All comment & opinion articles – Page 9
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Comment & OpinionWhy 2026 is time to say goodbye to the plant-based aisle
Retailers should give meat-free food a fairer shot at long-term success by integrating it into how people actually shop and eat, says Elin Roberts is CEO at Better Nature
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Comment & OpinionShrinkflation: eroding trust one Easter egg at a time
Relying on the uneasy hope that no one will notice shrinkflation is starting to feel as outdated as a 1kg tin of Quality Street
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Comment & OpinionThe government’s new health proposals are hard to swallow
The proposals would be some of the biggest and most controversial moves to hit the industry on health in the past decade
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Comment & OpinionThe GLP-1 gamble: why supermarkets are selling less for more
In 2026, it’s not low-fat, plant-based, alcohol-free or calorie-counted eating that retailers are betting on – it’s weight-loss drugs
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Comment & OpinionEditor’s picks: Christmas sales, GLP-1 ranges and a quiet Veganuary
In truth all the listed grocers enjoyed strong food sales this Christmas, but these were offset by issues elsewhere
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Comment & OpinionAsda has come out swinging on price, but is anyone listening?
The winners this Christmas have realised that price isn’t everything
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Comment & OpinionHappy Aussies show pride in latest lamb campaign
The three-minute ad shows a group of Aussie underlings desperately trying to show a set of ‘happiness auditors’ how happy everyone is
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Comment & OpinionWhat Not to Eat: Professor Tim Spector serves up bland diet advice
Professor Tim Spector had some harsh words to say about Joe Wicks’ Channel 4 programme. Could he do any better?
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Comment & OpinionFood prices will rise in 2026 – and suppliers need them to
The 2026 pricing round will filter into retail prices across late January and February, taking inflation back up to 5%, says David Sables, CEO of Sentinel Management Consultants
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Comment & OpinionWhy plant-based should’ve been Brentford’s match winner
When businesses frame meat-for-meat swaps as major climate victories, it risks misleading fans and undermining genuine progress, says Luke Byrne, innovation and sustainability director at This
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Comment & OpinionHow can the health agenda drive good growth for food & drink?
With 11% of UK adults open to trying weight-loss injections, we’re looking at a potential market of over six million people, says Hannah Daley, IGD’s head of health and sustainable diets
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Comment & OpinionTargeting food deserts could help solve the junk food feedback loop
It’s never been a secret that children in the most deprived neighbourhoods are twice as likely to be obese as those in the wealthiest ones
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Comment & OpinionM&S’s 2026 health push suggests clean‑label lessons have been learned
The M&S ‘Only…’ range attracted some criticism following its initial launch last spring, with some noting the number of ingredients claimed did not always align with the legal back-of-pack declaration
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Comment & OpinionThe nitrate cancer debate is an opportunity to reset
The existence of the nitrate debate points to a broader issue: our food system has become overly reliant on engineering solutions and artificial interventions, says Tom Horvath Neumann, founder of Properoni
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Comment & OpinionRetailers have no need to fear new tobacco laws
The brilliance of the ‘smoke-free generation’ policy lies in how gradual it is – the change is seismic but the transition is slow, says Hazel Cheeseman, CEO at Action on Smoking and Health (ASH)
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Comment & OpinionToday’s junk food ad ban is a controversial start to 2026
Influential nudge body Nesta has warned the government its new legislation has been gutted to such an extent that it will allow companies to continue promoting unhealthy products
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Comment & OpinionWhy the UK government is ending the era of junk food ads
The UK is at a turning point in the fight against childhood obesity, says minister for health Ashley Dalton
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Comment & OpinionThe tricky second album: how to make a great fmcg follow-up
The internet is full of advice on how to launch a brand but much less is said about what happens next, says Alex Stewart, creative partner at Derek&Eric
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Comment & OpinionWhy the HFSS ad ban could be a sales blessing in disguise
New research reveals the enforced switch to brand storytelling will help brands more than double ROI, says Circana’s Milan Jotangia
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Comment & OpinionThe Grocer’s 2025 in review: deck the halls and dig in
From soaring cocoa prices to seismic retail shifts, we’ve delivered over 7,000 stories, deep-dive analysis and celebrated the leaders shaping the future of food and drink