MEC's Sugar Accumulator Wins D&AD pencil

Leading media agency MEC has won a D&AD pencil for its groundbreaking public awareness campaign encouraging people to reduce their sugar intake.

As part of MEC's work with Public Health England, the agency created the Sugar Accumulator, a tool that uses a traffic light system to tell people how much sugar is in the food they are buying when shopping online.

People were consuming up to 175 cubes of sugar a week, but when MEC partnered with MySupermarket.co.uk to host the tool it had a dramatic impact on people. Shoppers were able to actively track the overall amount of sugar building up in their online baskets though their food choices.

In the first month alone MySupermarket.co.uk recorded 1.2 million shoppers engaging with the sugar accumulator and has kept the tool on the site as a result. This means it continues to gather data that will better inform Public Health England's future campaigns. 

Verra Budimlija, Chief Strategy Officer at MEC, said: “We are absolutely thrilled that we have been awarded a D&AD in recognition of our innovative Sugar Accumulator.

“We knew that people wanted to cut down their sugar intake but struggled with keeping tabs on their diet because the sugar content in food is often hidden. Our tool means people can now monitor the amount of sugar in their shopping in real time, and be offered healthier alternatives in a quick and easy way. We're so glad this has made a difference.” 

The creative idea was devised by Laura Robinson Senior Creative, MEC and the tool was built by the MySupermarket.co.uk team.