The size of chocolate bars and packs of sweets in the UK is set to get smaller if manufacturers are to meet government-set targets to cut sugar by 20%, according to a report published today. Public Health England, which published the report on how to achieve the targets, said that manufacturers could choose to reformulate their products with less sugar; shift sales towards lower sugar alternatives; or cut portion sizes. (The Financial Times £)

PHE says changes to nine food groups could lead to 200,000 tons of sugar being taken out of snacks and meals yearly by 2020 and cut the number of overweight children by 20%. The targets are biscuits, breakfast cereals, cakes and pastries, chocolate, confectionery, ice cream, puddings, sweet spreads and yoghurts. (The Guardian)

However, there are no penalties for companies that miss the targets - meaning the Government’s central strategy for tackling obesity is reliant on goodwill from manufacturers. (Sky News)

Fruit and vegetables, flowers and olive oil will all become more expensive once the UK leaves the EU, no matter what trade deal is struck, City analysts have calculated. The price of food imported from the EU is likely to rise by up to 8% by the end of any transitional period as Britain is forced to impose extra border controls, making it more difficult to bring in foods that we cannot produce ourselves. (The Guardian)

Hundreds of farmers may go bust without tariff-free access to EU. Farmers want tariff-free access to the single market and without it, UK exports to the continent could face a 50% border tax. (Sky News)

Poundland is to put value fashion into more than 100 stores by the end of the year as it tries to step into the gap on the high street once filled by Woolworths. The chain expects to put Pep&Co clothing outlets in up to 200 of its 850 stores over the longer term. A small range of low-price clothing items, such as socks, leggings and babygrows will also be available in 577 Poundland stores by the end of April. (The Guardian)

Walmart announced Wednesday it has achieved its goal to buy $20bn worth of goods and services from women-owned businesses in the US over five years. The company also conceded that it’s failed to reach another goal set around the same time: to double the amount of products and services sourced from women-owned companies outside of the country. (The Guardian)

Credit card debt is rising at its fastest rate in more than a decade, according to the Bank of England, which will review whether banks have made borrowing too easy for customers. Borrowing on credit cards increased by 9.3% in the year to February, the highest rate of growth in 11 years and up from 8.6% in January. (The Times £)

One of Europe’s biggest dairy companies, FrieslandCampina, is facing a paper loss of up to €46m from its holdings in China Huishan Dairy, the financially stressed company whose shares on Hong Kong’s exchanged suddenly plummeted 90% last week. (The Financial Times £)

MPs are demanding that banks and regulators do more to crack down on security failings that mean contactless cardholders can be defrauded months after their cards are stolen or lost. (The Times £)

Amazon’s cashier-less grocery shop, dubbed Amazon Go by the company, is going through some teething problems. Specifically, the new shop can’t handle tracking more than about 20 people at the same time, and freaks out “if an item has been moved from its specific spot on the shelf” the paper writes, citing un-named sources. (The Guardian)

 

Topics