To the Heads of 10 global (hear super powerful) food companies:

It should be easy to grow up healthy in the UK, but as teens we can tell you — it’s not.

We can’t think of a single moment of our lives that your brands haven't crept into. They fill our social media feeds, exploit the popularity of the influencers and athletes we look up to and pour off the shelves of supermarkets and newsagents.

Bite Back’s report released earlier this year confirms just that: 7 out of 10 of you make most of your megabucks from selling unhealthy products.

It's no surprise then that nearly 1 in 3 of us risk a future of food related ill health. That’s a third of us who risk having our lives impacted by chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes or heart disease, and we haven’t even touched on how many of the people we love will be affected.

So it could not be more important to us that you understand your role, and the size of the opportunity you hold in your hands.

Your companies are behind some of the nation’s biggest selling brands. You shape what we eat and drink. Your websites talk about responsibility, sustainability and purpose. But how much of what you sell is actually healthy, for people and the planet? How many of your unhealthy products target children or use misleading marketing ploys and deceptive health claims?

This has to change. YOU have the power and money to do the right thing for us and our planet by:

Selling less junk and more healthy food.

Switching it up so marketing that appeals to children only goes on healthy products.

Being more honest with us — stop using misleading health and climate claims.
Set credible targets to improve your impact on people and the planet, and actually meet them.

Change, and we WILL back you because your future is our future too.

Yours sincerely,

The Bite Back Youth Board

*Research conducted by the University of Oxford using 2022 Euromonitor data on packaged food and drink sales. Exclusions apply.

For full details, read our research reports.