Junk food to shrink as part of Government obesity crackdown
3 min read
Shops and restaurants will be forced to shrink their products unless they can find another way to meet government guidelines to reduce obesity, a senior health official has said.
Ministers are pressing ahead with plans to curb the calorie content of pizzas, ready meals, crisps and burgers, with evidence in defence of the policy set to be released in early 2018.
A consultation with the food industry, trade bodies and health non-governmental organisations will then get underway to help draw up the calorie reduction programme.
Ministers say retailers and manufacturers have already begun steps to cut back on sugar, ahead of a programme aiming to slash its content by 20% in key foods by 2020.
In an interview with the Telegraph, Dr Alison Tedstone, the chief nutritionist at Public Health England (PHE), said while some foods could use smaller amounts of their ingredients to meet targets, for others reducing their size would be necessary.
“With pizzas it’s partly finding ways to reduce the calorie content – less oil, fat, cheese, meat and so on – and it’s also about reducing the size,” she said.
“Manufacturers can also choose to withdraw products, but one of the key things will be that they will need to bring down the calorie content of their big sellers.”
Dr Tedstone said foods were getting “bigger and bigger” and that plans to bring portions down to size were the most radical in the world.
“This is a big deal,” she said. “We are the first country in the world to embark on a plan like this, and we were the first in the world to introduce sugar targets.”
The move follows the introduction of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy, dubbed the ‘sugar tax’, which comes into effect in April of next year.
The Government says while sugar reformulation marks a “vital first step” under the programme, over-consumption of calories will continue to have a “detrimental effect” on children unless tackled.
PHE figures reveal one in three children are either overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school, with those from disadvantaged backgrounds most likely to be affected.
Meanwhile the number of children in the UK being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes is on the rise.
Philip Dunne, Minister of State for Health, said: “Too many of our children are growing up obese, which can lead to serious health complications.
“We all have a responsibility to help people live healthier lives, but with a third of children leaving primary school obese we must take a comprehensive approach and now focus on excess calories.”
The British Association for Applied Nutrition and Nutritional Therapy (BANT) welcomed the consultation, but called for further action on dietary guidelines.
“Reducing the size of pizzas may seem like an honourable move, but what is to stop an individual buying 2 smaller ones?” said BANT chair Miguel Toribio-Mateas.
“The main issue that BANT has been highlighting for years is the fact that population-based dietary guidelines such as the Eatwell Guide are inherently flawed on a number of bases.”
The progress in the childhood obesity programme comes as ministers unveiled plans to open a new £5m Obesity Research Policy Unit at University College London.
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