HFSS Score Calculator & Recipe Reformulation
NutriCalc gives you the ability to easily calculate HFSS scores for your recipes and then reformulate them.
Please Note: since the video was created, the restrictions’ compliance deadlines or their details for some parts of the UK have changed, so please refer to the FAQs section below for the most up-to-date details.
HFSS Frequently Asked Questions Explained
HFSS, aka nutrient profiling, is a UK government marketing initiative to help combat obesity. Marketing of High Fat, Sugar and Salt (HFSS) foods, which are considered to be ‘less healthy’ or even ‘junk’ food, is being curtailed.
What do the HFSS restrictions cover?
Placement – positioned in prime store locations – e.g. end of aisles, checkouts, entrances, queues etc.
Volume Promotions – such as Buy One, Get One Free, 50% Extra Free etc.
Advertising – on prime-time TV before the 9pm watershed, plus paid-for online platforms.
Has HFSS come into effect?
Placement – the restrictions came into effect on 1st October 2022 in England. Similar restrictions will be introduced in Wales from 26th March 2026. Scotland intends to apply similar restrictions in Autumn 2026 to England and Wales.
Volume Promotions – the restrictions in England apply from 1st October 2025. Some retailers such as large supermarkets have already started voluntarily applying them. Similar restrictions will be introduced in Wales from 26th March 2026. Scotland intends to apply similar restrictions in Autumn 2026 to England and Wales.
Advertising – UK-wide restrictions were originally planned to go live on 1st October 2025, but were delayed until 5th January 2026. Some retailers such as large supermarkets have already started voluntarily applying the restrictions.
What foods does HFSS apply to?
HFSS regulations only apply to the following food categories: soft drinks with added sugar, juice drinks with added sugar, milk drinks with added sugar, crisps and savoury snacks, breakfast cereal, chocolate confectionary, sugar confectionary, ice cream, cakes, sweet biscuits, morning goods, pudding and dairy desserts, yoghurts, pizza, chips and potato products, family meal centres, complete main meals (ready meals), breaded and battered products, main meals (out-of-home), starters, sides and small plates (out-of-home), children’s meal bundles (out-of-home), and sandwiches (out-of-home).
AND ONLY foods in these categories which score highly on the Government Nutrient Profile model – see examples in our Expert Paper.
How do I know if a product is HFSS?
You need to use a HFSS score calculator, such as featured in our NutriCalc software (known as the Nutrient Profile Report). Foods that score 4 or more points, and drinks that score 1 or more points, are categorised as HFSS. Products are allocated points for the so-called ‘bad’ nutrients: energy, saturated fat, sugars and sodium. Points are then deducted for so-called ‘good’ nutrients: protein and fibre. And finally, there is a points deduction for the quantity of fruit, vegetables and nuts that the product contains.
What types of foods are usually HFSS?
Please see the fruit pie, croissant, snack bar, milk chocolate and pretzels etc food type examples and their HFSS scores in our Expert Paper.
Are there any other HFSS exceptions?
The regulations do not apply to ‘pre-packed food for direct sale’ (PPDS). This is food that is packaged at the same place it is offered or sold to consumers and is in this packaging before it’s ordered or selected by the consumer, or food that is loose or non-prepacked.
Which retailers need to comply?
Retailers that meet BOTH the following criteria: 1) They have more than 50 employees (combining those in head office with store staff) – including stores which operate as part of a franchise agreement or are a member of a symbol group. 2) They have an internal ‘customer sales floor’ area of over 2,000 sq. ft. (185.8sqms).
Information sources: David F. Bartley PhD – NutriCalc, UK Govt – Department of Health & Social Care – HFSS guidance/legislation, ACS advice guide for retailers, Campden BRI.
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the information above is accurate and up to date, NutriCalc accepts no liability for errors or omissions. E&OE.
HFSS Score Calculator (Nutrient Profile Report)
You will see a list of points awarded for each nutrient and also FVN* (Fruit, Vegetables and Nuts), together with the total score (as per below).
To be HFSS, a food recipe will score 4 or more points, and a drink recipe will score 1 or more points.
So, in the Beef and Tomato Pie example below, the recipe is HFSS as the total score is 10 due to the high energy, saturated fats and sodium/salt content.
For another example, see our HFSS scoring & reformulation video above featuring a high sugar Spiced Bun recipe.
In addition, here’s a case study example a client who reformulated the sugar content of their cereal recipe to achieve an Amber ‘traffic light’ sugar nutrition target on their UK front of pack label, instead of previously being Red. This change was made to match a key competitors’ FOP nutrition label, and thus avoid a potentially negative impact previously on sales. The case study demonstrates how even a small reformulation can make a difference to the traffic light labelling or HFSS score, possibly improving sales and nutrition marketing claims.
*FVN (Fruit, Vegetables and Nuts): The values for the nutrients are already calculated by NutriCalc. For FVN, many items in the main NutriCalc catalogue have been labelled as FVN and will be included in the calculation.
For the user’s own ‘My ingredients’ however, these need to be marked as eligible if they are. For a guide to how to mark your own custom ingredients as eligible, visit this support page.
Reformulating Recipes To Be Non-HFSS
By clicking the NUTRITION tab to view the nutrition summary, you can identify the ingredients.
Continuing with the Beef and Tomato Pie recipe example, the nutrition report (as per below) shows that the saturated fat is mostly originating from the Non-Hydro Margarine ingredient in the Pastry sub-recipe, and the Beef Mince in the Filling sub-recipe. Similarly, the sodium/salt is also originating from these ingredients.
You can reformulate your recipe to be non-HFSS by reducing or substituting the offending ingredients (or a combination of both), and then the software will automatically rescore the modified recipe.
Make a copy of your original recipe (or the subsequent iterations) as many times as needed, to experiment with different product recipe reformulations.
Clients Using NutriCalc to HFSS Score & Reformulate Their Products
Read testimonials and profiles for some of our many satisfied clients using NutriCalc for their recipes’ non-HFSS compliance, reformulation, and NPD.
This includes an award-winning UK small-batch nutritious breakfast cereals brand, and an award-winning UK traditional Caribbean bakery.
In cases of those using NutriCalc for HFSS, our software is their all-in-one solution to design new recipes, calculate their HFSS scores, reformulate them to be non-HFSS (if they score as HFSS), then output the nutrition & ingredient information for their products’ labelling.
NutriCalc HFSS Plan Options
Premium Monthly PAYG – No Minimum Contract, Dip in & Out
If you don’t create recipes in the affected HFSS food categories all year round, with our Premium Monthly PAYG option, you can dip in and out or temporarily upgrade from a lower plan to Premium, only the months you need this feature – saving you money.
Premium Annual – Get 2 Months FREE
Or if you need continuous access to HFSS scoring, make 1 full Premium Annual payment and get 2 months FREE (equates to 12 months for the same price as 10 PAYG months).
All plans include UNLIMITED recipes, ingredients, reports and labels.
For full details including our pricing-related terms & conditions, visit our pricing page.
Full Telephone Support & Expert Advice If You Need It
If you need help with using our HFSS score calculator, identifying the offending HFSS ingredients in order to reformulate your recipe, or advice on correctly applying the UK government’s HFSS guidelines, don’t worry as our Premium Plan subscribers receive full telephone support during UK 9-5 office hours (as well as live chat & email support), so you’re in good hands.
HFSS Expert Papers:
Read our HFSS-related expert papers for more information:
November 22, 2024 – HFSS Foods – How is Advertising Affected by the Restrictions?
November 15, 2024 – HFSS Foods – Are Your Products Affected by the Ad & Vol Promo Restrictions?
November 8, 2022 – Salt Reduction Targets: Is Your Sodium Reduction Worth Its Salt?
October 10, 2022 – Scoring for HFSS: Is It Nuts?…Sowing the Seeds…
June 16, 2022 – Nutrient Profiling aka HFSS – How Does it Work in Practice?
May 23, 2022 – Changes to the HFSS Timetable
July 30, 2021 – What’s going on with HFSS/Nutrient Profiling in 2021?
July 2, 2021 – The HFSS Foods Initiative – Will it Make us Healthier?