Lidl is calling on other supermarkets to go further in directing shoppers towards choices that are both healthy and sustainable for the planet.
The discounter is claiming a UK supermarket first with the launch of a logo to indicate healthier food choices with sustainability as part of its criteria.
Launching in stores later this year, the Live Well logo will signpost healthier products that also align with Eat-Lancet Planetary Health Diet goals of cutting consumption of certain foods including red meat and sugar by 50% by 2050.
It is a step further than other retailers’ health markers, which only inform shoppers about nutritional profiles, according to Lidl.
The Live Well logo will also indicate products meeting nutritional criteria approved by the British Nutrition Foundation. It requires products to score green traffic light labels for low content of fats, saturated fats, sugar and salt. They must also be high in fibre content.
The logo will initially signpost over 100 Lidl own-label products, including fruit and veg, wholegrain products and plant-based protein products. It follows the discounter’s commitment earlier this year to increasing the proportion of plant-based food it sells by 20% by 2030.
Lidl – which picked up Grocer of the Year at The Grocer Gold Awards in July – is also committing to 10% of own-label food products meeting the Live Well criteria by 2030.
“As UK supermarkets, we must go further if we’re serious about supporting healthier lives whilst also meeting our net-zero commitments,” said Lidl GB chief commercial officer Richard Bourns.
“We must broaden our view on health and consider planetary health alongside human health, moving beyond narrow definitions and supporting the wider food system.
“We’re proud to be launching our new Live Well logo, building on our industry-leading plant-based food sales commitment announced earlier this year to align with the Planetary Health Diet by 2050.
“We’ve taken time to get this right – working closely with the British Nutrition Foundation and WWF, to support customers with a clear navigation tool to identify products that support their health and the health of the planet.”
Research commissioned by Lidl and the Planetary Alliance found more than four in five respondents viewed eating healthily as important, but over three quarters said they needed guidance to find healthy products.
WWF head of food transformation Sophie Bauer said: “Helping shoppers make choices that are good for them and good for the planet is vital for shifting our food system in the right direction. The new Lidl Live Well label is a welcome step in turning ambition into action and clearly communicating what healthier, more sustainable eating can look like in practice.”
Elaine Hindal, chief executive at the British Nutrition Foundation, said: “The British Nutrition Foundation works with a range of partners to promote health and wellbeing and help prevent diet – related ill health through evidence-based nutrition science.
“Making the healthy choice the easiest choice is critical to a healthier, more sustainable food environment, and we are proud to work with Lidl towards this goal.
“With over 980 Lidl stores across the UK, this project is an excellent example of a collaboration that can deliver genuine impact towards the government’s new food strategy, and do so at pace and at scale.”
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