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. 2023 Feb 14;20(4):3322.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph20043322.

Reformulation of Processed Yogurt and Breakfast Cereals over Time: A Scoping Review

Sinead O'Mahony  1   2   3 , Clare B O'Donovan  1 , Nuala Collins  1 , Kevin Burke  4 , Gerardine Doyle  5   6 , Eileen R Gibney  2   3
Affiliations

Reformulation of Processed Yogurt and Breakfast Cereals over Time: A Scoping Review

Sinead O'Mahony et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Poor diet is responsible for a quarter of European non-communicable disease (NCD)-related deaths. The reformulation of sugar, salt, and saturated fat in processed packaged foods offers an opportunity to reduce consumption of nutrients of concern and also support a reduction in energy intake. To date, there have been no publications measuring progress in food reformulation by compiling published evidence for a food category. The aim of this scoping review was to identify, characterize and summarise the findings of studies analysing the reformulation of processed yogurt and breakfast cereals. The review answered the research question: "What is the impact of food reformulation on the nutrient quality of yogurt and breakfast cereals available in the retail environment?" The research protocol was defined based on PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Five databases were searched in May 2022. Thirteen studies, published between 2010 and 2021 and completed across seven countries were eligible for inclusion. There were sufficient eligible studies to identify trends in sodium, salt, and sugar reduction in breakfast cereals. However, there was minimal or no reduction in energy, which may bring into question the use of food reformulation as part of an overall health strategy for obesity reduction.

Keywords: breakfast cereal; reformulation; retail food environment; yogurt.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors S.O., C.B.O., G.D., N.C., and K.B. have no conflicts of interest to declare. Author E.R.G. has received research funding and/or has collaborations with the Food for Health Ireland project (Enterprise Ireland—Grant number TC20180025), Marigot Ltd. (Cork, Ireland) and Nestle Ltd. (Veyvey, Switzerland). The fundings listed were not involved in any of the work presented in this paper. E.R.G. has no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the presented work. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA Flow Diagram of Literature Review.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Energy (kJ) and nutrient changes in eligible studies (n = 11) investigating the reformulation of breakfast cereals over time [27,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,49].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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