Fair Food Price Caps

While the final composition of any capped basket will require further analytical work and consideration of retailer data, FSS recommends that selection of foods should follow a clear and transparent set of criteria. This would ensure that inclusion decisions are evidence-based, aligned with wider public health objectives, and capable of being applied consistently over time.

FSS recommends that foods considered for inclusion should be assessed against the following hierarchy of criteria, with alignment to dietary guidance and nutritional composition forming the primary considerations. This would help ensure that inclusion decisions are evidence-based, transparent and consistent with wider Scottish Government public health objectives:

1. Support achievement of a healthy balanced diet, in line with the Eatwell Guide and Scottish Dietary Goals.
2. Meet minimum nutritional standards, including exclusion of HFSS products except where justified by dietary guidance (for example certain oils and spreads).
3. Reflect current purchasing and consumption patterns, ensuring that included foods are commonly purchased and acceptable to consumers.
4. Be practical for households to purchase, store and prepare, taking account of differing cooking skills, equipment, time constraints and household circumstances.
5. Support inclusivity and accessibility, recognising variation in dietary preferences, cultural and religious dietary practices, and the need for vegetarian, vegan and dairy alternative options.
6. Be capable of being supplied consistently, including through frozen and tinned alternatives where appropriate to mitigate seasonal variation and reduce supply risks.

While nutritional quality should be a primary consideration, some foods may warrant inclusion because they play an important role in everyday meal preparation or achievement of dietary guidance, even where they would not ordinarily meet nutrient profiling criteria. Examples may include certain oils, spreads and dairy products. Any such exceptions should be justified transparently and remain consistent with wider dietary recommendations.

FSS considers a hybrid approach, combining broad food categories with minimum nutritional specifications, to be the most practical and proportionate option currently available.

This approach is preferable to specifying individual products and would provide a balance between supporting affordability objectives, protecting nutritional quality and facilitating retailer implementation.

Allowing retailers flexibility within defined categories may reduce administrative burden and improve implementation. However, excessive flexibility could result in lower-quality, less representative or less frequently purchased products being selected solely on the basis of cost. For this reason, category definitions should be accompanied by clear nutritional and product specifications where appropriate.

To avoid unintended reductions in nutritional quality, FSS recommends that products included within capped categories should be required to meet defined nutritional criteria where appropriate. These could draw on existing approaches already used within Scotland, including the UK Nutrient Profiling Model and Healthcare Retail Standard product criteria.

Examples of safeguards may include:

• restricting composite products to non-HFSS options
• specifying wholegrain or higher-fibre options where feasible
• requiring unsweetened and appropriately fortified dairy alternatives
• applying limits for salt, sugar or saturated fat in relevant product categories
• maintaining minimum nutritional standards for products commonly consumed by children and households

At this stage, several issues remain subject to uncertainty and would benefit from further analysis as policy development progresses. These include:

• the impact of different basket compositions on food purchasing behaviour
• the implications for food manufacturers, retailers and Scottish producers, including whether category definitions could unintentionally advantage or disadvantage particular sectors of Scottish food production
• potential effects on product range, availability and consumer choice
• consequences for supply chains and risks relating to shortages or substitution
• how best to accommodate specific dietary requirements, including allergies, intolerances and infant feeding needs, within the overall framework
• potential opportunities for manufacturers or retailers to reformulate products, alter pack sizes or substitute products in response to the cap

Further work should also utilise retailer sales data and other analytical evidence to inform decisions on the final categories and products included within the capped basket.

At this stage, FSS advises that food price caps should be based on broad Eatwell Guide food categories, informed by purchasing data, supported by nutritional specifications, and designed to provide flexibility for retailers while safeguarding nutritional quality.

FSS considers this hybrid approach most likely to support affordability objectives while remaining consistent with Scottish public health nutrition policy, the Eatwell Guide and Scottish Dietary Goals.

Particular consideration should be given to ensuring that the policy contributes to reducing socioeconomic inequalities in access to a healthy diet, recognising the substantially higher financial burden of achieving dietary recommendations among lower-income households.

Example food items, by Eatwell Guide category, are provided in Annexe A.

Examples of existing product specifications used within existing Scottish Government policy for the retail environment to support healthy diets are provided in Annexe B.