>>our commitment to health is holistic - Martin Paterson, Deputy Director General, food and drink federation
The Grocer’s focus on the need for clarity and dialogue strikes a chord, with the entire food chain and advertising industries united in delivering positive commitments on food and health.
The food industry has always played a central role in public health. I’m from a generation born in the decade after the war, when the effects of malnutrition were still evident. The innovation and energy which saw the development of what is now the largest manufacturing sector in our economy played a huge role in improving the quality of the food supply at prices ordinary families could afford. This was in part responsible for an unprecedented improvement in the health of the nation.
It seems that some contributors to the current food and health debate imagine that in the UK we have a nationalised food sector, where governments can announce “five-year plans” and industry instantly changes tack to accommodate them. The truth is that we work in a highly competitive market place which is highly regulated to ensure that the products we buy every day are safe and are honestly marketed. We have a vigorous consumer movement and a hugely successful media who delight in bringing any transgression to light.
So in approaching the issue of obesity, and in attempting to clarify its own role, the UK food and drink industry has taken a holistic view. This is important, because solutions will not be found by focusing only on one aspect, such as nutrition and diet.
Clearly, obesity is a complex function of a relatively simple equation - the wrong balance between calories consumed and calories expended. Acknowledging the impact of diet, genetics, psychological and emotional factors and the metabolism of each individual is also critical.
The most effective way of tackling this important public health problem must be to help consumers to make informed choices.
Here the food industry can be of real help. Our success stems from understanding consumers and communicating with tens of millions of them daily. FDF’s recently published Food and Health Manifesto set out our industry’s commitment to working constructively with consumers, government and others to help find solutions to these complex issues.
The principal elements of this package include: clearer information on packaging;
an industry-wide commitment to gradually reduce the proportions of salt, sugar and fats in many products and to offer wider choice; tighter codes of practice on advertising to children and providing more choice in vending machines in schools, as well as removing branding where requested. We have already pretty much removed vending machines from primary schools.
We have also proposed two further initiatives. The first is to offer our products and their packaging as a conduit to a government-led but joint, multimedia consumer information programme. Between us the companies in the food chain probably connect pretty directly with just about every person in the country. We can take and amplify government information to a degree never before achieved.
Secondly, as employers and providers of
services, manufacturers have an enormous opportunity to promote balanced lifestyle within our own businesses. Many of the three million-plus people we employ, along with their families and friends, are already engaged in health and wellbeing programmes designed to combat obesity.
I think most individuals in Britain do not want to live in a society where the state tries to dictate what we should eat or how we should live. I don’t think government wants that. Ministers are searching for the solution but I don’t think that there are any quick and easy answers. Industry has moved beyond rhetoric to practicable, workable contributions set down in black and white. We look forward to the forthcoming White Paper reflecting this and engaging the substantial resources the food chain has offered to this cause.
The Grocer’s focus on the need for clarity and dialogue strikes a chord, with the entire food chain and advertising industries united in delivering positive commitments on food and health.
The food industry has always played a central role in public health. I’m from a generation born in the decade after the war, when the effects of malnutrition were still evident. The innovation and energy which saw the development of what is now the largest manufacturing sector in our economy played a huge role in improving the quality of the food supply at prices ordinary families could afford. This was in part responsible for an unprecedented improvement in the health of the nation.
It seems that some contributors to the current food and health debate imagine that in the UK we have a nationalised food sector, where governments can announce “five-year plans” and industry instantly changes tack to accommodate them. The truth is that we work in a highly competitive market place which is highly regulated to ensure that the products we buy every day are safe and are honestly marketed. We have a vigorous consumer movement and a hugely successful media who delight in bringing any transgression to light.
So in approaching the issue of obesity, and in attempting to clarify its own role, the UK food and drink industry has taken a holistic view. This is important, because solutions will not be found by focusing only on one aspect, such as nutrition and diet.
Clearly, obesity is a complex function of a relatively simple equation - the wrong balance between calories consumed and calories expended. Acknowledging the impact of diet, genetics, psychological and emotional factors and the metabolism of each individual is also critical.
The most effective way of tackling this important public health problem must be to help consumers to make informed choices.
Here the food industry can be of real help. Our success stems from understanding consumers and communicating with tens of millions of them daily. FDF’s recently published Food and Health Manifesto set out our industry’s commitment to working constructively with consumers, government and others to help find solutions to these complex issues.
The principal elements of this package include: clearer information on packaging;
an industry-wide commitment to gradually reduce the proportions of salt, sugar and fats in many products and to offer wider choice; tighter codes of practice on advertising to children and providing more choice in vending machines in schools, as well as removing branding where requested. We have already pretty much removed vending machines from primary schools.
We have also proposed two further initiatives. The first is to offer our products and their packaging as a conduit to a government-led but joint, multimedia consumer information programme. Between us the companies in the food chain probably connect pretty directly with just about every person in the country. We can take and amplify government information to a degree never before achieved.
Secondly, as employers and providers of
services, manufacturers have an enormous opportunity to promote balanced lifestyle within our own businesses. Many of the three million-plus people we employ, along with their families and friends, are already engaged in health and wellbeing programmes designed to combat obesity.
I think most individuals in Britain do not want to live in a society where the state tries to dictate what we should eat or how we should live. I don’t think government wants that. Ministers are searching for the solution but I don’t think that there are any quick and easy answers. Industry has moved beyond rhetoric to practicable, workable contributions set down in black and white. We look forward to the forthcoming White Paper reflecting this and engaging the substantial resources the food chain has offered to this cause.
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