High fat, sugar and salt food and beverage

This policy applies to Shopping ads and local inventory ads

Our policy

We support responsible advertising of food and beverages. High fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) food and beverage (F&B) Shopping ads are allowed if they comply with our policies. We consider ads to be promoting the sale of HFSS products when one or more HFSS food item, beverage or meal is promoted in the ad (text, imagery, audio and/or video) or destination site. Specifically, Shopping ads that contain HFSS foods and beverages are now prohibited from targeting minors. The information reflected in this policy is not intended to be legal advice and we expect all merchants and partners to comply with the local laws for any region their ads target, including local requirements that may differ from this HFSS food and beverage policy.

Below are some examples of F&B products (non-exhaustive) that are considered HFSS. Shopping ads that contain nutritional information indicating the products are within the allowed threshold for FSS and serving size/calories, or on successful appeal by the merchant, may be eligible to serve. For the complete nutritional thresholds for HFSS F&B products, please see the table below.

These are some examples of HFSS F&B: 

• Sweetened beverages (fizzy drinks, water, juice, coffee, tea or sport drinks with added sugar or other caloric sweeteners), energy drinks
• Doughnuts, cakes, sweet biscuits, pastries, croissants, sweet bakery treats
• Fruit canned in syrup, dried fruit with added sugar
• Chocolate nut spreads, trail mix or nut bar with chocolate or sweets, nuts coated in syrup or honey
• Milkshakes 
• Pork and beef sausage/hot dogs, salami, prosciutto, bacon, fried meats, fried fish
• Pizza, hamburger meals with chips, fried food (such as jalapeno poppers)
• Sweets, chocolate, sugar confections, gummy snacks, ice cream, marshmallows
• Butter, salt, caloric sweeteners (e.g. maple syrup, agave, honey, sugar), coconut oil

Examples of Shopping offers outside the scope of this policy:

• Free product listings
• Ads or destination sites that include only text, imagery, audio and/or video etc. of foods, beverages and meals that aren't HFSS. Examples of non-HFSS F&B include (non-exhaustive): 100% juice; plain bottled water; carbonated water and flavoured water with no added sugar or sweeteners; beverages containing ONLY water and 100% juice (e.g. diluted juice); unsweetened coffee and tea; low fat or fat-free plain milk; grains with no added ingredients; plain fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables; dry beans and lentils; fruit canned in water or 100% juice; plain nuts and seeds; nuts and dried fruit with no added salt or sugar; low fat or fat-free plain yogurt with no added sugar; plain fish, poultry, eggs or meat (no added salt, fat, sugar); plain flours; baking soda; baking powder; olive oil; rapeseed oil
• Food or beverage company ads or destination sites that do not include text, imagery, audio and/or video etc. of any HFSS foods and beverages, such as:

• Brand logo or company name depicted on non-consumable merchandise (e.g. t-shirt, poster)
• Brand logo or company name depicted in a sponsorship or charity situation, i.e. 'Sponsored by or brought to you by [company name]'
• Restaurant locator websites
• Restaurant review websites
• Restaurant delivery services

• Shopping ads that feature one or more HFSS F&B products, to promote a product or service that is not related to F&B, such as: 

• A trailer for a baking show
• A tourism advertisement 
• Ads for kitchen cleaning supplies

• Shopping ads that feature one or more HFSS F&B product, to promote a PSA message on healthy diets and eating 

Effect of the policy

This policy update will apply to all HFSS F&B ads serving in the UK and EU on Shopping, including ads served through other products like Search. Ads identified as HFSS, and which have received the HFSS label will only serve to users with a declared age of 18 and above.

Need help?

Google HFSS F&B Nutritional Profile

Nutrient levels are applied on a 100-gram and per serving basis for global applicability and to reflect common labelled serving sizes and calorie levels for meal and meal components. If the serving size of your advertised food or beverage doesn't closely match the listed serving size (LSS), please evaluate your product using the per 100-gram criteria.

 

Food and Beverages	PER	Sat fat (g)	Sodium (mg)	Total sugar (g)	Added sugar (g)	Calories
Beverages
All beverages except milk	LSS (est 8 oz)	N/A	105 mg	N/A	0	N/A
	100 g	N/A	46 mg		0
Grains/breads
Bread, bread products, noodles, rice, grains, pancakes	LSS (est 100 g)	2	360	10	N/A	N/A
	100 g	2	360	10
Breakfast cereals	LSS (est 30 g)	1.5	250	6.75	N/A	N/A
	100 g	5	625	22.5
Fruits, vegetables and legumes
Processed fruit, vegetables and legumes	LSS (est 90 g)	2	350	N/A	0	N/A
	100 g	2.2	390		0
Nuts and seeds
Nuts and seeds	LSS (est 30 g)	3.5	130	4	N/A	N/A
	100 g	12	430	13
Dairy
Milks and milk alternatives	LSS (est 8 oz/245 g)	5	200	22	N/A	N/A
	100 g	3	82	9
Cheese and cheese products	LSS (est 30 g)	3	228	N/A	N/A	N/A
	100 g	10	760
Yoghurt and yoghurt-type products	LSS (est 170 g)	5	136	19	N/A	N/A
	100 g	3	80	11.5
Meat, fish, egg, poultry and meat replacements
Processed meat, poultry, fish, eggs and alternatives	LSS (est 50 g)	2	335	N/A	N/A	N/A
	100 g	4	670
Meals and meal components
Ready-made dishes and appetisers	<315 calories (est 140 grams)	5	545	14	N/A	315
	100 g	4	390	10		225
Complete meal	<510 calories (est 300 g)	6.6	660	18	N/A	510
	100 g	2.2	220	6		200
Snacks and treats
Snacks and treats	<150 calories (est 30 g)	1.5	120	6.75	N/A	150
	100 g	5	400	22.5		500
Sauces, condiments and culinary ingredients
Sauces, condiments and culinary ingredients	LSS (est 30 g)	2	135	1.5	N/A	N/A
	100 g	6.6	450	4.9