The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned an ad for meal replacement shakes by Huel after it was deemed irresponsible for suggesting that consuming only Huel could be nutritionally appropriate and compatible with elite physical performance. The controversial ad featured Spencer Matthews, a brand ambassador, sharing an anecdote about meeting an ultramarathon runner who exclusively ate Huel and won the race. Despite Huel’s claim that the ad did not recommend replacing all conventional food entirely, the ASA ruled that viewers could interpret it as endorsing such practices. Four complaints were filed against the ad, leading to its ban for potentially misleading dietary advice.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-30,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) banned an ad by Huel, a meal replacement brand, for suggesting that its products could replace all conventional food. The ad featured Spencer Matthews sharing an anecdote about meeting an ultramarathon runner who only eats Huel and won a race "by miles." ASA ruled this implied that replacing meals entirely with Huel was nutritionally sound and suitable for high-level athletic performance, which it deemed irresponsible.
The original ad appeared as sponsored content on Instagram and YouTube. Matthews' skepticism about the diet's viability contrasted sharply with the runner’s success story. However, experts have raised concerns over the nutritional completeness of such diets. Huel responded by stating that the ad did not recommend a fully Huel-based diet but aimed to dispel misconceptions.
In response to the ASA ruling, Huel founder Julian Hearn clarified: "in an ideal world you should have nutritionally complete whole food" and added that if one could do this for every meal, it would be optimal. However, he acknowledged that most people can't manage such a diet due to time constraints or other factors, hence the relevance of Huel's products as dietary supplements.
Written for “Huel Advert Bannings” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.
- Published
An advert for Huel meal replacement shakes has been banned by the advertising watchdog for encouraging or condoning "irresponsible" dietary practices.
asserted
advert → publish → practices
The ad featured Huel brand ambassador Spencer Matthews sharing an anecdote of a person he met who "only eats Huel" and who won a 260km race "by miles".
asserted
who → feature → miles
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said that viewers could assume from the ad that replacing all conventional food with Huel was "nutritionally appropriate" and was compatible with elite physical performance.
uncertain
replacing → say → performance
Huel said Matthews' anecdote was not "a recommendation or instruction" and the purpose of the ad was to challenge the misconception that Huel could replace every meal".
uncertain
Huel → say → meal
The video, which appeared as a sponsored Instagram post and YouTube pre-roll ad, featured Matthews speaking to Huel founder Julian Hearn in the style of a podcast.
asserted
Matthews → appear → podcast
The Instagram post included the caption: "Here's how our founder uses Huel.
asserted
founder → include → Huel
In the video Hearn said that he has Huel products for breakfast and lunch during the working week, but has a "traditional meal" when he goes home.
asserted
he → say → meal
In response, Matthews said that when he was competing in an ultramarathon, he met a man who "only eats Huel".
asserted
who → say → Huel
Matthews said he was initially sceptical that the man would be able to manage the race, but then said: "He won it by miles, like literally just left us all in the dirt."
asserted
He → say → dirt
Hearn replied: "In an ideal world, you should have nutritionally complete whole food.
asserted
you → reply → food
"Most people either don't do that or can't have the time to do that, and therefore that's where Huel fits in the gap."
asserted
Huel → have → gap
Huel, which is based in Hertfordshire, was founded by Hearn in 2015.
asserted
which → base → 2015
It is currently in the process of being bought by French conglomerate Danone.
asserted
It → buy → Danone
The market for so-called complete nutrition products, aimed at time-poor, health-conscious consumers, is thought to be worth $5.9bn (£4.4bn).
asserted
market → call → consumers
The ASA received four complaints about the advert, which challenged whether the content was irresponsible.
asserted
content → receive → advert
Two of the complainants also challenged whether the health claims in the ad breached the ASA's advertising code.
uncertain
claims → challenge → code
The ASA acknowledged in its ruling that the ad "did not explicitly recommend that consumers replace all conventional foods with Huel", but consumers could nonetheless interpret the anecdote as "an acceptable dietary practice".
uncertain
consumers → acknowledge → practice
"By presenting exclusive consumption of Huel in that context, the ads suggested that the complete replacement of conventional food with Huel was nutritionally appropriate and presented no barrier to achieving a high level of physical performance," the ruling said.
uncertain
ruling → present → performance
The ASA also upheld the complaint regarding the health claims as it ruled Matthews' anecdote about the ultramarathon athlete "implied a beneficial relationship between consuming Huel and the ability to sustain exceptionally high levels of physical and endurance performance".
uncertain
anecdote → uphold → performance
In its response to the complaints, Huel said the advert "unambiguously positioned Huel as part of a balanced diet for occasions when preparing whole food was not practicable".
asserted
preparing → say → food
The company pointed to Matthews reacting with "extreme scepticism and disbelief" to the idea of a person solely consuming Huel.
asserted
person → point → Huel
"The anecdote was recounted as a remarkable and unexpected occurrence, not as a representative outcome or a recommendation or instruction to consumers to replicate.
asserted
anecdote → recount → consumers
At no point in the ads did either speaker suggest that consumers should adopt a 100% Huel diet."
It is not the first time that Huel has landed in hot water with the ASA over the use of its products as a replacement for conventional food.
Additionally, some experts have questioned the effectiveness of replacing meals with nutritionally rich drinks.
asserted
experts → suggest → drinks
Huel told BBC News that it had complied with the ASA ruling.
asserted
it → tell → ruling
"We do not position Huel as a complete diet replacement or claim that it improves athletic performance," a spokesperson said.
uncertain
spokesperson → position → performance
The Aporia
