Make healthy food more appealing, government tells supermarkets

Food businesses must make it easier for customers to buy healthy food, under new government plans announced on Sunday.

Supermarkets and food manufacturers in England will partner with the government to tackle obesity rates by encouraging people to make their weekly shop healthier.

Ministers say it will be up to food retailers to decide how they do that, but it could involve offering promotions on healthy food, tweaking loyalty points to incentivise healthy options, or changing shop layouts.

The shadow work and pensions secretary said it was not up to the government to tell people what to buy, describing the mandatory government targets as “nanny state”.

“They’ve had 14 years in opposition to think about what they wanted to do about the NHS,” MP Helen Whately told Sky News’ Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips, adding: “They’ve had a year in government, and the number one thing in it seems to be hide the crisps”.

“Telling people what to buy, I think, is not up to government. I believe in personal responsibility” she said.

The plans may also involve changing products to make them healthier.

It is hoped the strategy will help to make healthy eating more accessible to customers and relieve pressure on the NHS.

The policy will see major food retailers report on healthy food sales in a bid to increase accountability – and targets will be agreed in partnership with industry..

The plan is part of a raft of measures aimed at improving the health of the nation that will be included in the 10-year plan for the NHS in England, which is expected to be published next week.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the new strategy was “radically different” from the previous government’s “nanny stated approach of dictating to people the prices, the marketing” and instead “working with supermarkets” to encourage healthier eating.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme with host Victoria Derbyshire, Streeting added: “If we reduced our calorie intake by just fifty calories a day then we can get well over 300,000 children out of obesity, 2 million adults”.

The upcoming report will show that more than one in five children is living with obesity by the time they leave primary school, rising to almost one in three in the most deprived areas – costing the NHS £11bn a year.

A recent report found a basket of healthy food costs more than double that of less healthy options.

The Food Foundation reported that 1,000 calories of healthy food such as fruit and veg costs £8.80, compared to £4.30 for the equivalent amount of less healthy food, such as ready meals and processed meats.

Andrew Opie of the British Retail Consortium said the news is “really positive” but said “all food businesses” must work together to drive down obesity.

“Engaging all food businesses makes a difference,” Opie told the BBC.

“It can’t just be about supermarkets- we consume about a quarter of our calories outside the home, so unless we get all supermarkets, food retailers, and restaurants on board, we won’t move the dial on obesity.”

Opie said that he agreed with the government’s flexible approach on the standards, as businesses have “a lot of insights and data” into how we shop for food and what would be best for their customers.

Katharine Jenner, director of the Obesity Health Alliance said: “The government has rightly identified the root cause of obesity-related ill health: a food system that makes healthy eating difficult.”

She said it was encouraging to see the government putting the spotlight on businesses “rather than placing the burden on individuals who are already struggling to get by.”

Alongside the new partnership, the government said it would also:

• Offer shopping vouchers to customers in return for being active and eating healthily, via a new app
• Double the number of spaces on the NHS Digital Weight Management Programme, which supports obese individuals with either diabetes or high blood pressure
• Explore stricter rules on advertising alcohol to in line with current regulation on promoting junk food

It is hoped the new guidance will reduce people’s sugar and calorie intake overall.

The government cited research showing that cutting just 50 calories a day would lift 340,000 children and two million adults out of obesity.

If everyone who is overweight reduced their calorie intake by just 216 calories a day, which is equivalent to a single bottle of fizzy drink, obesity would be halved, researchers said.

This is not the first time the government has sought voluntary partnerships with industry. Over the last 20 years there has been numerous food reformulation programmes aimed at reducing salt, sugar and calories in certain foods.

Success has been mixed with a push to reduce sugar in certain foods by 20% between 2015 and 2020 falling well short.

Sarah Woolnough, from The King’s Fund think tank, said while welcome, the impact of the scheme may be limited.

“A lot of less healthy food and drink is purchased from local convenience shops and takeaways.

“The stark fact remains that unhealthy food is far cheaper and more readily available and so unless this change is part of a wider, comprehensive strategy it will not be enough.”

Additional reporting by Rachel Muller-Heyndyk