Marks and Spencer Food has launched a new Nutrient Dense range designed to help people consume the right balance of fibre, vitamins and minerals, even when eating smaller portions.
The new range includes 20 salads, snacks and meals developed by M&S chefs and nutritionists to support people whose appetites may be reduced due to age, lifestyle changes or weight loss medication.
According to the UK Government’s National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2025, 96 percent of people in the UK are not meeting the recommended daily intake of 30g of fibre, while many are also deficient in essential micronutrients.
Each product in the Nutrient Dense range contains at least one of ten key micronutrients commonly lacking in diets, including vitamin D, iron, folate and vitamin B12.
The range has been developed using a Nutrient Dense nutrition criteria created in consultation with the British Nutrition Foundation, ensuring nutrients are prioritised relative to calorie content.
M&S says the meals are calorie controlled, clearly signposted with fibre content on pack and carry the Eat Well flower logo to make healthy choices easier for customers.
The retailer says the range is particularly suited to people focused on improving their health, managing weight loss or adjusting to smaller appetites, where nutritional gaps can emerge despite lower calorie intake.
Nutrient dense foods provide a higher concentration of vitamins, minerals, fibre, protein and healthy fats for their calorie content, helping people get more nutritional value from every mouthful.
Research carried out by M&S shows customers most often associate healthy eating with breakfast and midweek meals at home, with 79 percent saying health is an important factor when doing a main grocery shop.
The range includes products such as Super Seeded Oaty Bread, which contains 13g of fibre across two slices, helping customers reach the recommended daily intake more easily.
The Nutrient Dense H₅O shot features coconut water blended with fruit and vegetable fibres, ginger juice, sea moss and five botanicals selected and verified by scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
It contains 4g of fibre from baobab and Jerusalem artichoke and is high in iodine due to the inclusion of sea moss.
Grace Ricotti, Head of Food Nutrition at Marks and Spencer, said:
“Our Nutrient Dense range is perfect for customers looking to support their health as each recipe is packed with the key nutrients we all need in our diets.
“With the increase in popularity of weight-loss injections, a reduced appetite can mean missing out on important nutrients and that’s why nutrient density is so important.
“These new meals, snacks and drinks can help everyone get more fibre, vitamins and mineral in their diet.
“We challenged ourselves to make products that are denser in nutrients than calories, so every single mouthful is packed full of more of the good stuff we all need.”
She added:
“The importance of us all eating enough fibre cannot be overestimated.
“As well as helping day to day with effective digestion, long term it is important to reduce the risk of bowel cancer and so many other diseases.”
The Nutrient Dense range will be available in M&S Foodhalls from 5 January 2026.
