Food advert and health claims found misleading by ASA

The ASA upheld complaints about a 2026 advertising campaign by Huel Ltd featuring founder Julian Hearn and Spencer Matthews. Although the advert stated that Hearn personally used Huel for breakfast and lunch before eating a conventional evening meal, it also highlighted an anecdote about an athlete who supposedly consumed only Huel and went on to win an ultra-endurance race. The ASA concluded that, taken as a whole, the advert implied that Huel could replace all conventional food and presented that approach positively.

The regulator found the ads were socially irresponsible because they suggested consumers could rely entirely on Huel products without adequately explaining the nutritional and practical implications of doing so. While Huel argued that the advert was intended to discourage the misconception that Huel should replace every meal, the ASA considered the overall impression left by the messaging rather than the company’s stated intention.

The ASA also upheld complaints about health claims. It ruled that the advert implied a connection between consuming Huel and enhanced endurance performance through the race-winning anecdote, and that statements such as Huel “gives you everything that you do need” amounted to health claims that were not supported by the specific authorised claims required under the advertising rules. The ASA therefore ordered that the ads must not appear again in their current form.

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