Tracking progress for healthy and sustainable diets
As part of Next Level Sainsbury’s, we are committed to developing and delivering healthy and sustainable diets for all and meeting our Plan for Better targets. We will continue to report annually on our progress.
Our Target
We have set a target to increase our Healthy and Better for you sales tonnage (including branded and own-branded) to at least 85% by 2025 (baseline 82%).
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Progress against our main target
What is included in our target?
This disclosure is based on total food and soft drink sales and includes own-brand and branded products. It excludes baby foods, beers wines & spirits, non-nutritive foods (e.g. baking powder), and health, wellness & beauty categories.
We are continuously working to improve our data quality and coverage and our latest figures represent 99% of total in scope food & drink sales tonnage.
Our criteria for defining a Healthy or Better for you product takes a category-specific approach based on existing and well-established external nutrient criteria for the UK. We have developed several resources to increase the transparency of our criteria. You can view these here:
- Our approach to defining healthy choices and the criteria used for our reporting.
- How our approach compares to the nutrient profile model used for HFSS regulations
- Detailed additional supporting files and interactive decision tree
Basket balance
We track our progress towards helping more customers achieve a plant-rich diet that is in line with the UK government’s recommended diet by measuring total basket shifts relative to the Eatwell Guide.
“Average customer basket analysis relative to the Eatwell Guide. Excluding Beer, Wines & Spirits and Composite Dishes. In line with the Eatwell Guide, this based of weight of sales (tonnage).
This year we have used an improved definition of Sainsbury’s primary shoppers representing ≥40% share of grocery wallet.
*Scarborough, et al. (2016)”
Despite our outperformance in Produce volume sales versus the market (+3% vs. 0%†), the proportions are still a long way from the Eatwell Guide recommendations. However, it is important to note that baskets do not necessarily match consumption as many customers shop across several retailing fascias over the average week.
†NielsenIQ Panel data, Produce category, Volume % growth YoY, 52w to 2nd March 2024.
Healthiness of sales
Total portfolio
* HFSS statuses are calculated by using (in order of priority) supplier-provided data, 3rd party data (FY21.22 and FY22.23) and internally estimated data.
***We have been able to improve our data quality for this year’s reporting – which included correcting some known errors in supplier provided scores and improving loose weight reporting. Amending FY 2022/23 with the same improvements results in the performance shown in brackets. We have also made other tech improvements, such as improving the estimated fruit, vegetable, and nut percentage and improving the accuracy of product changes.
**As part of The Food Foundation’s Plating Up Progress reporting. Vegetable sales (%) were a part of our previous Peas Please commitment.
Own-brand yearly health reporting
***As part of The Food Foundation’s Plating Up Progress reporting.
Protein and dairy disclosures
Sales reported relative to total 'protein' and 'dairy' sales as per the Eatwell Guide food groups
We are working to improve our reporting capabilities in line with WWF Retailer Basket reporting methodology, so changes are expected year-on-year. Reporting methods vary across retailers.
Nutrition labelling use
In 2024 the methodology was updated to align to our healthy sales reporting. 12% of the healthy sales reportable products are exempt from traffic light labelling (e.g. loose fruit and veg) so have been removed from this reporting figure.
Reformulation progress
- Our efforts here are part of our ongoing own-brand reformulation programme. You can read some of our product reformulation case studies here.
- Our performance for sugar reduction from the five key categories has exceeded the government’s 2025/26 target, and we will continue to reduce sugar where possible. We are working towards 100% of our products meeting the 2024 maximum calorie and salt levels by 2025/26.
- We will continue to work towards the PHE 2024 maximum targets for salt reduction, but this is more challenging in certain categories due to it being an integral ingredient to product safety and quality.