HFSS advertising & promotion — what retailers need to know in 2026

If you sell or market food or drink in the UK, the High Fat, Salt or Sugar (HFSS) regime now places significant constraints on how certain products can be advertised and promoted — particularly online and in-store.

These rules are now fully in force and are already being actively enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), with early decisions providing useful guidance on how the regime will operate in practice.

Here, Alex Walton from our retail sector team explores what the HFSS regime means in practice, breaks down how the ASA is applying the rules and outlines the steps that retailers should take now to stay compliant.

What counts as an HFSS product?

A product will only be caught by the regime if it meets both limbs of a two-part test:

1. It falls within one of the regulated product categories (including confectionery, bakery items, desserts, savoury snacks, pizza, ready meals and soft drinks).
2. It’s classified as “less healthy” under the UK Nutrient Profiling Model (NPM) (i.e. scores 4+ for food or 1+ for drinks).
    

This means that some products within a category may be in scope while others aren’t, making product-level analysis essential.

The key restriction — advertising identifiable HFSS products

The core concept for advertisers is 'identifiability'.

In practice, the question is: “Would a UK consumer reasonably understand the ad to promote a specific HFSS product?”

If the answer is yes, the full restrictions apply.

This is the critical risk area for most campaigns, particularly in:

• product-led social media content
• influencer marketing
• multi-product or ‘range’ advertising
• brand campaigns where products are implied rather than shown.

What are the main restrictions?

Advertising restrictions

• Paid-for online advertising: effectively prohibited where an HFSS product is identifiable (including social media, influencer content, paid search and display).
• TV and on-demand: HFSS advertising only permitted between 9pm and 5:30am.
• Brand advertising: permitted but only where a specific HFSS product isn’t identifiable.

Promotion & placement restrictions

• In-store and online placement rules (since October 2022): HFSS products can’t be featured in prominent locations (e.g. checkouts, aisle ends, homepages).
• Volume price promotions (e.g. ‘buy one get one free’, ‘three for two’): restricted for certain HFSS products under the Food (Promotion and Placement) Regulations.

These rules generally apply to larger retailers (250+ employees) and equivalent online businesses.

How the ASA is applying the rules in practice

Recent ASA decisions show a strict and highly fact-specific approach, particularly around identifiability.

1. Iceland Foods Ltd (April 2026)

A paid online ad featured a mix of products, including confectionery and non-HFSS items.

• The ASA found that the ad identified all featured products, including the HFSS confectionery.
• As a result, the ad was treated as promotion of HFSS products, despite the mixed basket.

Key takeaway: Including even a small number of HFSS items in a broader product advert can bring the entire ad within scope.

2. German Doner Kebab (April 2026)

An influencer promoted a selection of menu items, all of which were confirmed to be non-HFSS.

• A can of Diet Coke appeared briefly in the background.
• The ASA held that it wasn’t identifiable as part of the promotion.

Key takeaway: While incidental or fleeting appearances may fall outside scope, this is a narrow and fact-sensitive exception.

3. Lidl Northern Ireland Ltd (April 2026)

An influencer post showed the purchase and consumption of two bakery products, with a third product appearing briefly.

• The ASA found that the ad promoted the two featured products but not the third (which appeared only fleetingly)
• Of those two products: 
  • Both fell within a regulated category.
  • Only one was classified as HFSS under the NPM.
• The ad was therefore treated as promotion of an identifiable HFSS product.
• As it was a paid online placement and no exemptions applied, it breached the Code.

Key takeaway: Even where only one product in a campaign is HFSS and others are compliant, the presence of a single identifiable HFSS product can bring the ad within scope.

What this means for retailers — four key takeaways

For most retailers and food brands, the practical impact is significant:

1. Product-led digital marketing is heavily constrained.
2. Mixed-product campaigns carry real regulatory risk.
3. Brand advertising is increasingly important but difficult to implement safely.
4. Nutrient profiling is no longer just technical, it’s commercially critical.

How we can help

Given the breadth of the restrictions and the ASA’s early enforcement activity, getting it wrong is easy and increasingly visible.

Our retail and food and beverage sector experts regularly support clients with:

• HFSS classification and nutrient profiling.
• Campaign and creative reviews (including influencer content).
• Identifiability risk assessments at concept stage.
• Structuring compliant brand-only campaigns.
• Responding to ASA investigations and complaints.

Early input — particularly at campaign design stage — can be the difference between a compliant launch and a public ruling.

Talk to our team by calling 0333 004 4488, emailing hello@brabners.com or completing our contact form.