FSS Backs 'Bang in Some Beans' Campaign

Scotland Food Standards News

Published March 23rd, 2026

Detected March 26th, 2026

Summary

Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has announced its support for The Food Foundation's 'Bang in Some Beans' campaign, which encourages consumers to incorporate beans into their daily meals. The campaign aligns with FSS's Eat Well Your Way initiative, promoting simple, affordable, and nutritious dietary changes.

View original document View source feed page

What changed

Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has publicly endorsed the 'Bang in Some Beans' campaign, a public health initiative led by The Food Foundation. The campaign aims to encourage consumers to increase their intake of beans and pulses by adding them to everyday meals, highlighting the nutritional, environmental, and cost benefits. FSS's support signifies an alignment with its own 'Eat Well Your Way' initiative, which promotes sustainable dietary shifts.

While this is a supportive notice rather than a regulatory mandate, it signals FSS's focus on promoting healthier eating habits. The campaign also encourages industry participation, suggesting that restaurants, caterers, and retailers can play a role by offering more bean-based dishes. Compliance officers in the food sector may note this as a trend towards promoting plant-based proteins and healthier food options, which could influence future product development and marketing strategies.

Source document (simplified)

- News story

FSS supports the “Bang in Some Beans” campaign

The campaign, led by The Food Foundation in partnership with Veg Power, encourages people to add beans into everyday meals.

Date published: 23 March 2026

At Food Standards Scotland (FSS), we’re pleased to support The Food Foundation’s Bang in Some Beans campaign, which encourages people to add beans into everyday meals.

Laura Wilson, Head of Public Health Nutrition at FSS, highlights why this small shift matters:

“Incorporating beans into familiar dishes is an easy step that can make a meaningful difference to our overall diet. Beans offer valuable nutritional benefits and adding them to meals that are already family favourites is an easy win.

“For me, this means adding some tinned lentils into a lasagne or butter beans into soups."

The campaign aligns with a core principle of FSS’s Eat Well Your Way initiative which focuses on small changes that people can maintain in the long term. Beans, lentils and pulses can be added to meals people already enjoy, helping to boost fibre and protein while keeping things simple, affordable and satisfying. Using tinned beans makes it even more convenient, as they’re pre‑cooked, low cost and easy to keep on hand for quick meals.

Here are a few easy ways to try it at home:

Add kidney beans or black beans to chilli or tacos
Stir lentils or cannellini beans into casseroles and stews
Mix beans into pasta sauces for extra protein and fibre
Put chickpeas or mixed beans into salads or curries for a hearty boost Beans are a great choice for the planet too. They use fewer natural resources to grow than many other protein foods, so adding them to meals can help lower the environmental impact of our diets while keeping dishes tasty and budget friendly.

In addition to supporting consumers, the campaign also highlights the important role industry can play in making healthier choices easier. Restaurants, caterers and retailers can contribute by including more bean-based dishes on menus, reformulating existing meals to include beans, or clearly signposting options that feature beans. These steps help to normalise beans as an appealing everyday ingredient.

Bang in Some Beans for consumers Bang in Some Beans for Industry