Our Research

A Red Card For Junk Food

We uncover just some of the ways food and drink companies target young people through sports marketing. Through the eyes of young sports fans, we explore how less healthy products are often associated with sports, with a particular focus on football — the nation’s most popular sport. Published May 2023.

5 young girls in black shirts with a white round Bite Back logo stand in front of 6 footballers clad in blue football jerseys with a pink Bite Back logo.
Bite Back starts sponsoring Dulwich Hamlet Football Club

Enticing, Effective and Everywhere

We unpack the impact that less healthy food and drink advertising has on all of us. Food and drink companies spend millions each year on marketing techniques that put junk food firmly in the spotlight. Our report reveals just how compelling and effective food advertising can be for young people: a third of 1,000 teens we spoke to said that after seeing an ad for a less healthy product, they’d buy it the next chance they got. Published May 2023.

More Than A Meal

We reveal why free school meals are more than just a meal for those who need them. This report explores young people’s experiences of free school meals, and puts the spotlight on people who really need access, but sadly don’t meet the hugely restrictive criteria. Published February 2022.

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Don't Hide What's Inside

In 2021, we put the spotlight on the ingredients of 500 products commonly consumed by teenagers. Despite health and nutrition claims on their packaging, over half were high in either salt, saturated fat or sugar, and would get a red traffic light label. Smoothies, cereal bars and yoghurts were amongst the worst offenders. But these marketing tactics work: half of the 1,000 teens we spoke to say such health claims are convincing.

Spill The Beans

We share the truth about school food, from the people who really matter – us. We eat it every day, but our voices are rarely heard when it’s discussed. Bite Back’s Youth Board set out to change that, chatting to young people aged 13–18 from all across the country about their experiences. Published September 2021.

I’m racking my brain because I don’t think my school does a single healthy option, which is very concerning now that I think about it. So obviously they need to change that.

Youth Panellist, 16

Spill The Beans Report

Our Junk Food Marketing Exposé

We expose the secretive online strategies that global food giants use to manipulate us. Among our findings is the shocking truth that every second, almost 500 online junk food ads are shown to UK children. Published February 2021.

Feed Britain Better

Published in October 2020, this report explores the impact of Covid-19 on teen eating habits. Drawing on extensive research by a powerful coalition of organisations, we present the change we want to see, and a suggested route to a healthier future.