Calorie counts on menus could help Scots make healthier choices, says minister

Including calorie counts in menus in places such as restaurants and online takeaway websites could help people make healthier choices, a minister has said.

Public health minister Maree Todd make the comment as the Scottish Government considers whether it should be made a legal requirement for information on calories in dishes to be included on menus.

A consultation is looking at what types of food and drink could be included in any legislation, and how it could be applied to food and hospitality businesses, depending on their size, as well as public sector institutions such as hospitals and prisons.

Pre-packed food, such as sandwiches, online takeaway menus and children’s menus could also be included.

Changes introduced in England this week mean it is now a legal requirement for businesses with more than 250 people to display calorie information for food and soft drinks which are not pre-packed – with the change impacting cafes, restaurants and takeaways.

Leon Thompson, the Scotland director for industry body UKHospitality, said it has already received “anecdotal feedback from businesses in England of the effects calorie labelling is having in terms of cost and resources, as well as customer relations”.

With the coronavirus pandemic having hit many businesses hard, he said it is “essential” any changes introduced in Scotland “avoid such pitfalls”.

Mr Thompson said: “Our businesses are still very fragile as they strive to rebuild after the pandemic – they need time to recover, free from further regulatory burdens.”

Ms Todd said that prior to the pandemic, more and more Scots had been eating outside of their own home – with this trend expected to resume as the country recovers from Covid.

With two-thirds of Scots classed as being either overweight or obese, she added: “We know that giving people more information such as the number of calories in meals will enable people to make healthier choices when eating out, or ordering in.

“This is not novel practice – calories are already required on retail food purchases and calorie labelling for out of home sites is mandated in many other countries.

“Many food companies in Scotland have already taken this significant step voluntarily. We want to learn from those experiences and I would urge everyone to share their thoughts in this consultation.”

Dr Gillian Purdon, head of nutrition science at Food Standards Scotland (FSS) welcomed the consultation, saying it has “long-proposed the introduction of mandatory calorie labelling as part of a suite of recommendations to address the nation’s poor diet”.

She added: “With eating out now an everyday occurrence and nearly a quarter of our calories coming from food and drink purchased outside of home, mandatory calorie labelling is one way to support people to make healthier options.”

Ewan McDonald-Russell, head of policy and external affairs at the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “Ensuring customers of all organisations serving food understand exactly what they are consuming empowers them to make the right choices to ensure they maintain a balanced diet.

“Introducing a mandatory approach to calorie labelling is therefore a reasonable proposition, provided it is implemented in a sensible manner and is applied to all businesses serving food and drink.”