Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39794395›Full record

ArticleNature food2025

Regulatory responses to ultra-processed foods are skewed towards behaviour change and not food system transformation.

Tanita Northcott, Mark Lawrence, Christine Parker, Belinda Reeve, Phillip Baker

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Nature food, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
13citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

13 citing papers in PubMed.

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  11. Research roadmap for ultra-processed foods in the context of the Australian food system.Nutrition & dietetics : the journal of the Dietitians Association of Australia · 2025
    Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Tanita NorthcottSchool of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia. t.northcott@deakin.edu.au.ORCID 0000-0002-0834-1729
Mark LawrenceSchool of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-6899-3983
Christine ParkerMelbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.ORCID 0000-0003-1870-5706
Belinda ReeveThe University of Sydney Law School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-0376-5717
Phillip BakerSydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Growing evidence suggests that diets high in ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are harming human and planetary health. UPFs therefore pose a complex regulatory challenge, yet, to date, little research has systematically assessed how governments have responded to UPFs in national food policies. Here we analyse data from the NOURISHING database to assess the scope and strength of UPF-related regulatory interventions worldwide, using three frameworks-namely, NOURISHING, the Nuffield Ladder and the Modalities of Control framework. Of the 417 UPF-related measures identified, most imply food processing or mention UPF examples rather than refer to processing or UPFs specifically. The scope of action is narrow; 85.9% of interventions change the food environment, largely represented by nutrition labelling. The strength of action is limited; interventions are skewed towards informational measures to influence consumer choice, and 47.1% of measures use consensus to shape food business conduct. These findings highlight an opportunity to broaden the scope and strength of UPF-related regulation.

Indexed as

Fast FoodsFood HandlingNutrition PolicyConsumer BehaviorFood LabelingFood, ProcessedHumans

Identifiers

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.