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Lidl and Iceland Adverts First to Be Banned Under New Rules

The Advertising Standards Authority has banned ads from Lidl and Iceland, marking the first enforcement actions under new rules restricting promotions for food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar that took effect at the beginning of this year.
Products within 13 categories—including soft drinks, chocolates, sweets, pizzas, ice creams, breakfast cereals, porridges, sweetened bread products, main meals and sandwiches—are assessed as "less healthy" based on nutrient levels and saturated fat, salt or sugar content, with only items meeting both criteria subject to restrictions.
Lidl Northern Ireland's ad featured Pain Suisse, classified as both HFSS and a sweetened bread product, while Iceland's promotions included Swizzles Sweet Treats, Chupa Chups Laces, Chooee Disco Stix and Haribo Elf Surprises, all restricted under the rules; Iceland attributed violations to a technical fault with a supplier data feed.
After removing its ad, Lidl committed to ensuring future compliance with its marketing agency, while the ASA cleared other campaigns including influencer John Fisher's German Doner Kebab post and The Beach's airport lounge promotion, determining those items fell outside the restrictions.
ASA chief executive Guy Parker said these initial rulings help build a clearer picture of how the new framework applies in practice, with the authority employing tech-assisted proactive monitoring to ensure consistent and impartial enforcement across the industry.

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