It seems a very long time ago that the Labour government was unveiling its manifesto on a wave of election enthusiasm that would have given Keir Starmer‘s supporters wings.
One of the measures the now PM was proposing in those heady days last summer was to revive banning the sale of energy drinks to under-16s, a move which had been ditched by the Tories because it was seen as a prime example of nanny state intervention.
At the same time a certain Wes Streeting was promising to “steamroll” the food and drink industry into marketing healthier products, whether they liked it or not.
Yesterday, with the Labour government seemingly lurching from one crisis to the next and with all talk of Rachel Reeves’ make-or-break budget (even though it’s not likely to be until November), the DHSC finally published a consultation on the energy drinks proposals.
Streeting said the move showed how Labour was making the shift from treatment to prevention, and it comes alongside Starmer claiming Labour is now moving to phase two of its regime, which it says will – to the shock of many – actually see policies being delivered.
A new-wave nanny state
This could be just the first of a new wave of nanny state policies. Streeting’s 10-year plan for the NHS has signalled plans for other measures, including mandatory heath reporting for all large food and drink companies as well as controversial targets and massive fines for companies that fail to hit them.
Certainly, all eyes are on what devils will emerge from the details of the plan, and how it will be co-ordinated with the Defra-led food strategy.
In some ways Labour reviving a ban on energy drink sales, first proposed when Theresa May was promising a strong and stable future that never came, might seem something of an irrelevance in comparison. This is especially true considering the vast majority of supermarkets, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Morrisons and Asda, have already voluntarily imposed a ban on their sales to youngsters.
However, the jury is still out on whether there is any concrete evidence of the harm drinks like Monster, Red Bull, Lucozade and Prime are doing to under-16s.
Last year a study published in the Public Health Journal from researchers at Teesside University, claiming to be the most comprehensive of its kind, found disturbing links between energy drinks and suicidal thoughts, psychological distress, and many other health symptoms, a move which health groups said provided more than enough evidence for the government to finally act.
However, other reports, including one by the House of Commons Science & Technology Committee and the government’s health experts on the Committee on Toxicity, had previously found little evidence that energy drinks pose any more of a threat to children than coffee, cola and chocolate.
The Scottish government has said there is not enough evidence to support a ban, indicating it would not follow suit if Labour surges ahead with the plan after the 12-week consultation.
Retail needs a level playing field
Gavin Partington, director general of the BSDA, said that despite the existing voluntary ban it was “essential” that ministers did not introduce regulation unless there was a “rigorous assessment of the evidence”.
However, health minister Ashley Dalton, writing exclusively in The Grocer, urged those retailers who have not yet banned the sales of energy drinks to under-16s to do so, even before the laws come in.
“I encourage every retailer reading The Grocer to contribute to this important consultation,” she said.
“I thank those of you who are already restricting sales voluntarily and encourage others to join them before the ban is mandated.”
The government has received high-profile backing from supermarkets, with Andrea Martinez-Inchausti, assistant director of food at the British Retail Consortium, welcoming the creation of a “level playing field across all businesses who sell energy drinks”.
“Most importantly,” she added, “it will protect young consumers.”
As for the impact on sales, analysts at Jefferies today published research suggesting the amount of energy drinks sold to minors accounts for just 2% of total energy drink sales at Monster owner Coca-Cola, with the impact of a potential ban likely to be “ negligible”.
However, the implications of Labour pushing ahead with its manifesto promise will be far from negligible if the shift to prevention does see Streeting and co finally start reaching for the steamroller.
Coincidentally, ministers are today meeting with the authors of last month’s landmark report on the effectiveness of the last government’s HFSS promotions ban, with The Grocer revealing last week they will be calling on the government to go much further with regulation in the war on obesity.
Extending the promotions ban to all HFSS products, mandatory targets for all large companies and a renewed focus on exploring the evidence of harm caused by ultra-processed products are all on the agenda for a busy day of discussion. Fuelled, no doubt, by plenty of caffeine.
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