Cholesterol Clampdown or Creative Catalyst? Adland Execs Weigh-In On LHF Laws

Next month (1 October) marks a change in law for advertising less healthy food or drink (LHF) on TV and online, which also refers to those high in fat, sugar or salt (HSFF). However, as ordered by the government, the law change will be fully enforced in the UK from 5 January 2026.

The UK Government is introducing the law aiming to tackle childhood obesity and improve public health linked to dietary choices; the move means that there will be: 

• A blanket ban on advertising LHF online

• Advertising LHF on television is only allowed after the 9pm watershed

• An allowance of brand-focused ads on TV

• No restrictions on radio

Tony Barr, former CMO at Wendy’s, believes that such regulations mostly “shift how brands invest in the short-term”, however, they will “continue to invest in brand-led TV and digital”, such as KFC’s Believe in Chicken work with Mother.  

“Creativity becomes the new media spend; brand without product is the new creative brief,” Barr continues, but too notes that while creativity will see a boost, it’s a “restriction” for smaller brands: “Less oxygen for challenger brands, more cost and complexity for all. Big brands will be fine. Small ones need to get clever and upskill fast.”

While the restrictions are very much in place for consumers’ behaviour to change, Rogers adds that the changes overtime “could reduce innovation and brand diversity in the category without necessarily changing consumer behaviour.” 

Here, Advertising execs share thoughts on the restrictions - how significant an impact the changes will be both in terms of on creative work but also from a business perspective for the agency sector widely. Do they see any potential positives for the industry?

Ed Palmer, managing director of St Luke’s

We have been preparing for the introduction of these restrictions for some time now, monitoring the various changes and delays that have occurred with this hokey cokey style of policy making. We have been scenario planning, comms targeting, and messaging with our clients, while they have been innovating and reformulating on the product side. So while the impact is not insignificant, our clients are largely prepared. 

And while there will be challenges in planning comms post October, the focus on brand advertising does provide an opportunity for advertisers. They will need to elevate their messaging and focus on connecting at a deeper emotional level with their audiences, potentially delivering brand impact that will outlast the short-term impact of rational messaging and product appeal. 

More broadly, advertising restrictions have a track record of sparking creative and innovative ways for brands to reach their audience. Most famously, the alcohol advertising restrictions in Sweden were the catalyst for Absolut Vodka’s long running and iconic series of art collaborations from the 80s onwards. Let’s hope October marks the start of a similar Cambrian explosion of creativity in food marketing.  

Conrad Persons, CEO, Grey London

If adland were a place, at this stage, restrictions would be part of the furniture. The industry has navigated them for as long as it’s existed – be that in the channels it can use, the wares it can promote, or the language it can employ – on everything from claims to sustainability. It’s survived – even thrived at times – amongst these constraints. But this set of restrictions is potentially different.

FMCG has long been the bread and butter of many agencies. It’s a sector that invests somewhat predictably, and is fairly resilient (data from Nielsen estimates that the top 25 food and drink brands spent £418m on outdoor advertising in the UK alone in 2024). It is also a sector that has – with some notable exceptions – understood that it must persevere with brand building during good times and bad, because its brands are incredibly focused on retaining both pricing power and share.

The food and drink sector has also given us some extraordinary creative jewels over the years – be that Tango’s epic 'St. George', Coca-Cola’s iconic polar bears, or a now-famous hamster, which starred in some of Pringles’ best work (I’m biased, it was Grey’s).  

Some of the best creatives I’ve worked with love a ridiculously tight brief. They like when things are taken away, because it allows them to be both precise (knowing exactly what the rules are), and wild-eyed (thinking of the most unconventional way to play on the periphery of said rules).

Constraints often bring out the best in us, and in our clients. The regulations should encourage manufacturers to think more imaginatively about formulations that make the idea of health versus taste a false choice. They should encourage us to think about storytelling that does not subvert the rules but imagines new ways to effectively grow our clients’ brands. On paper, creatives and the AA want the same thing – the body said it wants ‘brilliant creative work’ - and so do we.

Will it work? It won’t take long to find out, as two prominent bellwethers of food and drink advertising - Halloween and Christmas – will be here soon. As an industry I think we’re fiendishly inventive, and use constraints as springboards – not straitjackets. So, while I don’t know if ultimately these rules will make Britain healthier, I’m confident it will make advertising no less rich.

Richard Arscott, CEO, Revolt

So, the HFSS ad restrictions are here. The 9pm watershed has arrived, and the online world is watching its sugar intake. But before we reach for the celery sticks, let's consider: is this a creative and commercial catastrophe or just another shift reflecting changing consumer demands and cultural expectations that, with a little skip, we can take in our stride?

The truth is it's an invitation for creativity in the broadest terms. We all know the best creative briefs are tight ones; because creativity thrives when it’s forced to find new ways to entertain, to innovate and to originate - to create demand. Restrictions, while initially daunting, bring out the best in us.

But this invitation for creativity is about more than how you sell - it’s about what you sell too. Brands are already developing their own brilliant innovations (and buying others) to set up for success. Which is nothing new - brands have been reformulating old products and developing and acquiring new ones to keep up with evolving consumer tastes and shifting regulation since before, well - since before advertising.

Ultimately, these restrictions have the potential to shape a more positive and beneficial communications landscape - helping build brands the world wants more of that drive commercial performance while also serving people and the planet. That's a goal worth striving for.

Human enterprise, creativity and consumer demand for what's next ensure that the journey continues, and it's going to be delicious, a little better for you and no less fun.

Sue Frogley, Global CEO, Talon

The upcoming restrictions are a major shift – not just for brands, but for the whole media ecosystem. Outdoor is the new prime time, with campaigns planned in bursts across the year, and programmatic OOH bringing the agility of digital with the scale of broadcast. Creatively, it’s a move from polished TV spots to campaigns that live and breathe in the real world, in the places people actually are.

From a business perspective, this is significant. Brands still need to be visible and relevant but the routes to do that are different. For Outdoor and for media agencies, it’s a huge opportunity. Helping clients navigate restrictions, stay compliant, and use OOH’s flexibility to stay culturally front and centre. The winners will be those who see this not as a limit, but as a chance to think smarter.

Richard Lindsay, IPA Legal & Public Affairs director

The new rules coming into force on 5 January next year - but which our industry has agreed to comply with from 1 October - will represent a significant shift in advertising regulation. They will introduce a watershed ban on ads for "identifiable" less healthy food and drink products (LHF) on TV and on-demand programme services, and a total ban on paid-for ads placed "on the internet".  

Introduced by the previous government and continued under the current administration, these restrictions have added an unwelcome - and dare I say, unnecessary - layer of complexity. Advertising is already governed by a robust self-regulatory system. The CAP and BCAP Codes, enforced by the ASA, include rules specifically aimed at protecting children around food and drink advertising, the same aim as the new restrictions. The existing rules work very well. 

Agencies and advertisers need clarity, and while the existing rules under the advertising Codes are clear and well-understood - and seldom breached - the new rules, which will apply in addition to the existing set, are scant on detail and, therefore, unclear. Hence the huge amount of time and effort that the IPA and our fellow trade bodies have spent trying to help our members get to grips with them before they come into force. 

Agencies are, of course, innovative, and used to solving problems for their clients. The new restrictions will ban LHF ads across certain media, but not all, and some agencies and their clients might be able to see this as an opportunity rather than a setback, be that through, for example, focusing on re-formulated products which are not "less healthy", or on brand advertising. The clock is ticking, though, and after so many years since these restrictions were first proposed, it will be fascinating to see what effect they will have on the advertising landscape.