A radical re-design of supermarkets to give less prominence to food and drink high in sugar, salt and fat is being considered as part of “draconian” plans by ministers in Scotland to force retailers to tackle obesity and heart disease.

The Grocer has learned that talks with industry bodies have seen a string of ideas tabled, including a cigarette-style clampdown on marketing and in-store presence of foods deemed “unhealthy”.

Retailers and supplier leaders were summoned to the talks earlier this month and left with the message that the Scottish government is not satisfied with existing voluntary moves to tackle obesity, and to put the focus on healthier foods.

Ministers called for a crackdown on areas such as BOGOF promotions and said a much more concerted move towards reformulation was required. They warned they would resort to regulation if needed.

Dairy UK, one of the bodies involved in the talks, along with the Food & Drink Federation and the BRC, said: “In view of the obesity problems facing Scotland, government officials have confirmed that they regard the Responsibility Deal as an insufficient step in the right direction. Additional calorie, salt and sugar reduction measures will be introduced.”

“They advised industry and retailer representatives that, although regulation was bottom of the measures being considered, it was nonetheless on the page.”

All food sectors are now expected to focus on reformulated products. At the retail level, officials are considering proposals to encourage redesign of store layouts to give less prominence to “unhealthy” foods.

A retail source involved in the discussions said they hoped Scottish ministers could be convinced that some of the proposed measures went too far. “A number of potential measures were discussed,” said the source. “Some are draconian but at the moment they are not firm proposals.”

The move comes despite the Scottish government agreeing to a voluntary reformulation agreement with retailers in July last year.

Under the deal Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, The Co-op, Boots, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons and Waitrose promised to increase the proportion of fruit and veg ingredients in own label, keep fresh and frozen fruit and veg affordable through special offers, and boost the prominence of the fresh produce category in store.

Ironically, the deal was rejected for England and Wales by Andrew Lansley, the now-departed health secretary, while being hailed by ministers north of the border as a major step forward.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scottish Health Survey statistics released this week show almost one third of all children are now overweight or obese, as are just over two thirds of adults aged 16 and over.

“It is clear that substantially more action is required to promote a healthier diet across all sectors, from initial product formulation to offerings in shops and catering settings.

“We are currently discussing options with the food industry, with a view to identifying a range of actions to deliver the scale of change needed to improve Scotland’s diet, which can be taken forward by industry on a voluntary basis.

“With this in mind, we welcome the recent developments in relation to front of pack labelling, with major retailers like Tesco and Morrisons volunteering to reformat their labels to include traffic light indicators in the interests of public health.”

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