Tesco has partnered with a raft of retailers and suppliers to call on the government to take “meaningful” action to cut childhood obesity, after a series of backtracks on public health commitments.
According to The Grocer, the Big 4 grocer has called for a limit of marketing exposure of young children to HFSS products, as well as, bringing in mandatory labelling in stores to support healthier alternatives.
It has also called for new clear and achievable goals for reformulation.
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The call comes in the form of a joint statement from the Bite Back 2030 Food Systems Accelerator programme, which has been backed by brands including, Costa Coffee, Deliveroo, Danone, Innocent Drinks and Chartwells.
Other brands include fast-food chain KFC and restaurant chain Jamie Oliver Ltd.
The youth-led movement working to improve child health in the UK, claims the government backtrack is a “bitter blow” for young people who were “growing up in a world flooded with fast food”.
“To truly transform the food system into one that is healthier for everyone, we know our industry needs to go further,” the statement said.
“To do that, we need a level playing field where all businesses are working to the same goals, supported by policies that incentivise changes that will improve health while remaining fair for consumers and businesses.
“The government should involve businesses, health stakeholders and the young people who are affected most by the current food system to develop and implement evidence-based policies.”
This comes as ministers paused for a crackdown on junk food advertising until after the next general election, as well as delayed plans for restrictions on multi-buy promotions.
Just last week government statistics revealed 9.9% of children in reception were living with obesity in England, a figure as high as 13.9% in poorer areas
Among children in year six in England, the average figure was 21.6%, and over 30% in the most deprived areas.
“Our businesses are united by a joint ambition to overcome these challenges and play our role in positively influencing the health of young people,” the statement added.
“We have met with Bite Back’s youth board members and are now setting a range of change goals in key aspects of our businesses to drive improvements in the health and wellbeing of young people.
“We are committed to implementing these changes throughout 2023 and beyond, evaluating them, and rolling out successful initiatives across our businesses wherever possible.”
