The food industry is finding new ways to advertise unhealthy food to young people, according to a new report.

The Food Foundation has today published (3 December) its State of the Nation Food Industry report, which highlighted that outdoor advertising spend by food companies increased 28% between 2021 and 2024. This came after the UK government announced it would ban junk food from being advertised on TV and online.

The report, funded by Impact on Urban Health, showcased that McDonald’s spending had increased by 71% during this period, the most of any of the firm’s it surveyed. Other firms that had high outdoor advertising spending included Unilever, Pepsico, Coca-Cola, Mars and Mondelez.

It also found that over two-thirds of “food marketing cues” on videogame livestreaming platforms were for unhealthy food and drink, with 77% branded cues for energy drinks and soft drinks and 20% for the fast food sector.

Rebecca Tobi, head of food business transformation, The Food Foundation, said, ‘We cannot continue to leave progress on healthy and sustainable sales to the market. It’s simply not working.  Fixing the system so that it better serves both people and planet needs bold and urgent action from businesses but also, crucially, the government, who are ultimately responsible for setting the parameters businesses operate in”.  

Additionally, the research highlighted that 39% food and drink cues featured brands rather than products, making them out of scope of upcoming regulations- in 2026 adverts for food and drink that are high in fat, salt and sugar will be banned from being shown on TV before 9pm and online.

The Food Foundation states that the government must take action against corporate influence. Its report found meetings between the food industry and ministers outnumbered NGO meetings ten to one and there was very little transparency about the topics discussed. It added that this could stall new regulations for public health, mentioning that the upcoming restrictions on food advertising took five years too come into effect.

The body stresses that the government needs to “strengthen these regulations and introduce a comprehensive Food Bill promoting healthy, sustainable diets”.   

Katharine Jenner, executive director, Obesity Health Alliance, added:“ These findings show how quickly companies change their behaviour when regulation is announced – which is exactly what we want when policies are well designed, but a serious problem when there are gaping loopholes. Outdoor advertising exploded after the Government signalled restrictions on TV and online, with fast-food giants simply shifting their spend to unregulated spaces. 

“Future marketing policies must learn from this. They need to be comprehensive, cover all channels, and close the brand-only loophole that leaves so much advertising out of scope. Anything less gives industry a clear route to continue targeting families and undermining children’s health.”