What the UK’s Junk Food Advertising Ban Means for Influencer Marketing

The UK’s new restrictions on advertising food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) are now coming into force, introducing significant changes to how these products can be promoted across television and online media.

While the legislation is designed to reduce children’s exposure to unhealthy food marketing, it also has direct implications for influencer marketing, creator partnerships, and the way food brands structure paid social activity.

This article outlines what the rules cover, how they apply to creators, and what brands and agencies need to understand when planning influencer-led campaigns under the new regime.

What the HFSS advertising rules cover

Under the updated regulations, advertising for HFSS products is restricted in two key ways:

• Television advertising for HFSS products is prohibited before 9pm
• Paid online advertising for identifiable HFSS products is restricted at all times, regardless of targeting or audience age
  
  

The online ban applies across paid digital environments, including social media advertising and paid creator partnerships.

The restrictions cover products classified as major contributors to childhood obesity. These include, but are not limited to:

• Sugary soft drinks
• Confectionery and chocolate
• Ice creams and desserts
• Pizzas
• Certain breakfast cereals
• Prepared and ready meals
  
  

Compliance is enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Brands and agencies that breach the rules risk investigation, enforcement action, and potential sanctions.

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The distinction between product advertising and brand advertising

A critical element of the regulation is the distinction between HFSS product advertising and brand-level advertising.

The rules prohibit paid promotion of identifiable HFSS products. However, they allow advertising that promotes a company’s brand, name, logo or corporate messaging, provided no restricted product is shown or clearly referenced.

This means that brand-led campaigns can continue, even for companies whose portfolios include HFSS products, as long as the creative execution avoids product depiction or promotion.

As industry commentators have noted, this distinction is easier for large, established brands to navigate. Global food companies often have the budgets, brand recognition and creative infrastructure to run abstract or brand-led campaigns without relying on individual product messaging.

How the ban applies to influencer marketing

The online advertising restriction explicitly includes paid influencer content.

Any creator content that forms part of a paid HFSS campaign is treated as advertising under the regulations, regardless of platform, format or audience targeting.

As a result:

• Creators cannot be paid to promote HFSS products online
• This applies even if the creator’s audience is primarily adult
• Platform targeting or age gating does not exempt paid content from the ban

These restrictions apply specifically to paid-for advertising. Unpaid or genuinely editorial creator content is assessed separately, provided it does not meet the definition of advertising under the CAP Code.

This closes off a category of influencer activity that has historically been common, particularly around product launches, reviews, taste tests and food-focused content.

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What remains permissible for creators

The rules do not explicitly prohibit creators from participating in brand-only campaigns, provided that no HFSS product is shown, named or clearly identifiable.

In practice, this means influencer collaborations may continue if they focus on:

• Brand values or heritage
• Cultural relevance or lifestyle associations
• Non-product storytelling that avoids product cues
  
  

However, the ASA has stated that brand advertising may still fall foul of the rules if it has the effect of indirectly promoting HFSS products through association.

This creates a degree of uncertainty, as enforcement is expected to be assessed on a case-by-case basis, based on creative context and overall effect rather than simple checklists.

From product explanation to brand presence

Historically, influencer marketing has been effective for food brands because it allows for explanation and demonstration. Creators can show how a product looks, tastes or fits into everyday routines.

Under the new restrictions, that form of product-led storytelling is no longer possible for HFSS brands in paid online environments.

As a result, campaigns are likely to shift toward:

• Broader brand presence rather than product focus
• Visual cues such as colour, tone and brand assets
• Narrative content that avoids explicit product messaging

While this approach is permitted in principle, it requires careful planning and legal oversight to ensure compliance, particularly where brand recognition itself is closely tied to specific products.

Disproportionate impact on smaller brands

One of the less discussed implications of the ban is its uneven impact across the market.

Smaller and challenger food brands often rely on influencer marketing because it allows them to educate audiences and explain differentiation. That education typically depends on showing the product itself.

For HFSS-classified challenger brands, the loss of paid influencer promotion removes one of the few channels where they could compete effectively with established players.

In this sense, regulatory compliance becomes a structural advantage for larger brands with the resources to invest in long-term brand campaigns.

What this means for creators

For creators, particularly those focused on food, family content or budget meals, the restrictions may result in fewer commercial opportunities within certain categories.

Over time, regulatory exposure is likely to influence brand partner selection, with increased demand for creators whose content naturally aligns with:

• Fitness and wellness
• Home cooking and recipe content
• Non-HFSS food and drink categories
  
  

This shift may change how creators position themselves commercially, particularly in niches that have traditionally depended on food brand partnerships.

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What creator experts are saying

Lucy Ronald, Head of Talent and Strategy at Fabulate, notes that the shift created by the HFSS restrictions is less about removing creators from the marketing mix and more about redefining how influence operates under tighter regulatory conditions.

“The important thing for brands to understand is that creators are not excluded from this landscape, but the role they play has to evolve. Product-led storytelling is no longer viable for HFSS categories in paid environments, so brands need to be clearer about what they are actually trying to build. If the objective is brand familiarity, cultural relevance or long-term recall, creators can still play a role. The risk comes from treating brand presence as a loophole rather than a strategy.”

Ronald adds that the change places greater emphasis on planning discipline and creative intent at the briefing stage.

“When products can no longer do the heavy lifting, brands have to articulate their purpose much more clearly. That means defining which brand codes matter, what associations they want to reinforce, and how creators are expected to express those ideas without relying on pack shots or product cues.”

From a talent perspective, Ronald notes that creators will increasingly be assessed not just on reach or engagement, but on their ability to convey brand meaning in compliant ways.

“We expect to see a stronger focus on creators who already communicate lifestyle, values or cultural context effectively. In this environment, creators who understand narrative, tone and audience perception will be easier for brands to work with than those whose content is built around direct product demonstration.”

She also highlights the operational implications for brands and agencies navigating compliance.

“This is an area where assumptions create risk. Just because content does not show a product does not automatically mean it is compliant. Brands will need closer collaboration between legal, media and creator teams to ensure that brand-led campaigns do not inadvertently function as product advertising by association.”

According to Ronald, the brands most likely to adapt successfully will be those that treat the restrictions as a structural change rather than a short-term constraint.

“The regulations are forcing a clearer separation between performance-driven product promotion and long-term brand building. For brands that already invest in distinctiveness, storytelling and creator partnerships with depth, that shift may be challenging, but it is not unfamiliar.”

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Public health outcomes and platform enforcement

The UK government estimates that the restrictions will prevent approximately 20,000 cases of childhood obesity and reduce long-term strain on the NHS.

Public health experts broadly support the measures, citing strong evidence that exposure to unhealthy food advertising influences children’s eating habits.

The effectiveness of the ban in a creator-led media environment will ultimately depend on:

• How clearly advertising is defined in creator content
• How consistently the rules are enforced across platforms
• How transparently paid partnerships are disclosed
  
  

As brands adapt their strategies, creators and agencies will sit at the intersection of regulation, platform policy and commercial pressure, making clarity and compliance increasingly important.

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What this could mean beyond the UK

While the HFSS advertising restrictions apply specifically to the UK, their implications extend well beyond its borders. As with other recent regulatory interventions in digital media, the policy is being closely watched by governments, regulators and platforms globally.

In particular, the UK’s approach reflects a broader trend towards greater regulation of online advertising where public health, children’s welfare and platform accountability intersect. Rather than targeting media channels in isolation, regulators are increasingly focusing on outcomes, including exposure, influence and behavioural impact.

Several regions are already exploring or implementing adjacent measures:

• European Union
  The EU has introduced stronger protections for minors under the Digital Services Act (DSA), including restrictions on targeted advertising to children and greater obligations on platforms to mitigate societal harms. While the DSA does not specifically ban HFSS advertising, it establishes a framework that could support similar product-category restrictions at a member state level.
  
  
• Australia
  Australia has recently brought into law a ban on social media access for children under 16, signalling a willingness to intervene directly in platform usage where child wellbeing is concerned. Although the policy targets access rather than advertising, it reflects the same regulatory logic: that exposure within digital environments can have measurable social and health impacts.
  
  
• Canada
  Canada has introduced Bill C-252, which proposes restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy food and beverages to children. While implementation timelines and enforcement mechanisms are still evolving, the intent closely aligns with the UK’s HFSS objectives.
  
  
• United States
  The US does not currently have federal HFSS advertising restrictions comparable to the UK’s. However, there is increasing scrutiny at state and regulatory levels around marketing to children, influencer disclosure, and platform responsibility, particularly in relation to food, alcohol and gambling.
  
  

Taken together, these developments suggest that the UK’s HFSS advertising restrictions are unlikely to remain an isolated case. As regulators grapple with how influence operates in creator-led environments, policies that once focused on traditional media are being reinterpreted for digital platforms and influencer ecosystems.

For global brands and creator-led agencies, this raises an important consideration: regulatory risk is no longer confined to local markets. Campaign structures, briefing practices and creator partnerships that are compliant in one territory may not be transferable without adjustment elsewhere.

As a result, regulatory literacy, platform awareness and market-specific planning are becoming increasingly central to how influencer marketing operates at scale.

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Clarity, compliance and the role of creators

The UK’s HFSS advertising restrictions represent a material shift in how food and drink brands can operate across paid media, including influencer marketing. While the rules are designed to address public health outcomes, their impact extends into creative strategy, talent selection and campaign planning. For brands and creators alike, compliance is no longer just a legal consideration but a structural factor that shapes what kinds of marketing activity are possible.

As enforcement develops and interpretation continues to evolve, the most important requirement is clarity. Understanding the distinction between product advertising and brand advertising, recognising that paid creator content falls within the scope of online advertising, and appreciating the limits of brand-only executions will be critical to avoiding regulatory risk.

For those seeking further detail or official guidance, the following resources provide the most reliable and up-to-date information:

• UK Government policy overview on HFSS advertising restrictions
  Department of Health and Social Care guidance outlining the objectives, scope and implementation of the regulations.
  
  
• Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) guidance on food and soft drink advertising
  Detailed explanations of how the rules are enforced, including how advertising is assessed in practice.
  
  
• Ofcom guidance on the 9pm watershed and broadcast advertising
  Broadcast advertising rules overseen by Ofcom and enforced through the BCAP Code.
  
  
• CAP and BCAP CodesThe UK’s advertising rulebooks, which set out the standards for non-broadcast and broadcast advertising, including digital and influencer activity.
  
  

As the creator economy continues to intersect more closely with regulation, staying informed will be essential. Brands, agencies and creators that treat regulatory literacy as part of their marketing capability will be better positioned to plan confidently and sustainably in this new environment.

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