WWF-UK States Proportion of “Livestock-Based” Foods in Supermarkets is Almost Double Recommended Levels

WWF-UK has developed a healthy, sustainable diet called Livewell, which it claims could deliver a 36% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and a 20% reduction in biodiversity shortfall by 2030 compared to the current average diet. Livewell has a 40:30:30 percentage split across livestock, seafood, and plant-based protein foods; it is also in line with government nutrition guidelines. This year, the number of retailers who supplied data on the breakdown of protein food takings increased from six to nine. Even so, the data indicates that 79% of total protein food takings are livestock-based on average, nearly double what is recommended by the Livewell diet.

The 2024 report as well introduces some new measures, including the proportion of pre-prepared and composite products that are meat-based. Only two retailers were able to provide this data, but the figures show that 61% of relevant products are meat-based, compared to the Livewell target of 40%. © WWF-UK Another new measure analyses the breakdown of whole food takings from each of the five main Eatwell food groups (Starchy Carbohydrates, Oil & Fats, Dairy & Alternatives, Fruits & Vegetables, and Protein Foods) compared with Livewell-aligned proportions.

Takings data from retailers exceeds these proportions for both Protein Foods and Dairy & Alternatives, mostly driven by livestock-based foods. Targets for 2025 The report recommends four key actions for next year: Redistribution of retailers’ takings targets towards foods that support healthy, sustainable diets.

Collaboration between retailers to create food environments (instore or online) that incentivise shoppers to adopt affordable, healthy, and sustainable diets. Further action by retailers to publicly report on protein food type turnover and set public targets aligned with WWF Basket diet metrics.

Advocacy by retailers and other organisations for updated national dietary guidelines, along with regulations such as mandatory reporting and public targets for healthy sustainable diets. Educating consumers about why they need to consume less meat will be key to enacting this change, but that’s only the first step.

These retailers in addition need to address the barriers to the adoption of more sustainable proteins such as issues with taste, convenience, awareness, and rate. “Thankfully, there are already first-mover retailers showing the way forward. Take Lidl GB for instance, which has set targets for plant-based to account for 25% of its total protein sales by 2030, while tripling its plant-based offering.

Or look at Lidl Germany and other forward-thinking European retailers which are price matching plant-based products with their meat counterparts. “By offering more choice and convenience, while matching rates, these retailers can shift consumer buying behaviours for the better. And, once cultivated meat gets the regulatory green light in the near future, the sector can play a big role in helping supermarkets. Plant-based partners to address these issues even further by matching the taste of meat, like for like, but with a product which is kinder and better for our planet.”