Domino’s pledges to cut calories of its food after creme egg cookie backlash

Domino’s has vowed to cut the calorie content of its products just weeks after a former health minister criticised the fast food chain for selling a Creme Egg cookie.

The pizza chain, which has more than 1,300 outlets across the UK, has unveiled plans to reduce salt, fat and sugar levels across its menu as it seeks to ease public health concerns.

It comes after Lord Bethell said Domino’s bosses should be “ashamed of themselves” for introducing a cookie containing a whole Cadbury Creme Egg, each of which has 370 calories.

He said: “This is disgusting. A whole Cadbury cream egg in a Domino’s cookie.

“These are serious corporate food companies. What are they thinking?

Domino’s responded by saying the cookies were in line with similar items available on the high street.

It has recently introduced new products such as smaller 600-calorie pizzas and wraps under 450 calories. It has also launched numerous plant-based dishes to attract vegan customers.

In a recent report, Domino’s said: “We are serious about our role in helping customers manage their nutritional intake and maintain a balanced diet with less sugar, fat and salt, as well as fewer calories.”

It comes as big food and drink companies are coming under increasing pressure to make products healthier amid concerns around obesity.

Last month Nestlé, which owns the Kit Kat and Aero brands, was effectively told to sell fewer chocolate bars by a coalition of investors, including Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM).

LGIM, along with other shareholders and the campaign group ShareAction, filed a resolution ahead of Nestlé’s annual general meeting in April calling on the board to set new targets for sales of healthier products.

However, the roll-out of healthier products has not always gone to plan for food and drink businesses.

For example, a “Simple” version of Nestlé’s Shreddies cereal that contained just four ingredients was ditched in 2022 after just one year on the market.

Cadbury, meanwhile, scrapped a reduced sugar version of Dairy Milk in 2023 due to a lack of demand.

Many of Domino’s’ pizzas are highly calorific, with some large pizzas containing more than 2,000 calories.

A large Cheeseburger pizza, for instance, contains 2,363 calories, while a large Mighty Meaty pizza has 2,472 – almost topping an adult man’s recommended daily intake of 2,500 calories.

As well as making its dishes healthier, Domino’s said it plans to improve its environmental credentials by installing heat pumps in its stores and using more electric vehicles.