Andy Devaney
Britain has a fibre problem, and it is not a small one. According to the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, 96% of Britons are not eating enough fibre***—despite the recommended 30g per day needed to support immune function and help prevent chronic health conditions such as heart disease, type II diabetes and bowel cancer.
It is the kind of shortfall that does not announce itself with a siren, but it can show up in the places people care about most: energy, digestion, long-term health, and the creeping sense that the body is not quite running as smoothly as it should.
Five practical ways to eat more fibre, starting today
Marks & Spencer’s Head of Nutrition, Grace Ricotti, has shared five straightforward strategies designed to help people close the gap without turning mealtimes into a joyless exercise. Her advice focuses on everyday staples and realistic upgrades rather than dramatic overhauls:
“Make sure you’re getting enough wholegrains – brown and wholegrain varieties of rice, pasta, bread and other grains are richer sources of fibre than white varieties because they retain the entire grain, including the germ, endosperm and bran layers.
Beans and pulses are a fantastic plant-based fibre and source of protein – they contain on average 2.5 times more fibre than two slices of white bread.
Add nuts and seeds on top of soups, salads or breakfast for an extra boost of fibre.
The classic advice to eat five sources of fruit and veg a day is so important – they are rich sources of fibre, and not enough of us are eating all five.
Eat the rainbow – adding colour to your meals is an easy way to ensure you are getting fibre diversity in your diet.”
The message is simple: swap white for wholegrain more often, add pulses where they naturally fit, finish dishes with nuts and seeds, and build plates with enough fruit and vegetables to make the numbers work. A little colour, a little crunch, and a lot more fibre.
Why M&S is calling for clearer fibre labelling
M&S has been rated the number one retailer for health choices for the last three consecutive years****. Its Eat Well logo, which signposts over 1800 health choices across its Food halls, turns 21 this year.
The retailer labels the grammage of fibre on the back of pack for all its products, despite this not being mandatory under current legislation. M&S argues that clearer information is needed, particularly given that a quarter of consumers struggle to identify fibre-rich food sources. In practical terms, shoppers cannot reliably choose higher-fibre options if identifying them requires guesswork.
M&S is therefore calling for clearer and more consistent on-pack labelling to help individuals meet the 30g daily recommendation.
New products aimed at making fibre-rich choices easier
Alongside the labelling push, M&S says it is increasing access to naturally fibre-rich foods to help more people pick up products that support daily intake. This month, the retailer launched its brand-new Nutrient Dense range, featuring 20 products that all contain a source of fibre, or another key mineral or vitamin that people in the UK are deficient in. Each product clearly labels the amount of fibre on the pack, intended to support customers in reaching their daily requirement.
M&S has also extended fibre-rich ingredients across its deli range, including adding chickpeas and beans to more products—an approach designed to make higher-fibre eating feel less like a specialist mission and more like a normal shop.
What the experts say about Britain’s fibre gap
Grace Ricotti, Head of Nutrition at M&S Food said:
“There is clear evidence linking fibre to improved health outcomes, which is why we’re sharing our research and insights about Britain’s Fibre Gap, and what to do about it.
We support collaboration between government and industry to prioritise fibre-rich products and effective communication around fibre and its public health benefits.
Our report includes practical steps to drive fibre consumption including clearer labelling on pack, fibre-enrichment of products like bread and more flexibility for retailers to make fibre claims so that it’s easy for customers to see which products are high in fibre.”
Elaine Hindal, Chief Executive of The British Nutrition Foundation said: “The low fibre intakes that we see in the UK population reflect poor dietary patterns with a lack of fruit and vegetables, wholegrains, pulses and other plant foods. Evidence shows that low fibre diets increase the risk of diet-related disease including heart disease, type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer and so increasing fibre intakes is vital to improve population health.
We welcome this new report, encouraging industry to take action to support consumers in bridging the fibre gap and making fibre-rich choices easier and more appealing”.
The bottom line: small switches, big impact
Closing the national fibre gap does not require perfection. It requires repetition: more wholegrains, more beans and pulses, more fruit and vegetables, and simple add-ons that lift meals quietly—nuts, seeds, and a broader range of plant foods over the week.
If the information on pack becomes clearer and higher-fibre choices become easier to spot, the daily 30g target may start to feel less like a number reserved for the unusually organised—and more like a standard Britain can actually reach.
Read the M&S Bridging Britain’s Fibre Gap Report Here
