Are the new HFSS (High fat, salt, and sugar) rules taking a bite out of Christmas ads? New data from DAIVID suggests so, with this year’s festive campaigns 24% less likely to make festive shoppers’ mouths water than in 2024 – a clear sign the new restrictions on advertising less healthy food and drink products are reshaping the emotional recipe of the nation’s favourite seasonal storytelling.

Yet despite early fears that the regulations would blunt the emotional impact of Christmas advertising, DAIVID’s analysis paints a different picture. This year’s ads actually elicited slightly stronger positive emotions and higher attention levels than those released in 2024 – suggesting brands have successfully adapted their Christmas playbooks.

Using its AI-powered creative testing platform, DAIVID analysed this year’s crop of Christmas ads to predict how audiences would feel when watching them. The results reveal a significant drop in the emotion of craving from last Xmas, as brands steered clear of showing fatty festive foods and sugary spreads under the new rules. 

Introduced on a voluntary basis in October and set to become compulsory in January, the HFSS (high fat, salt, or sugar) restrictions prohibit ads for less healthy food (LHF) products from being shown before 9pm.

Other findings from the study include: 

• This year’s Christmas ads are 4% more effective overall than last year’s festive crop of ads, with 2025’s Xmas campaigns more likely to generate higher attention and more intense positive emotions; 
• Emotionally, the season skewed warmer and more heartfelt. This year’s campaigns were more likely to evoke romance (+10%), adoration (+6%) and joy (+4%). They were also more likely to generate warmth (+2%), make people laugh (+2%) and were more successful at making viewers look back, with intense nostalgic feelings up 3% compared to 2024;
• While overall festive cravings were down, some ads did manage to make people’s mouths water.  Some examples include Good Housekeeping’s singing gingerbread characters, which was 174% more likely to generate festive cravings than the average ad, and the BFG’s gigantic appetite for Sainsbury’s (+124% v norm).

Ian Forrester, CEO and founder at DAIVID, said: "Unsurprisingly, with fewer lingering shots of fatty festive foods and seasonal spreads, replaced by less enticing views of Brussels sprouts and olives, this year’s Xmas ads were less likely to make viewers’ mouths water. 

"But, while many were quick to portray the new HFSS rules as the Grinch that would steal the magic of Christmas ads, our data doesn’t back that up. In fact, the first HFSS Christmas shows that brands are finding new emotional routes to win hearts and minds – ranging from strong feelings of nostalgia and romance to creating a connection through humour and joy."