YOUSUF SAIFUDDIN KAPADIA (ABU DHABI)

The Department of Culture and Tourism - Abu Dhabi has issued Circular No. 7/2026 requiring hotel restaurants and eligible food and beverage outlets with valid tourism licences to provide a minimum number of healthy food options.

Under the new requirements, adult menus must include at least one healthy option in every menu category, such as main courses, appetisers, sides and desserts.

These items must meet the approved SEHHI nutritional standards developed by the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, which identify foods that are lower in fat, sugar and salt and higher in nutritional value.

Children's menus face a stricter requirement, with at least 50 percent of all listed items required to qualify as healthy under the SEHHI criteria.

Hotels may adapt healthy adult dishes into smaller, child-appropriate portions where suitable. Healthy dishes must be clearly identified on menus using the approved SEHHI logo.

The policy applies to hotel-operated and independent food and beverage outlets holding a tourism licence, with exemptions for certain service models. These include buffets and other venues without a specific menu, tasting menus with predetermined selections, and certain niche outlets offering no more than three food categories, no seating and no written menu beyond signage or display boards.

Beverage-only outlets are also excluded.

Establishments may be required to submit menus, recipes and nutritional information for compliance checks.

Restaurants already working with the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre to verify healthy menu items will be considered compliant during the verification process if they demonstrate progress.

Restaurants must also maintain the required number of healthy options whenever menus are updated. Any changes to previously approved healthy dishes must be resubmitted for validation.

The circular states that failure to comply may result in administrative penalties under applicable regulations and resolutions.

The new rule is effective from July 1, 2026, with a three‑month implementation grace period shall apply.

During this period, hotel and tourism establishments will be afforded sufficient time to adapt and implement the requirements set out in the circular without being subject to administrative penalties.

Full compliance and enforcement shall apply from October 1, 2026.

The policy is intended to expand access to healthier food choices across Abu Dhabi's hotel and tourism sector while supporting public health and sustainable tourism practices.

ADPHC recently expanded the SEHHI programme to enhance access to healthy food options in Abu Dhabi, with new technical guidelines to promote better nutrition habits in workplace environments.

This expansion reflects a practical shift toward embedding preventive health into everyday life, by intervening in the environments where people spend most of their time and transforming them into settings that enable healthier decisions to be made easily, without requiring additional effort.

The guideline outlines a set of standards, most notably the display of calorie information at food touchpoints, while ensuring that a minimum of 30 per cent of menu items meet SEHHI nutritional criteria.

It also covers the organisation of healthy meals, snacks, beverages, and vending machine offerings, in a way that enhances the visibility and accessibility of healthier choices.

Meanwhile, Healthy Living, in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Registration Authority (ADRA), the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) arm, launched a new policy redesigning in-store layouts and online interfaces of supermarkets across Abu Dhabi.

The initiative will ensure that high-fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS) food and beverage (F&B) products are no longer positioned in the highest-traffic, highest-visibility locations consumers encounter across the emirate.

The new policy will be mandatory for compliance from 1 January 2027.

It regulates the placement and promotion of HFSS F&B within physical and online supermarket retail environments without restricting their sale.

The recent rise in healthy, nutritious food policies across various sector and segments of socitety is an extension of the an annoucement made in 2025, with the Abu Dhabi’s Healthy Living Strategy to strengthen community health and wellbeing.

The strategy, developed under the guidance of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, consisted of a unique cross-sectoral approach to support citizens and residents in the emirate to live longer, healthier, and more fulfilling lives.

Placing prevention and wellbeing at the heart of society, Abu Dhabi’s Healthy Living Strategy seeks to address the challenge of non-communicable diseases, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

It represents a multi-year commitment to unite government, the private sector, communities, and individuals in building a healthier Abu Dhabi.

In the initial phase, the strategy will focus on three pillars: increasing physical activity, improving diet and nutrition, and strengthening awareness and knowledge, alongside other critical factors including sleep and mental wellbeing as key drivers of health.

These priorities will be advanced through enhanced infrastructure, supportive policies and regulations, programmes, and prompts that make healthier choices easier in daily life.