UK Government Must Take ‘Bold Approach’ on Obesity: Report

Around 66% of the adult UK population live with obesity or are overweight, while childhood obesity levels are at a record high of 10.5%.

The overall cost of the obesity crisis for the UK is an estimated £74.3bn (US$99.4bn) annually.

In response, a new report published by the Health and Social Care Committee calls on the UK Government to tackle this crisis through wide-ranging food policy initiatives and a “bold approach”.

This includes strong legislation on junk food adverts and restrictions on High Fat, Sugar or Salt (HFSS) food products.

Health and Social Care Committee Chair Layla Moran, Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, says: “The central message of this report is that we need to tackle England’s escalating obesity crisis through prevention.

“That means bearing down on environmental factors that push people to eat unhealthily – that coerce struggling families to buy their children products that fill them up without nourishing them. 

“That is why the government’s food policy needs an overhaul. Perversely, the worst options are the cheapest while the healthiest are harder to access.”  

Encouraging Healthier Diets

Practical strategies for improving the UK’s “food environment” recommended in the report include updating nutrient profile models, launching mandatory healthy sales reporting at major food retailers, clearly labelling nutritional information on food packaging and improving affordability of healthy food products.

According to figures from The Food Foundation quoted in the report, healthy foods are, on average, more than twice as expensive as less healthy food per calorie, averaging £8.80 (US$11.78) per 1,000kcal compared to £4.30 (US$5.78), with the gap widening in recent years.

Alongside retail-oriented initiatives, the report recommends that public awareness campaigns and local community projects should expand in scope to improve access to healthy food options.

Shifting focus from individual responsibility

The Health and Social Care Committee report also points to the “obesogenic environment” present in the UK, arguing that environmental factors are driving the obesity crisis rather than individual choices.

Between August 2024 and July 2025, nearly £680m (US$910m) was spent on advertising food and soft drinks through TV, radio and public advertising boards.

HFSS products such as sweets, chocolates and crisps accounted for 29% of that spend, whereas fruit and vegetables were just 3%. 

“Attitudes of obesity being purely down to individual failings are outdated and deny the reality of those living with obesity and excess weight in this country,” Layla explains.

Reducing cardiovascular disease risk

Health charities, including the British Heart Foundation (BHF), have welcomed the findings of the report.

BHF published an analysis in June 2026 that showed that around 45 people per day are expected to die from cardiovascular disease linked to excess weight and obesity in England over the next decade if current trends continue. 

In response to the report, John Maingay, BHF’s Director of Policy and Influencing, says: “The UK's obesity epidemic is being sustained by an environment which relentlessly encourages us to choose less healthy food and drink.

“We urgently need to make it easier and cheaper for shoppers to fill their baskets with healthy products. 

“The Government announced plans for a new Healthy Food Standard, to encourage higher sales of healthy food and drink, over a year ago, but implementation has been far too slow. 

"With obesity driving higher rates of disease and multimorbidity, including in children, the UK needs to go much further, and act faster, to reverse this trend."