Eleven secondary schools took part in this study. Six intervention schools were randomised to displayed PACE labelling by cakes, sweets and biscuits in canteens, while the five control schools continued as usual. We then analysed the number of purchases of these sweet treats over the six week study period

During the study there were ~99,000 purchases in total of these sweet treats.  The findings suggest that there was a reduction of ~11 per 100 students per week. Schools reported no major difficulties with the implementation of PACE labelling.

The study found some schools had reservations about the possible adverse effects this type of labelling may have on the wellbeing of students and the potential for the information to be misleading as different body weights expend calories at different rates.

The results of this research may be particularly relevant for school leaders and education policy makers to improve healthier food choices in secondary schools.

What next?

Schools may consider implementing PACE food labelling to help improve students’ food choices in the school canteen and promote healthier eating behaviours. Future research is needed to test the intervention  and on the purchases of other food products over longer periods , to gain a full understanding of the effect of PACE food labelling in secondary school canteens.

Citation details

Iris N, Munir F, Daley AJ. Physical activity calorie equivalent (PACE) food labelling on discretionary foods in secondary school canteens in England: an efficacy cluster randomised controlled trial. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 2025. DOI: 10.1186/s12966-025-01710-1

Acknowledgements

This study was funded by a PhD studentship from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and supported by the National Institute for Heath and Care Research (NIHR) and all authors are affiliated with the Centre for Lifestyle Medicine and Behaviour (CLiMB).