Goodbye chocolate bars, hello carrot sticks! Tesco bows to investor pressure to cut junk food on sale and boost range of healthy meals by 2025

• Tesco pledges to boost sales of healthy food and drink across its full retail group 
• Investors led by responsible investment group ShareAction in ‘landmark victory’
• Seven investors filed ‘first nutrition-based shareholder resolution’ in February

Tesco today bowed further to investor pressure and pledged to boost sales of healthy food and drink across its full retail group amid calls to help tackle obesity.

A consortium of investors led by responsible investment group ShareAction hailed a ‘landmark victory’ after Tesco widened the scope of its healthy food promise.

It means the supermarket’s vow will now cover not just its UK and Ireland operations, but also its Central European business and wholesale supplier Booker Group. 

Among the changes being made include sausages and shepherd’s pies having their ingredients switched in development kitchens to be made more healthy.

Tesco has also switched to a lower fat mayonnaise in its Prawn Mayo Sandwich, reducing the fat content by 23 per cent, while the Tesco Chicken Tikka Masala now contains 30 per cent less calories and 34 per cent less fat than it did a decade ago.

Among the changes being made include sausages and shepherd’s pies having their ingredients switched in development kitchens to be made more healthy

The Tesco Chicken Tikka Masala now contains 30 per cent less calories and 34 per cent less fat than it did a decade ago

Tesco has switched to a lower fat mayonnaise in its Prawn Mayo Sandwich, reducing the fat content by 23 per cent

Two-thirds of Tesco ready meals, such as Thai Red Curry and Chicken Casserole & Dumplings, will contain at least one of the recommended five a day of fruit and veg by 2025

Pies and ready meals will have extra vegetables added – and two-thirds of Tesco ready meals, such as Thai Red Curry and Chicken Casserole & Dumplings, will contain at least one of the recommended five a day of fruit and veg by 2025.

It comes after seven investors, representing around £140billion in assets, had filed what was thought to be the first nutrition-based shareholder resolution in February.

What changes is Tesco making to boost its range of healthy meals?

• Sausages and shepherd’s pies will have their ingredients changed by chefs to be made more healthy 
• Tesco has switched to a lower fat mayonnaise in its Prawn Mayo Sandwich, therefore reducing the fat content by 23 per cent
• The Tesco Chicken Tikka Masala now contains 30 per cent less calories, 34 per cent less fat and 43 per cent less salt than it did a decade ago
• Pies and ready meals will have extra vegetables added
• Two-thirds of Tesco ready meals, such as Thai Red Curry and Chicken Casserole & Dumplings, will contain at least one of the five a day by 2025

It called on the retailer, which reported full-year pre-tax profits of £825million last month, to cut its reliance on junk food for sales growth.

Tesco responded in March by committing to a ‘major new programme of reformulation’ to improve the health profile of its products by 2025.

It set goals to increase sales of healthy products as a proportion of total sales to 65 per cent, up from the current level of 58 per cent.

The investor group had since kept up the pressure on Tesco to expand its commitments, keeping its resolution on the table for the retailer’s summer annual general meeting.

But they have now withdrawn the resolution thanks to the latest commitments from the supermarket giant and said they will engage with Tesco over the next two years as the retailer puts them in place.

ShareAction said it was a ‘landmark victory for shareholder activism on health issues’.

Louisa Hodge, engagement manager at ShareAction, added: ‘By filing a shareholder resolution, our investor coalition sent a strong message to Tesco and to other supermarkets that shifting sales toward healthier options is important.

‘Tesco’s new ambition to support healthier diets through its UK and Central European stores, as well as through the Booker Group, is very welcome.’

Tesco has set goals to increase sales of healthy products as a proportion of total sales to 65 per cent, up from the current level of 58 per cent (file picture)

If passed, the resolution would have forced Tesco to disclose what proportion of its overall food and soft drink sales are made up of healthy products.

Supermarkets issue new warning to Brazil over law threatening Amazon rainforest 

British supermarkets today issued a new warning to Brazil that they could stop sourcing products from the country if it passes a law which threatens the Amazon.

Retailers including Tesco , Aldi, Marks & Spencer, Lidl, Sainsbury’s, Co-op, Waitrose and Iceland are among those raising fears over a new effort by Brazil to legalise the private occupation of public land, mostly in the Amazon.

Asda , Morrisons and Greggs are also included on a list of dozens of companies signing an open letter warning against the proposed law, along with other retailers, producers, investors and industry bodies.

It is feared the move, which was first attempted a year ago but was withdrawn after more than 40 major organisations made the same threat over supply chain sourcing, will drive deforestation.

Conservationists have previously warned it will legitimise previous illegal land grabs and pave the way for more forests to be burned and cleared for agriculture such as beef and soy, used as an animal feed for livestock.

It would also have required the chain to develop a strategy to significantly increase the ratio of healthy to junk food sales by 2030, and publish a review of its progress each year from 2022.

The issue of setting out a healthy food strategy was raised at Tesco’s 2020 AGM, ShareAction said, but the retailer refused to commit to making changes.

It said the resolution was a ‘marked escalation’ in pressure from shareholders due to growing concern about the long-term impact actions big retailers are having on public health.

Tesco’s latest move will see the healthy food pledge cover an extra £10billion in sales, on top of the £42billion in March.

Tesco also plans to change its ready meals so at least two-thirds of them contain at least one of the recommended five pieces of vegetables or fruit that people should eat each day.

And it also wants to up the sales of plant-based meat alternatives by 300 per cent as it aims to ensure more meal options for consumers.

Before the pandemic, around 90,000 people died from diet-related diseases in the UK every year, according to a 2019 study.

Obesity has now emerged as one of the biggest risk factors for acute cases of Covid-19, with severely obese people three times more likely to be admitted to intensive care with the virus.

Sarah Bradbury, group quality director at Tesco, said: ”We want to make it as easy as possible for customers to shop for healthier food.

‘These new commitments will ensure that every customer – wherever and however they shop with us – will have even greater access to affordable, healthy and sustainable food.’

Tesco, which has a 27 per cent share of the UK grocery market, will report its progress towards the 2025 goals annually, with a Little Helps Plan update this month.

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