French retail giant Casino yesterday (25 March) pledged to reduce the amount of palm oil in its products for environmental – and health – reasons.The company, which runs the Geant, Franprix and Leader Price banners in France, said it would remove palm oil from 200 own-label lines by the end of the year. “Palm oil is a vegetable fat. Even if it has good stability at high temperature and gives food a crisp texture, mass consumption may present risks to human health and the environment,”... ...Read more »

British consumers are eating less saturated fat, less trans fat and less added sugar than they were 10 years ago, according to results published in the first annual National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS). The UK Food Standards Agency announced yesterday that saturated fat intakes in adults have dropped slightly to 12.8% of food energy, compared with 13.3% in 2000/01, and men and children are eating less added sugar. These results reflect the vast improvement in public awareness and understanding... ...Read more »

The world’s largest confectioner, Mars, has announced what it believes is an industry-first in the UK with a 15% reduction of saturated fat in their core products. “Mars Chocolate UK has today announced a first for the confectionery industry with a significant reduction in saturated fat across a number of its core chocolate bars. This announcement is the result of 5 years of development, an investment of 10m Euros and a commitment of over 40,000 R&D man hours,” they said in... ...Read more »

The UK Food Standards Agency last night outlined plans to consult on the prospect of voluntary recommendations for reducing added sugar and saturated fat in food products. The Agency is also hoping to increase availability of smaller single-portion sizes in a number of key foods – biscuits, cakes, pastries, buns, confectionery and soft drinks, and encouraging greater marketing spend on healthier options. “The Agency’s work to encourage industry to reformulate and reduce portion... ...Read more »

The Heart Foundation is calling for a national food reformulation strategy as part of their extensive plan to tackle the alarming rates of cardiovascular disease in Australia. Dr Lyn Roberts, CEO of the National Heart Foundation of Australia, said yesterday that the food industry needs to provide further support to the community with regard to healthier choices. “The need now is for Australians to live in a community, in a neighbourhood that supports them to make better, healthier choices,”... ...Read more »

A new report in the UK has questioned the impact of a number of celebrity chefs on the consumer diet, suggesting some are contributing to the high rates of obesity in the region. The study by The Fat Panel analysed the saturated fat content of a variety of starters, main courses, side orders and desserts from popular cook books and discovered that many celebrity chefs’ recipes contained more than 100% of the Guideline Daily Amount (GDA) of saturated fat (30g for men and 20g for women) in a... ...Read more »

The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has launched a public health campaign to raise awareness of the health risks of eating too much saturated fat, with the food industry reporting that they are keen to continue improving in this area. The UK is currently eating 20% more saturated fat than UK Government recommendations, according to the Agency. The campaign will promote a range of simple, positive and practical steps to help improve our health and reduce the risk of developing diet-related illness. The... ...Read more »