From M&S to Hovis to Tesco, Lidl & Aldi: Why Britain Must Stop Demand for Fake Bread

By Nin Sidhu

24 November 2025

INTRODUCTION

Walk into any British supermarket and you're hit with the comforting smell of “freshly baked” bread. Warm, inviting, nostalgic, the kind of smell that makes you trust what you’re buying. But behind that scent is one of the biggest food illusions of our time. What many families believe is fresh, simple bread is often nothing more than industrial dough, additives, improvers and frozen part-baked loaves finished in store for effect.

My short film above shows exactly what’s happening inside the industry, where “artisan”, “fresh”, “sourdough” and “wholemeal” labels are often marketing tactics rather than the truth. And the truth matters, especially when bread is one of the most common foods in children’s diets.

For decades, bread has been a staple in British homes. But somewhere along the way, supermarkets stopped treating it like food and started treating it like a high-profit processed product. Faster production, cheaper ingredients and longer shelf life became more important than nutrition, digestion or public health.

The result? We now have a nation where children eat more ultra-processed bread than real bread, and parents rarely get told what’s actually in it. A loaf that looks soft and wholesome can contain bleaching agents, emulsifiers, added sugars, anti-mould preservatives and even additives linked to behavioural changes in children.

This isn’t about scaring families. It’s about telling the truth openly, so parents can make healthier, empowered choices, and so supermarkets can no longer hide behind marketing words.

What’s Really Inside Britain’s “Everyday” Bread

M&S to Hovis to Tesco to Lidl & Aldi & Fake Bread

Across the country, millions of families buy supermarket bread without realising how different it is from the real thing - M&S to Hovis to Tesco to Lidl & Aldi & Fake Bread. The labels look wholesome. The packaging shows rolling hills, wooden barns and “freshly baked today” stickers. But when you dig beneath the surface, the story is very different.

The video breaks this down brand by brand. Here is the clearer truth behind the biggest supermarkets and bakery names — and why it matters for children’s health, digestion and behaviour.

M&S: The ‘Only Five Ingredients’ Investigation

M&S markets its bakery section as premium, clean and “baked in-store”. Yet Trading Standards opened an investigation in 2024 after campaigners found breads containing up to fifteen ingredients, despite front-of-pack claims of only five. The issue wasn’t a minor labelling mistake. It was a pattern of over-simplifying ingredients by grouping multiple flours into one item and using dried sourdough powders instead of real fermented sourdough.

Real sourdough takes time. It ferments naturally and supports gut health. Dried sourdough powder is just a flavouring shortcut. ZOE’s research on fermentation makes this clear by showing how slow-fermented bread is easier to digest and gentler on blood sugar compared to industrial bread.

For parents buying M&S bread thinking it is a cleaner choice, the investigation showed that the marketing doesn’t match the reality. The Telegraph reports: M&S accused of misleading shoppers with bread ingredients.

Hovis: Classic Branding with Industrial Ingredients

Hovis leans heavily on nostalgia. Heritage. Britain’s favourite loaf. But turn the bag over and you will find emulsifiers, palm fat, flour improvers and preservatives that simply do not belong in daily bread.

Healthline explains why emulsifiers are concerning. They can disrupt the gut lining and change the balance of bacteria.

Children’s guts are especially sensitive, so when bread contains emulsifiers, preservatives and hidden improvers, it may contribute to poor digestion, bloating or behavioural shifts caused by blood sugar spikes.

Hovis also markets “sourdough” breads that contain dried sourdough powder and added yeast. This is not real sourdough and does not provide the benefits that proper fermentation gives.

Tesco and Sainsbury’s: Budget Bread with High Preservatives

Many families rely on supermarket value loaves because of the cost of living. But budget bread often means higher levels of preservatives like calcium propionate, used to stop mould in long supply chains.

NHS advice confirms that some children can react sensitively to certain preservatives, especially if consumed daily.

Healthline also reports that calcium propionate has been linked to headaches, irritability and sleep issues in sensitive individuals.

This is not about blaming parents. It is about acknowledging how everyday foods can quietly influence mood and behaviour without families knowing the cause.

Sainsbury’s also uses bleached and heavily processed flour in some lower-cost ranges. Bleaching weakens the natural structure of flour, making it digest more like sugar and less like food.

ZOE’s research shows that ultra-processed foods spike blood sugar harder, faster and more often.

If a child starts their day with toast and their blood sugar spikes and crashes by midmorning, that crash affects concentration, mood and appetite.

Lidl and Aldi: “Freshly Baked” That’s Actually Frozen

The smell of warm bread in Lidl or Aldi feels irresistible. But most of these loaves are shipped frozen, part-baked in factories abroad, then finished in-store. This gives the illusion of freshness without the nutrition of genuine fresh bread.

Part-baked bread needs additional preservatives to survive freezing, transport and re-baking. These often count as “processing aids” and may not appear on labels. This is standard practice across the industry and confuses consumers into thinking they’re buying simple bread.

Sustainweb reports Lidl's half-baked loaf marketing?

This means families are buying industrial bread with chemicals, while believing they’re supporting fresh, local-style baking.

The Real Issue: Speed and Shelf Life Replace Quality and Nutrition

Traditional bread takes twelve to twenty-four hours to ferment, rise and bake. Supermarket bread is made in as little as three hours through a highly industrialised method.

This faster process leaves unfinished starches, harder gluten structures and fewer nutrients. ZOE’s research shows that fermentation time dramatically changes how bread affects the gut.

Industrial bread is softer and cheaper because chemicals do the work time used to do.

Children eat it daily.

Their guts, attention, immune system and blood sugar regulation all depend on steady real nutrition, but most modern bread gives the opposite effect.

Why This Matters for Britain’s Children

Bread is one of the most common foods in the British diet. It is the first thing many children eat in the morning and often the last thing they eat at night. When something so ordinary becomes so processed, so distant from real food, it affects families in ways they don’t always recognise.

Small children with unpredictable moods teens struggling to concentrate families feeling tired, bloated or hungry again after an hour

These patterns aren’t random. They often begin with what we put on the plate.

When bread is filled with bleaching agents, preservatives, emulsifiers and hidden improvers, it no longer behaves like food. It behaves like something manufactured to last, not something made to nourish.

That is why this conversation matters. Not to scare people, but to empower them. Parents deserve to know why their children behave differently after certain foods. Families deserve the choice to eat real bread again. And supermarkets must be challenged when marketing becomes misleading.

So How Do We Fight Back? By Reducing Demand for Fake Bread

The power is already in our hands. When shoppers stop buying heavily processed bread, supermarkets are forced to change what they produce.

Every time someone chooses:

• a local bakery loaf• a real sourdough• a short-ingredient artisan bread• a rye, sprouted or wholegrain alternative they directly lower the demand for industrial bread.

This is exactly how big food reforms happen. Quietly. Through consumer choices. Through awareness. Through education.

Families reshape the food system without needing permission from the food industry.

Where Juicy Snack Pack Pals Comes In

This is the heart of why I’m building Juicy Snack Pack Pals.

Children learn through storytelling.They learn through characters they trust.They learn through fun, colour and imagination.

Our books teach children where food comes from the ground, the soil, the garden, the allotment not factories. The project encourages parents and children to explore real food together and build healthy habits from a young age.

This isn’t just entertainment. It’s early-years prevention through education. When children understand food, they grow healthier. When parents understand the food system, they choose differently. When enough families make simple changes, the whole country benefits.

Your Support Helps Bring This Mission to Life

The full vision requires printing, design, school outreach, educational materials, and the first launch of our children’s healthy-eating book series.

That is why we have launched our £10,000 Crowdfunder — to produce the book professionally, create educational resources, and take this message into local schools where it’s needed most.

Every donation, large or small, helps children develop a healthier relationship with food and empowers families to push back against ultra-processed diets.

You can watch the full project video here on the page and support the campaign below.

👉 Donate here https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/qr/VlDo4R7y?utm_campaign=sharemodal&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=shortlink

👉 Share the project with a parent, carer, teacher or someone who cares about children’s health

A Better Food Future Starts With Us

Supermarkets won’t change because they feel guilty.They change when the public changes its buying habits.

By choosing cleaner bread by supporting local bakeries by teaching children where food really comes from by backing early-years education projects like JSPP

we help our children grow into healthier, stronger adults.

This is the generation that deserves better food — and it starts with the choices we make today.

Thank you for taking the time to read this blog. I hope it inspires real change for our children’s health and future.

Mish Mash Publications LTD