front-of-pack. Promotions in supermarket flyers were analysed over a one-year period and quick-service restaurant density around schools was calculated. Correlations between commitments and performance indicators were calculated applying the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient.

Results

Eighteen out of 31 companies participated (56%). Overall BIA-Obesity scores for commitments ranged from 2 to 75% (median = 35%) with notable variation across policy domains and food industries. The proportion of portfolios consisting of A and B Nutri-Score products ranged from 0 to 100% (median = 29%). The median proportion of products not-permitted to be marketed to children was 81% (range = 12%-100%) and the median proportion of ultra-processed foods was 75% (range = 2%-100%) across product portfolios. No significant correlations were observed between the strength of commitments and related performance indicators.

Conclusion

Food industry actions do not meet recommended best practices. Performance indicators show large potential for improvement across policy domains and industries. Government regulations are urgently needed to improve food industry efforts and ensure that commitments translate into improved practices.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12966-022-01269-1.

Price promotions offered by quick service restaurants in Australia: analysis from an obesity prevention perspective

OBJECTIVE

To assess the price promotions offered by major quick service restaurant (QSR) chains in Australia from an obesity prevention perspective.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional audit of ten of the largest QSR chains in Australia. We collected information regarding temporary price promotions and 'combination deals' offered by each chain over thirteen consecutive weeks in 2019-2020. We assessed the type of promotions, the magnitude of discount, and the energy content and healthiness of items promoted (based on Victorian Government criteria).

SETTING

Melbourne, Australia.

PARTICIPANTS

Ten major QSR chains.

RESULTS

Temporary price promotions (n 196) and combination deals (n 537 on regular menus, n 36 on children's menus) were observed across the ten selected QSR chains. In relation to temporary price promotions, the mean magnitude of discount for main menu items (n 75) was 41·7 %. The price reductions and energy content of combination deals varied substantially the by chain, the meal size and the sides/drinks selected as part of the 'deal'. When the lowest-energy options (e.g. small chips, small sugar-free drink) were included as part of each combination deal, the mean energy content was 2935 kJ, compared to 5764 kJ when the highest-energy options (e.g. large fries, large sugar-sweetened drink) were included. Almost all available products were classified as unhealthy.

CONCLUSION

Price promotions are ubiquitous in major QSR chains in Australia and provide incentives to consume high levels of energy. The action to restrict price promotions on unhealthy foods and ensure lower-energy default items as part of combination deals should be included as part of efforts to improve population diets and address obesity in Australia.

Latest Trends in Investing for Improved Nutrition and Obesity Prevention

Purpose of Review

The aim of this paper is to summarise current trends and new developments with regard to institutional investor actions related to nutrition and obesity prevention.

Recent Findings

Investor-related activity related to improving population diets is building, with several recent initiatives aiming to accelerate achievement of global nutrition goals. There is increasing civil society and investor activism focused on leveraging investor influence to improve nutrition-related food company actions. There are multiple sustainability-related reporting standards; however, few include comprehensive nutrition-related metrics.

Summary

There is increasing interest from institutional investors in addressing nutrition-related issues; however, investor activity in the area is piece-meal. There is a need for further integration of nutrition within current reporting frameworks. Methodological alignment across the increasing number of food industry accountability initiatives would likely help galvanise increased investor action. Some jurisdictions are introducing relevant mandatory reporting requirements, which are likely to play a key role in enhancing transparency by the food industry and financial institutions.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13668-021-00389-7.

A Proposed Research Agenda for Promoting Healthy Retail Food Environments in the East Asia-Pacific Region

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This paper aimed to summarise existing literature on strategies to improve the healthiness of retail food environments in the East Asia and Pacific (EAP) region, and propose a prioritised research agenda on this topic.

RECENT FINDINGS

Little research on retail food environments has been conducted in the EAP region. Several approaches for measuring retail food environments were identified, although none have been tailored to the EAP context. A small number of policies and initiatives to promote healthy retail food environments have been implemented in EAP. Lessons learnt from successful implementation of initiatives in other regions could be applied in EAP. Retail food environments have a strong influence on food choices and health outcomes. Research can contribute to efforts to improve the healthiness of retail food environments in EAP by (1) describing the current state of retail food environments to highlight areas of good practice and concern and (2) identifying policies and initiatives that are likely to be effective, and mechanisms for their successful implementation.

Policy Inertia on Regulating Food Marketing to Children: A Case Study of Malaysia

Unhealthy food marketing shapes children’s preference towards obesogenic foods. In Malaysia, policies regulating this food marketing were rated as poor compared to global standards, justifying the need to explore barriers and facilitators during policy development and implementation processes. The case study incorporated qualitative methods, including historical mapping, semi-structured interviews with key informants and a search of cited documents. Nine participants were interviewed, representing the Federal government (n = 5), food industry (n = 2) and civil society (n = 2). Even though the mandatory approach to government-led regulation of food marketing to children was the benchmark, more barriers than facilitators in the policy process led to industry self-regulations in Malaysia. Cited barriers were the lack of political will, industry resistance, complexity of legislation, technical challenges, and lack of resources, particularly professional skills. The adoption of industry self-regulation created further barriers to subsequent policy advancement. These included implementer indifference (industry), lack of monitoring, poor stakeholder relations, and policy characteristics linked to weak criteria and voluntary uptake. These underlying barriers, together with a lack of sustained public health advocacy, exacerbated policy inertia. Key recommendations include strengthening pro-public health stakeholder partnerships, applying sustained efforts in policy advocacy to overcome policy inertia, and conducting monitoring for policy compliance and accountability. These form the key lessons for advocating policy reforms.