Retailers have said they would welcome “proportionate” measures from the government to crack down on unhealthy promotions, after a survey showed some supermarket meal deals contained as much as 30 teaspoons of sugar, or four times an adult’s daily recommended amount.
The new survey by Action on Sugar (AOS), released today, accused the majority of retailers of failing to promote healthy choices to their consumers in their meal deal lineups, and called for the government to clamp down on the promotions to help fight obesity.
The survey found no fewer than 72% of meal deal drinks sold at Morrisons were high in sugar, compared with 38% at M&S, which offered the lowest percentage of high sugar drinks.
AOS said some drinks alone contained up to 70g of sugar and were frequently offered in 500ml portions, which equated to two servings, despite being sold as part of a lunch meal.
WH Smith was named and shamed for failing to offer any healthy snack options as part of its meal deals.
The combination containing the highest amount of sugar was also at WH Smith, with a sandwich plus the option of a Mountain Dew Citrus Blast 500ml drink and a bag of Skittles Crazy Sours. This deal contained what AOS described as an “extraordinary” 30 teaspoons of sugar - equivalent to the amount of sugar in 79 chocolate fingers.
It said a shopper consuming this meal deal every day over a working week would get through the equivalent of 150 teaspoons of sugar (595g), or more than a 1lb bag of sugar.
Other combos in the firing line included a Tesco Smokehouse Pulled Chicken with Mesquite Style Sauce with a Monster Energy 500ml drink and Mars Duo with 30 teaspoons of sugar; a Morrisons’ Sweet Chilli Chicken Wrap with Relentless Passion Punch Energy 500ml drink and millionaire shortbread (28 teaspoons); and a Co-op Meal Pot Blackbean Pulled Beef & Noodle with Rockstar Blueberry Pomegranate Acai 500ml energy drink and Rocky Road bar (28 teaspoons)
AOS called for supermarkets and other retailers to exclude all high sugar drinks and confectionery (those that would have a red traffic light label) from meal deals.
It also called for the government to stop retailers from using price promotions such as meal deals to encourage the over-consumption of products high in sugar and calories.
Last week the Scottish government announced plans to restrict the promotion of food and drink high in fat, sugar and salt.
AOS chairman professor Graham MacGregor said: “Eating too much sugar is linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay. It may seem like it’s a good deal for our wallets, but some meal deal choices are a bad deal for our health.
“Furthermore, both manufacturers and retailers have a responsibility to their customers’ health and should go well beyond reducing the sugar in their products by 20%, as Public Health England is calling for.”
A spokeswoman for the BRC said: “Retailers will continue their efforts to give customers healthier choices, and we do not oppose proportionate measures from government which encourage that.
“However, any measures need to engage with the whole food and drink industry to create a level playing field, so that consumers have the same healthy options and information regardless of where they buy or indeed consume their food.”
The BRC claimed shoppers had never had a wider variety of healthy, fresh and affordable options.
“Retailers are committed to helping consumers make healthier choices through price-promoting fruit and vegetables, reformulating products, and leading the way on providing clear nutritional information, all of which helps customers understand their food and make informed choices,” said a spokeswoman.
“With regards to promotions, it’s worth noting the overall number of products being promoted is falling in response to customer demands for simpler pricing. Furthermore, many of the products that are often characterised as unhealthy are in fact household staples such as cheese and butter - which consumers are keen to buy at the lowest price.”
A WH Smith spokeswoman added: “Our meal deal is incredibly popular and contains a number of healthy eating options, including sandwiches and salads.
“The example given is extreme and wholly unrepresentative of what our customers purchase - making up only 0.004% of meal deals sold. We are always listening to our customers and we will continue to provide them with a wide range of choices to suit their tastes.”
WH Smith said all its meal deals included water, juice or soft drinks and added that it had sold 19 million litres of water over the last year, either as part of meal deals, alone, or with its Daily Telegraph offer.
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