NZ imports of unhealthy ultra-processed foods have risen sharply since 1990 – new study

Over the past three decades, New Zealand’s imports of “ultra-processed” foods and drinks increased significantly, from 16 kilograms per person in 1990 to 104 kilograms in 2023.

Our research shows the share of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) in New Zealand’s total food and drink imports rose from 9% in 1990 to 22% in 2023.

The medical journal The Lancet defines UPFs as:

branded, commercial formulations made from cheap ingredients extracted or derived from whole foods, combined with additives, and mostly containing little to no whole food.

These foods include soft drinks, sweet and savoury snacks and ready meals. They are gaining global attention as a major health and environmental concern.

Diets high in UPFs carry a risk of developing a wide range of serious health conditions – including being overweight or obese, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, chronic kidney disease and depression – and premature death.

Due to their reliance on plastic packaging, and water and energy use in production, they are also environmentally damaging.

We don’t have a clear picture of how much ultra-processed food New Zealanders are eating because the country has not run a national nutrition survey since 2008.

But if New Zealand is anything like Australia or Canada, it is likely about half the population’s energy intake is represented by UPFs.

The rise in dominance of UPFs observed over three decades in this study highlights the need for policies to counteract these trends in order to protect population nutrition.

Cheap and high in energy

UPFs are are generally made of cheap inputs such as high-yield crops (soy, maize, wheat, sugarcane, palm fruits) or scraps of meat, which are separated into starches, fibre, sugars, proteins and oils and fats.

These components are then chemically modified and combined, using industrial techniques such as extrusion, moulding and pre-frying.

They are typically high in calories as well as sugars, salt and fats. Most contain additives such as flavours, colours and emulsifiers to make the final product look and taste good.

We know about 70% of packaged food in New Zealand supermarkets is ultra-processed. We also know that 18% of premature death and disability is due to unhealthy diets and excess weight; two risk factors linked to high UPF consumption.

History of UPF entry into New Zealand

UPFs have entered the global market during the past 70 years. Initially developed as military rations during the second world war, they have since become ubiquitous.

Research shows US tobacco companies bought UPF manufacturers and applied their knowledge of flavours and child-focused marketing to develop sweetened drink brands and products with purposeful combinations of salt, fats and sugars that trigger a dopamine-like reward response.

Combined with chemical flavourings, these products became “hyper palatable” and designed to be over-eaten.

UPF producers based mainly in the US and Europe then sought to expand their reach into other regions, including the Pacific, vying for entry into untapped markets in middle- and lower-income countries.

New Zealand is an interesting case because it had a highly regulated food system until the neoliberal reforms of the 1980s and early 1990s. The market was insular and food choices were limited until then.

After the World Trade Organization was established in 1995, New Zealand rapidly opened up to overseas imports as well as foreign investment to develop its own food processing industries.

Tracking imports reveals concerning trend

Even more than the UPF products themselves, food derivatives such as industrial sweeteners and other commodity ingredients (for example, refined wheat flour and plant oils) destined to go into UPFs produced domestically make up a large and growing proportion of import volumes.

In 2023, New Zealand imported nearly 21 kilograms of industrial sugar sweeteners per person (in addition to 47 kilograms per person of regular cooking sugar).

These trends have occurred alongside a dramatic rise in obesity in the New Zealand population. While correlation does not imply causality, the influx in UPFs suggests we are likely consuming too much to be healthy.

The world’s top food system experts recommend dietary patterns with a diversity of whole or minimally processed foods (that are mostly plant-sourced), and minimal consumption of added sugars, saturated fats and salt.

But New Zealand’s food environments are increasingly dominated by UPFs, including products that target children. Social and economic circumstances (with one in three households struggling with food insecurity) increase people’s reliance on cheap, less perishable and convenient food.

Many people are time-poor, financially constrained and have limited inter-generational and community support, and whole foods are increasingly expensive. The addictive properties of UPFs and constant marketing make people crave these products.

Shifting these trends isn’t going to happen through market self-correction or individual behavioural change.

According to a 2023 progress report, successive governments have failed to implement internationally recommended policies for regulating unhealthy food products, falling well behind global best practice.

The report highlights the need for New Zealand to introduce mandatory regulations to reduce unhealthy food marketing in all media and on packaging, with a particular focus on protecting children.

It also recommends a levy on sugary drinks and mandatory targets for reducing salt and added sugar in key food categories of processed and ultra-processed foods. However, interventions will also be needed to make healthy, whole foods more available and affordable.

Each of these interventions stands to put a significant dent in New Zealanders’ consumption of UPFs, especially if implemented together as a comprehensive policy package to promote healthier food environments.