Food manufacturers should be given taxpayer help to research how to re-formulate unhealthy foods to help tackle Britain’s obesity crisis, a new report has said.
The non-profit think tank Demos also said ministers must consider subsidising healthy foods to help tackle food market flaws, which it says leave 20 million people unable to afford healthy food.
The government unveiled a new obesity strategy last month as evidence shows those who are overweight have a greater risk of becoming severely ill or dying from coronavirus.
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In its report, Demos said the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) should launch a challenge fund for researchers and universities to help the food industry research new ways to produce food such as crisps with less saturated fat and salt.
It said the fund should be paid for using money raised from the sugar levy, the soft drinks industry levy, and a new levy on harmful processed meats, which are linked to stomach cancer.
A survey of 1,000 Britons found the public are in favour of a more interventionist approach, with 71 per cent backing subsidies for healthier foods and almost half supporting high taxes on unhealthy food.
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People cycle through Cambridge as the heatwave continues in Britain
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1/50 9 August 2020
People cycle through Cambridge as the heatwave continues in Britain
EPA
2/50 8 August 2020
Healthcare workers take part in a protest in London over pay conditions in the NHS
Getty
3/50 7 August 2020
Emergency services make their way along the seafront on Bournemouth beach in Dorset on one of the hottest days of the year
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4/50 6 August 2020
Alison Murphy poses for a picture by husband Peter as she walks through a field of sunflowers in Altrincham, Cheshire
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5/50 5 August 2020
Pakistan’s Abid Ali being bowled by England’s Jofra Archer during day one of the First Test match at the Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester
PA
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Lewis Hamilton drives with a puncture towards the finish line to win the Formula One British Grand Prix at Silverstone
POOL/AFP via Getty
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Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang celebrates with the trophy and teammates after winning the FA Cup, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease
Pool via Reuters
10/50 31 July 2020
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PA
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PA
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Getty/ECB
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Getty
15/50 26 July 2020
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Pool via Reuters
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PA
23/50 18 July 2020
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24/50 17 July 2020
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The Daily Telegraph/PA
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PA
27/50 14 July 2020
Fields of echium and borage in full flower near the town of Thaxted in Essex
PA
28/50 13 July 2020
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Getty
29/50 12 July 2020
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Reuters
30/50 11 July 2020
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Reuters
31/50 10 July 2020
People gather for the funeral of Dame Vera Lynn in Ditchling, England. During World War II she travelled to the frontlines, including Burma, entertaining British troops and boosting morale. She died on 18 June at her home in West Sussex
Getty
32/50 9 July 2020
Artist Anish Kapoor looks into his sculpture ‘Sky Mirror’ at Houghton Hall, King’s Lynn, ahead of the opening of his largest UK exhibition of outdoor sculptures
PA
33/50 8 July 2020
Players take a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement on the first day of the first Test cricket match between England and the West Indies at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton
AFP via Getty
34/50 7 July 2020
A circus performer from the Association of Circus Proprietors in Whitehall, London. The association handed a petition to Downing Street to ask Prime Minister Boris Johnson to allow circuses to reopen
EPA
35/50 6 July 2020
Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland, which re-opened to the public after being closed due to the coronavirus lockdown
PA
36/50 5 July 2020
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market, London, as it reopens following the easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions across England
PA
37/50 4 July 2020
A member of bar staff wearing PPE in the form of a face mask, pours drinks inside the The Goldengrove in Stratford
AFP via Getty
38/50 3 July 2020
Cardboard cutouts of fans in the stands prior to the League One play-off semi final match between Portsmouth and Oxford United at Fratton Park
PA
39/50 2 July 2020
A diver cleans the inside window of the seal tank at Tynemouth Aquarium in North Shields, as it prepares to open on Saturday after further coronavirus lockdown restrictions are lifted in England
PA
40/50 1 July 2020
Slackliner Sandor Nagy practices on the beach in Boscombe, on the south coast of England
AFP via Getty
41/50 30 June 2020
(left to right) Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald, former Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, and Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill attending the funeral of senior Irish Republican and former leading IRA figure Bobby Storey in west Belfast
PA
42/50 29 June 2020
Former Team GB Rhythmic Gymnastic dancer Hannah Martin during a training session at Ouse Valley Viaduct in Sussex
Reuters
43/50 28 June 2020
People visit Bolton Abbey in Yorkshire, that recently reopened following the easing of coronavirus lockdown restriction
PA
44/50 27 June 2020
A protest for Justice for Shukri Abdi on Trafalgar Square in London, following a raft of Black Lives Matter protests across the UK
PA
45/50 26 June 2020
Police at the scene of an incident at the Park Inn Hotel in central Glasgow. Scottish police said armed officers shot dead a man after a suspected stabbing in the city centre left six others injured, including one of their colleagues. Several roads were closed and the surrounding area was cordoned off
AFP via Getty
46/50 25 June 2020
A horse is washed down at Haydock Racecourse
PA
47/50 24 June 2020
People enjoy the hot weather on Margate beach
Reuters
48/50 23 June 2020
Tony Bennett the owner of The Devereux pub in Temple, London. Pub and hospitality bosses have cheered the Government’s proposals to allow customers through their doors again on July 4 as “a welcome relief”. PA Photo. Picture date: Tuesday June 23, 2020. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that pubs, restaurants and cinemas will be able to reopen from July 4, with “one metre-plus” distancing measures in place
PA
49/50 22 June 2020
Police forensics officers carry out a search near Forbury Gardens, in Reading town centre, the scene of a multiple stabbing attack which took place at around 7pm on Saturday, leaving three people dead and another three seriously injured
PA
50/50 21 June 2020
Soccer Football – Premier League – Everton v Liverpool – Goodison Park, Liverpool, Britain – June 21, 2020 Children play football outside the stadium before the match, as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)
Action Images via Reuters
Prime minister Boris Johnson is a long-standing opponent of ‘sin taxes’ on consumers, but after he became ill with coronavirus has aimed to do more to tackle the obesity crisis.
The UK is one of the fattest countries in Europe, with one in 10 children obese by the time they start primary school. Most adults are consuming between 200 and 300 more calories a day than is recommended
Rose Lasko-Skinner, researcher at Demos and author of the new report, said: “Boris Johnson’s strategy to crackdown on obesity is a welcome step in the right direction. But it doesn’t go far enough in tackling root causes of obesity — many of which lie in our food sector, rather than with retailers.
“Our research shows there is an opportunity for the government to be even bolder, and pioneers for a new era of food innovation.
“By stimulating ground-breaking innovation in the food sector, the government could make food healthier, more affordable and provide better choices for consumers.”
Former health secretary Lord Lansley backed the report and said efforts to reduce salt and trans-fats, as well as the sugar levy, had made some progress but he added: “The overall impact has been insufficient and the polarisation of debate between those who see this as an issue of liberty and those who want to bring in the ‘Ban on Unhealthy Foods Act’ has too often hindered worthwhile progress.”
He said the Demos report showed a route for the government to take action in ways supported by public opinion.
In the report, Turning the Tables, Demos said it had estimated around 19 million people cannot find healthy foods in shops near to where they live. According to its survey, the main drivers of people choosing unhealthy food include taste, cost and ease.
A majority of people, almost 60 per cent, would back a requirement on all grocery shops to stock healthy foods. Just under half, 45 per cent, of people would support standardised packaging on unhealthy foods similar to cigarette packaging.
The report also recommends ministers back more research on lab-grown meat and meat alternatives as well as subsidising foods that are already low in price, such as tins of tomatoes, carrots and frozen vegetables to make healthy options much cheaper.
It also calls for more support by local councils and government to help fast food outlets switch to healthier options rather than seeking to close them outright.
The government’s recent strategy suggested a bank on advertising junk food on TV and online before 9pm and restricting two for one style deals. It also aims to introduce calorie labelling in large restaurants.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We recently launched a world-leading obesity strategy to make the healthy choice the easy choice for families and help reduce obesity rates. It builds on existing progress, including the voluntary sugar reduction programme and wider reformulation programme with industry which resulted in a 2.9 per cent reduction in average sugar across retail products in its first two years.”