Eating out exerts a significant influence on public health, yet consumers remain largely unaware of the nutritional quality of their meals. As diet-related diseases surge, transparency in this sector is imperative
Restaurant chains, cafes, and takeaways wield massive influence over public health. Yet, there’s a glaring problem: we are largely kept in the dark about the nutritional quality of the meals we eat out. As diet-related diseases like obesity, diabetes, and heart disease skyrocket globally, the need for transparency in the out-of-home (OOH) food sector has never been more urgent.
Recent research by Action on Salt and Action on Sugar, Queen Mary University of London, Obesity Health Alliance, Bite Back and Nesta (funded by ShareAction) sheds light on the OOH food industry in the UK, diving into the 10 best-selling menu items of 19 of the 20 largest companies, including Domino’s, Pizza Hut and McDonald’s. There were two key findings:
Industry opaque: Limited nutritional information when eating out
Firstly, the industry is extremely opaque: most companies do not share complete enough information on the ingredients or nutrition of the meals they sell. In fact, 50% of leading UK OOH companies don’t disclose essential data like ‘nutrients per 100g’ or serving weights, and 50% don’t even provide ingredient lists online. This stands in stark contrast to the food we buy in supermarkets, for which such labelling is mandatory.
Unhealthy offerings: Majority of best-selling items classified as ‘less healthy’
Secondly, researchers did their own analysis and found that the majority of best-selling items in the UK’s largest OOH chains are classified as ‘less healthy’. Depending on the model used, only a meagre 22% to 54% of these items were classified as ‘healthier options.’
Recommendations: Increased transparency and healthier offerings
This critical research lays the groundwork for progress, making recommendations that forward-thinking companies, policymakers, and investors can implement.
One key recommendation is that companies adopt a robust and standardised approach for informing consumers about the healthiness of their products, clearly indicating how they stack up in terms of calories, fat, sugar, and salt. While some forward-thinking companies (such as Pret A Manger) are leading the way here, this will almost certainly require government regulation to ensure broad transparency.
But we can’t rely on busy consumers to do all the hard work—it’s companies’ responsibility to lead by making and promoting healthier products.
This research shows that companies currently rely far too heavily on the sales of unhealthy products. They risk being left behind as consumers increasingly demand healthier options and governments look to tackle diet-related disease upstream with marketing restrictions or taxes. To incentivize change, companies should be required to disclose regularly the extent to which they rely on unhealthy product sales.
While we hope to see some voluntary leadership from companies (none yet!), this will require mandatory reporting, such as through the Food Data Transparency Partnership in the UK. Once we have clarity on the healthiness of their sales, there will be a much stronger incentive for the companies to set ambitious targets to sell more healthy food, so they can be on the front foot in an increasingly health-conscious world.
Investors have a pivotal role to play in this. Shareholders will suffer if the companies they hold fail to adapt ahead of changing consumer trends and regulations. More broadly, at a systemic level, the portfolios of diversified investors are already being dragged down by the effects of poor health and sluggish economic growth fuelled by unhealthy foods. ShareAction will build on this research to support long-term investors by encouraging improvement from the industry and better regulation from the government.
The takeaway? The OOH food sector needs to step up.
As the health crisis linked to poor diets worsens, the eating out industry must take responsibility for the food it serves. The insights from this new research provide the tools to do just that. It’s time for restaurant chains, cafes, and takeaways to open up, increase transparency, and start serving meals that contribute to a healthier world. Investors, consumers, and the industry itself stand to gain from this shift —if they have the courage to act.
