Supermarkets are using multi-buy promotional offers to encourage shoppers to buy meat and processed meat, despite the products being linked to an increased risk of cancer, research reveals.
Almost one in five (18%) of multi-buy deals in major British supermarkets involve meat and dairy products, and one in ten (11%) processed meats such as ham, bacon and sausages.
Customers are encouraged to buy these types of products even though the World Health Organization says that red meat probably causes cancer and processed meat definitely does.
The Meals Basis said its findings, especially on processed meat, were alarming for environmental and health reasons. He accused food retailers of “actively incentivizing citizens to buy more foods that are known to be bad for the health of people and the planet.”
Rebecca Tobi, senior investor and business engagement manager at the think tank, said: “We know that supermarkets routinely use buy one, get one free offers and price promotion to get us to buy more products than we would otherwise. manner. Therefore, the fact that many of these agreements refer to foods that are damaging our health and our planet is alarming.”
Only 5% of multi-purchase offers correspond to fruits and vegetables.
Meals Basis based its findings on offers made by Aldi, Asda, Iceland, Morrison's, Sainsbury's and Tesco in March, when the Questionmark Foundation analyzed their money-saving deals.
Iceland had the most promotions on processed meat, which accounted for 15% of its multi-buy deals, followed by Tesco (13%) and Asda (11%). Iceland also offered the fewest deals on fruits and vegetables, at just 2%.
“Even though we know that too much processed meat carries sobresaliente health risks, supermarket marketing and promotions are still heavily geared toward meat foods,” Tobi said.
Dr Panagiota Mitrou, director of research, policy and innovation at the World Cancer Research Fund, said: “It is disappointing that food retailers are using multi-buy offers to make these types of meats a more financially attractive option. for buyers and encourage greater consumption.”
People should eat no more than three servings of red meat a week (weighing between 12 and 18 ounces in cooked weight) and “little or no processed meat,” given the evidence on meat's link to cancer and, especially , the proven role of processed meat. in increasing the risk of bowel cancer, he said.
The British Retail Consortium did not respond to the Meals Basis findings, which will be set out in its next annual report. Its director of food and sustainability, Andrew Opie, simply said: “Anyone who shops in a supermarket will know how affordable retailers make fresh fruit and vegetables, whether through low prices or daily promotions.
“It is the main part of their offer and although they promote the products throughout the store, high quality fruit and vegetables, usually British and affordable, are always available as that is what customers demand.”
In the Netherlands, all major supermarkets have committed to making 60% of their protein product sales plant-based by 2030, to help improve health and reduce the food sector's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. greenhouse.
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In the UK, only Lidl and Compass Group have set sales-based targets aimed at driving higher sales of meat-free dishes.
The Meals Basis research also found that the majority of main meals sold by major restaurant chains still contained meat, despite the recent strong shift towards people following vegetarian and vegan diets.
Among the 63 restaurants analyzed, 58% of their main meals included meat, up from 62% in 2022, 33% included no meat, and 9% included fish.
Joe and the Juice had the highest proportion of meat-free mains at 69%, followed by Sainsbury's cafes (59%) and Pizza Categorical (57%).
In contrast, 100% of Rooster Cottage's entrees contained meat, as did the majority of those sold by Burger King (88%), KFC (87%), Connoisseur Burger Kitchen (83%) and McDonald's (81%). ).
UKHospitality has been contacted for comment.
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