New research echoes Honest Crust Act calls

The Real Bread Campaign believes new research indicates that many people would support its proposed changes to ‘bread’ labelling and marketing standards. 

Of the 1506 respondents to the survey of UK adults, conducted in October 2025 by M·E·L Research:

• 81% agreed that ingredients and additives should be listed for wrapped / packaged ‘bread’*
• 77% said that wholegrain ‘bread’ should contain at least 51% unrefined grain ingredients by law. 
• 75% agreed that ingredients and additives should be listed for ‘bread’ sold loose / unwrapped.*
• 75% agreed that ‘processing aids’ should be declared on wrapped loaf ingredients lists.
• 71% believed that many supermarket ‘baked in store’ or ‘freshly baked’ claims are misleading.
• 69% agreed that ‘processing aids’ should be declared on ingredients lists for products sold loose / unwrapped.
• 56% said that it’s unacceptable that ‘wholegrain’ isn’t defined in food labelling law.
• 55% said that it’s unacceptable that ‘sourdough’ isn’t defined in food labelling law.

From a list of characteristics of sourdough bread, respondents ranked ‘raised only by a live sourdough starter culture, with no added yeast or other raising agents’ as the most important attribute. 

*this is a current legal requirement.

Listen to the people

Real Bread Campaign coordinator Chris Young said: “These findings echo what we’ve been hearing for the past 17 years. They underline the overwhelming appetite for the Honest Crust Act of updated and improved labelling and marketing standards, for which we’ve been lobbying since 2009. We urge the Government, manufacturers and retailers to act now in response to this research by making the long-overdue changes needed to ensure that people have the chance to make better-informed choices about food they buy and eat.” 

Young went on to say: “We also hope that consumer protection bodies will listen to what many people say they find misleading and unacceptable.” He also added the assurance: “What we’re calling for here won’t prevent companies from continuing to make and sell existing products and shouldn’t come at any extra cost to taxpayers or shoppers. The improvements will simply help to ensure people actually get what they believe they’re paying for.”

We need an Honest Crust Act

The Campaign believes that everyone should have a realistic chance to choose Real Bread. The Campaign’s Honest Crust Act proposals are also designed to help create a more level playing field on which small local, independent bakeries (and honest businesses of all types and sizes) can survive and thrive. In the short term, the Campaign continues to call for immediate reinstatement of official food labelling guidance (which Defra quietly ‘archived’ in late 2024) pending a full review and update. 

In the meantime, the Campaign invites people to search the Real Bread Map and encourages shoppers to look for The Real Bread Loaf Mark while out and about.
People can find out more and join the Campaign in support of its charitable work at www.realbreadcampaign.org 

***ENDS***

The Real Bread Campaign was co-founded, and officially launched on 26 November 2008, by Andrew Whitley of Bread Matters (and now Scotland The Bread), and Sustain: The alliance for better food and farming, the charity that still runs the Campaign. Its Honest Crust Act work began in early 2009.

The Real Bread Campaign’s questions were included, on a pro-bono basis, in M·E·L Research’s October 2025 omnibus survey on public attitudes to a range of issues. The survey was responded to by 1,506 people aged 16+ across the UK. Respondents were not aware of the Campaign’s involvement, quotas were set and the response data were weighted to ensure that the results were representative of adults across the UK.

After ‘raised only by a live sourdough starter culture’, the characteristic of sourdough bread ranked most important by the next largest percentage of respondents was healthier than other types of ‘bread’, followed by less processed than other types. [NB sourdough is a process, which can be used to make any type or style of bread on the planet.]

Honest Crust Act 

The Campaign’s proposals include:

• Full ingredient labelling / listing for loaves sold loose / unwrapped.
• Regulation of ‘freshly baked in store today’ type claims.
• Mandatory declaration of ‘processing aids’ on ingredients lists.
• Legal definition of whole grain / wholegrain and regulation of its use.
• Legal definition of sourdough and regulation of its use.
• Regulation of other, commonly-used marketing terms / claims (such as heritage wheat and artisan baker / bread).

See also

• Dirty secret behind factory loaf clean labels?
• Loaf-tanning salon lies?
• Wholemeal law breakers?
• Supermarket sourfaux slammed