ZOE's 'just real food' ad — the supplement that was ultra-processed after all

On 19 September 2024 a paid-for Facebook ad for ZOE's Daily30+ supplement claimed the product was a 'plant-based wholefood supplement' and, with a quote attributed to entrepreneur Steven Bartlett, declared 'This is a supplement revolution. No ultra-processed pills, no shakes, just real food.' The ad listed the ingredients with a poo emoji, including chicory root inulin.

The ASA originally ruled the claims misleading on 21 May 2025 under CAP Code rule 3.1: 'wholefood' and 'just real food' conveyed that the product contained only wholefoods or domestic-kitchen ingredients. In fact chicory root inulin was 'an isolated fibre obtained via multiple processing steps', including partial enzymatic hydrolysis, and nutritional yeast flakes were a 'deactivated, processed ingredient rather than a recognisable wholefood'. ZOE challenged through ASBOF, whose external assessment identified flaws in the original decision.

On 11 March 2026 the ASA upheld the original decision, publishing a new ruling that replaced it. The regulator acknowledged the ingredients were nutritious, present in small amounts and processed by common industry methods, but said that 'did not alter the impression created by the ad'. Founder Tim Spector called the outcome a 'profound failure of logic' and a 'disgraceful misuse of regulatory power', arguing the ASA was equating healthy fibre with junk food.