New Obesity strategy launched today - significant impacts for food, retail and hospitality:

Today the Government has launched its new/ updated obesity strategy. Much of which is focussed on the food sector whether by proposing to ban certain types of promotions and some really is the reproduction of measures widely reported and previously consulted on.

While it is encouraging that the government is launching measures aimed at changing the public's behaviour, it is telling that this is just one of the seven measures announced and five of the remaining ones focus on changing either labelling of certain foods, banning advertising or promotional activity.

It is clear that we have a substantial issue with obesity and the levels of inactivty in this country are astounding. COVID-19 lockdowns will not have helped with this. While the food and retail sectors have a role to play, we as citizens also have a substnatial role to play in looking after our own health, and in particular levels of activity. This is a complex and emotive topic, but requires holistic measures in order to make real change and one hopes that the new call to action campaign for those 'overweight to take steps to move towards a healthier weight' is holistic, effective and delivers real changes to activity levels and energy expended rather than energy consumed.

The measures announced are:

1. introducing a new campaign – a call to action for everyone who is overweight to take steps to move towards a healthier weight, with evidence-based tools and apps with advice on how to lose weight and keep it off
2. working to expand weight management services available through the NHS, so more people get the support they need to lose weight
3. publishing a 4-nation public consultation to gather views and evidence on our current ‘traffic light’ label to help people make healthy food choices
4. introducing legislation to require large out-of-home food businesses, including restaurants, cafes and takeaways with more than 250 employees, to add calorie labels to the food they sell
5. consulting on our intention to make companies provide calorie labelling on alcohol
6. legislating to end the promotion of foods high in fat, sugar or salt (HFSS) by restricting volume promotions such as buy one get one free, and the placement of these foods in prominent locations intended to encourage purchasing, both online and in physical stores in England
7. banning the advertising of HFSS products being shown on TV and online before 9pm and holding a short consultation as soon as possible on how we introduce a total HFSS advertising restriction online

The policy statement can be read in full here: New Policy statement