Boots revamps baby food range to meet government guidelines
Boots has announced the biggest ever overhaul of its baby food range to meet new government guidelines.
The health and beauty retailer said it is the first major retailer to adopt the voluntary guidelines on nutritional levels of ready-made baby food products, ahead of the February 2027 target date.
Subscribe to TRBPart of the Government’s wider agenda to address childhood obesity, the new standards mandate no added sugar, sweetening ingredients or added salt in baby foods or finger foods for babies under 12 months. There are also limits on total sugar and/or fruit, and sodium content in snacks for children aged 12 months to three years.
Boots’ baby food selection includes almost 250 baby snacks, dried food and wet pouches. As part of the review, the retailer has also launched several new products, including ‘nutty pouches’ from Ella’s Kitchen, new pots and pouches from Cow & Gate, and newly reformulated Organix Original Rice Cakes.
Vicky Pennington, lead nutritionist at Boots and leader of the review, said: “This is an important step forward for the baby food market and for parents who want to give their children the best possible start in life.
“We’re trusted by millions of customers and are committed to helping parents navigate children’s nutrition.
“We know that comparing labels and understanding nutritional information can be challenging, especially when life is busy.
“Our aim is to make it easier for families to feel confident and know that every product they find at Boots meets high nutritional standards.”
Boots will have replaced all non-compliant products in its range by mid-April.
Wes Streeting, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, , said: “It is fantastic that Boots are leading the charge and no longer selling products with excessive sugar and salt. I hope other outlets will now follow the example Boots has set.
“Every child deserves a healthy start to life and making it easier for parents to choose healthier options is an important part of that.”
