May 15, 2023
Call comes after the discounter saw sales of its specially designed Oaklands increase by more than a third. Funsize fruit range
Lidl was the first supermarket to implement packaging designed to encourage children to consume their five-a-day servings of fruits and vegetables.
Additionally, the retailer has verified it will remove all cartoon characters from the packaging of unhealthy products by next spring.
On May 15, 2023, Lidl GB issued a request to other supermarkets, urging them to implement design modifications on the packaging of fruit and vegetable items. These changes would help make the products appeal more to children.
The call comes as the discounter reports that sales of its Oaklands Funsize range climbed by more than a third since the introduction of the specifically designed packaging in 2017.
In 2017, the discounter began selling the Oaklands Funsize range.
The British supermarket chain Lidl was the first of its kind to launch a selection of nutritious foods that were created with the express intention of getting youngsters to consume more leafy greens.
The assortment features edible items like as banana llamas and tawny tomatowls that have been given names that are a bit offbeat and are based on cartoon characters.
In order to pique the interest of young people even further, competitions to name and draw cartoon characters were established. As a direct consequence of this, various memorable characters have been introduced, one of which is Koala Pears, which resulted in the sale of roughly a quarter of a million additional units in the calendar year following the conclusion of the competition.
The cheap retailer has made the announcement that by Spring of next year*, in addition to helping youngsters eat healthier diets and assisting parents in overcoming the power of pester power, it would also remove cartoon characters from unhealthy products.
Over fourteen distinct product categories, including candies, chocolates, and savoury snacks, will be influenced, and at least thirty products will receive a new look as a result.
Among these new products are the discounters Sweet Fruit Chews and Multicoloured Fizzy Belts.
The move comes after the groundbreaking decision made by Lidl in 2020 to remove cartoon characters from the packaging of cereal.
After research showed that over two thirds of parents (68%) felt child friendly characters on unhealthy food and drink packaging made it more difficult to feed their children a healthy diet, the revisions mark a big step towards helping families across the country make healthier choices.
This comes after research revealed that child friendly characters on unhealthy food and drink packaging made it more difficult to give their children a healthy diet.1
“Our ambition is to make high quality, healthy food accessible to all, and the primary way we achieve this is through our best value prices,” said Peter de Roos, Chief Commercial Officer at Lidl GB.
“Our prices are among the most competitive in the industry.” However, we are also aware that there are additional obstacles in the way, most notably with regard to children, and parents have informed us that unhelpful packaging is one of these obstacles. Our findings demonstrate the good impact that can occur from making even seemingly insignificant adjustments, and it is something that can be easily altered at our stores. We hope that other supermarkets will follow in our footsteps so that the grocery industry as a whole can be confident that it is doing everything it can to support parents in their efforts to help the next generation’s diets become healthier.
Following the launch of Lidl GB’s new Healthy & Sustainable Diets Policy, which seeks to ensure that diets are healthier, more sustainable, and easier to comprehend in order to aid customers in making decisions in-store, the company has made the statement.
November 3, 2022
