Walkers recently announced some major changes to its classic line-up, unveiling two brand new flavours.
But it seems these aren’t the only changes the crisp giant has been making.
Behind the scenes, Walkers has spent ‘years’ quietly altering some of its most iconic products, tweaking the recipes in order to make the products non-HFSS (high in fat, sugar, or salt).
Changes have been made to some of the brand’s key flavours, including Salt & Vinegar, as well as Prawn Cocktail, Smoky Bacon, Roast Chicken, BBQ and Pickled Onion.
No changes have been made to Ready Salted or Cheese & Onion as of yet.
Walkers, which is owned by PepsiCo, has reformulated the recipes and introduced ‘a different balance of flavours and seasonings’, as reported by The Grocer.
They add that the new recipes deliver ‘the same classic Walkers crisps people know and love, with lower salt’.
As a result of the recipe changes, the salt content across the classic range has been reduced by 47%.
According to PepsiCo, the recipes for Ready Salted and Cheese & Onion remain the same as they’ve always been, as the non-HFSS versions of these need ‘a little more work… to make sure they’re absolutely right’.
What are the HFSS rules?
The government has introduced restrictions on how and where products high in salt, fat or sugar can be advertised and displayed in a bid to crack down on obesity.
As of October 2022, retailers have to restrict the placement of HFSS products in high footfall areas of the store, such as at entrances, checkouts and at the end of aisles.
At the end of this year (October 2025), retailers will also have to reduce the availability of HFSS products in promotions like ‘buy one get one free’ offers.
There are also rules about HFSS products featuring in adverts on TV coming into force in October. These state that ads featuring HFSS products can only be shown after 9pm and this is applicable to on-demand programmes as well.
Paid-for advertising of unhealthy food and drink products online is also going to be prohibited.
In May 2025, Ashley Dalton, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention explained the upcoming changes in a statement, saying: ‘From 1 October 2025, and in line with Government’s policy intentions, we would expect adverts for specific identifiable less healthy products not to be shown on TV between 5:30am and 9pm or at any time online, and there will be legal clarification on “brand advertising” before the restrictions come into force legally on 5 January 2026, subject to Parliamentary approval.’
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