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Nutrition technology company Spoon Guru says two-thirds of respondents to their survey of those working in supermarkets felt they were uninformed about what the new laws will entail.
The new rules, which set out how foods can be promoted and where they can be positioned in stores, have already been delayed from April to October next year.
But there is now a widespread call for them to be delayed further (61% in this survey), until April 2023.
More than a third of those in the latest survey (35%) are concerned they will end up falling foul of the new rules and 18% said they didn’t know where to begin their preparations.
Even so, 60% of those in retail acknowledged they have a key role to play in the HFSS legislation.
Johanna Bolinder, head of health and sustainability at Spoon Guru, said: “The HFSS changes undoubtedly carry several bureaucratic hallmarks in that this is very complex legislation which many people are struggling to understand and implement.”
Spoon Guru says technology of the type it provides can be used to make a transition to the new regulations easier.
The company says its platform offers nutritionist-led categorisation of products that helps retailers to identify products covered by the new guidelines.
Sharon Bligh, healthier lives director at the Consumer Goods Forum, said: “The new HFSS regulations are designed to help shoppers make informed, healthy choices, but it’s essential we work collaboratively as an industry, and across sectors, to help them achieve maximum impact and utilise available technology and communications methods to avoid creating further confusion for all involved.”
