M&S took simplification of food to the next level earlier this week, when it unveiled a clean-label food range. Comprising a trio of cereals and a pack of bread rolls, each product in the ‘Only… ingredients’ range contains six ingredients or fewer.
The hero product is a box of corn flakes, consisting of just one ingredient: corn. The Multigrain Hoops and Choco Hoops contain a similarly paired-back ingredient list: gluten-free oat flour, corn flour, brown rice flour, date syrup and salt, with just the addition of cocoa powder for the latter.
The M&S innovations are clearly a response to growing demand from shoppers for minimally processed foods. It’s “very clever NPD, definitely responding to the times”, says Emma Gardner, director of PR agency Aubergine.
North PR founder Vickie Rogerson agrees: “There are too many food brands hiding behind long, long lists of ingredients whilst claiming health benefits. I think shoppers are becoming more savvy with what they buy.”
However, while M&S is gaining plaudits for removing unnecessary ingredients from its cereals, there’s also else something missing. Minerals such as calcium or iron, along with vitamins B and D, are strikingly absent from the cereals’ ingredients lists. Breakfast cereals are commonly fortified with these vitamins and minerals during processing, so with them now removed, are consumers missing out?
No added nasties
Manufacturers have been fortifying foods for the best part of 100 years, to improve health outcomes in the population. Kellogg’s was the first manufacturer to launch a cereal fortified with B vitamins and vitamin D in 1938, called Pep. Fortifying foods then became commonplace during the Second World War, when rationing brought about nutritional deficiencies.
Adding calcium to bread flour was required from as early as 1941. This was followed in 1956 by the mandate that iron, niacin and thiamine must also be added. The Bread and Flour Regulations 1998 were later enacted to “protect against nutrient deficiencies within the UK population”. That’s why M&S’s new White Rolls, containing “only five ingredients”, feature a caveat on the pack that the wheat flour listed is fortified with calcium, iron, vitamin B3 and B1 – it’s mandated by law.
Cereals aren’t subject to the same legal requirements, however, which is why M&S has been able to strip back the ingredients lists of its new range so dramatically. Chef Elişa Roche believes it’s a step in the right direction.
“Shoppers are tired of seeing endless added nasties in ingredients lists. I’ve always believed that good food is medicine and that supplements and vitamins are, largely, a total waste of money.”
While it might seem like we’ve come a long way from post-war Britain, however, fortified food has real benefits for particular demographics. In the UK, increased breakfast cereal consumption has been positively associated with greater intakes of iron, folate (vitamin B9), vitamin D, calcium, B-vitamins and zinc among children aged four-18 years [Diet and Nutrition Survey of Young People, 2003].
No added nutrients
Even if you eat well, there are nutrients that are hard to obtain through diet alone. As we get most of our vitamin D from sunlight on the skin, Brits have a tendency towards deficiency. Around one in six adults and almost 20% of children in the UK have vitamin D levels lower than government recommendations. Vitamin D deficiency is more common for those with dark skin and the government advises that we all take a supplement through the winter months, at least.
Carolyn Harlow, director at Sodalite Creative, a VR consultancy for retailers, points out that fortified cereals are helpful to low-income families and for people living with health conditions like cancer who are “already popping dozens of pills” and might not want to take additional supplements.
Meanwhile, the UK government is clearly worried about folate deficiency in the population. It recently mandated the addition of folic acid to wheat flour by the end of 2026, explaining that the move could prevent around 200 cases of neural tube defects, such as spina bifida, every year, and improve the health of pregnant women. This makes M&S’s decision to launch unfortified cereals even more striking.
However, The Grocer understands M&S is seeking to offer shoppers greater choice. That’s why the retailer will continue to sell traditional cornflakes, containing maize, sugar, salt, barley malt extract, iron, niacin (vitamin B3), pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), vitamin B6, riboflavin (vitamin B2), thiamin (vitamin B1), folic acid, vitamin D and vitamin B12.
For now, ‘Only… ingredients’ is a “small launch“, stresses an M&S spokeswoman. Ultimately, it will be up to shoppers to choose how they prefer their cereal: fortified or minimally processed.
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