Joint letter to Government highlights threats to children's health

A letter highlighting threats to children's health has been sent to Health Secretary Andrew Lansley by a broad coalition of organisations concerned that recent statements from government signify plans for policies which will seriously compromise children's diet-related health and wellbeing.

The letter, signed by 30 organisations, including the Faculty of Public health, National Union of Teachers, Royal College of Physicians, and the Children's Food Campaign, expresses concern at Mr Lansley's criticism of Jamie Oliver's initiative to improve the quality of school dinners, and plans to hand the Change4Life anti-obesity campaign over to corporate partners, including food companies such as PepsiCo and Nestlé.

Christine Haigh, Children's Food Campaign Coordinator said:
“Criticising policies which have made a genuine improvement to the diet of millions of children and handing a public health campaign over to companies which pedal junk food makes for a disastrous recipe for children's health.” 

“If we are to tackle the record levels of childhood obesity in this country we need policies that support healthy choices, not a regulatory free-for-all.”

Ends
 
For further information please contact Christine Haigh or Jackie Schneider on 07870 577934 (Christine) / 07795 213425 (Jackie) or Christine@sustainweb.org / Jackie@sustainweb.org. 

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Notes to editors:

1) The Children's Food Campaign wants to improve children's health and well-being through better food - and food teaching - in schools, and protecting children from junk food marketing. We are supported by over 150 national organisations. The Children's Food Campaign is coordinated by Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming and funded by the British Heart Foundation. For more information please go to: http://www.childrensfoodcampaign.org.uk/

2) The letter was signed by the Academy of Culinary Arts, Association of Teachers and Lecturers, Baby Milk Action, British Dental Association, British Society for Paediatric Dentistry, Caroline Walker Trust, Centre for Food Policy, Children's Food Campaign, Child Poverty Action Group, Consensus Action on Salt and Health, Diabetes UK, Faculty of Public Health, Food Matters, Friends of the Earth, GMB, Good Gardeners Association, Health Education Trust, Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome Help (HUSH): The UK E.coli Support Group, Hyperactive Children's Support Group, NASUWT, National Oral Health Promotion Group, National Union of Teachers, New Economics Foundation, Northern Ireland Heart Chest & Stroke, Royal College of Physicians, tfX: The UK campaign against trans fats in food, UNISON, Unite Health Sector, Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation, and Weight Concern.

3) Criticisms of Jamie Oliver's school meals initiative made by Andrew Lansley in a speech to a British Medical Association conference in Brighton on 30 June.  A recording is available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/10459744.stm.  For more information see https://www.sustainweb.org/news/lansley_oliver_clash_july_2010.

4) Secretary of State for Health Andrew Lansley announced in his speech to the Faculty of Public Health on 7th July 2010, that business will be encouraged to fund the Government's Change4Life health promotion programme.  See: www.sustainweb.org/news/july_2010_lansley_business_backing/.  For more information see https://www.sustainweb.org/news/july_2010_lansley_business_backing

5) The cancellation of plans to extend free school meal eligibility to primary school children from working families below the poverty line, and to trial universal free school meals in five areas of England, were announced in a letter from Education Secretary Michael Gove to shadow Education Secretary Ed Balls on 7 June.  The letter can be accessed at http://www.education.gov.uk/news/news/~/media/Files/lacuna/letters/MichaelGovetoEdBallsCuts.ashx

6) The World Health Organization's (WHO) Set of recommendations on the marketing of foods and non-alcoholic beverages to children are available at: http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA63/A63_12-en.pdf

7) The Coalition Programme for Government is available at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/409088/pfg_coalition.pdf.  Its commitment to crack down on irresponsible advertising can be found on page 20.

8) The text of the letter was as follows:

Dear Secretary of State

Improving children's diet-related health and wellbeing

We are writing to express our concerns about recent indications of the direction of Government food policy because of the potential that they have to undermine children's diet-related health.  This letter outlines why we are worried and concludes with a request for a meeting with you to present the evidence for our concerns.

The Children's Food Campaign is supported by more than 150 national organisations and thousands of concerned parents. Having been centrally involved for many years in promoting policies that will have a positive impact on children's diet-related health, the Campaign is very well-positioned to advise on effective interventions and safeguards.

School meals

You were copied into the Campaign's letter of 18 June to the Secretary of State for Education which expressed our disappointment about the Government's decision to shelve the proposed extended free school meal eligibility for primary school children of low-income working parents.  This is a measure that would have reduced inequalities in education and health.  We were then dismayed by your comments to the British Medical Association on 30 June in which you criticised Jamie Oliver's initiative which led to high and legally enforceable nutritional standards for school meals.  These standards have support from a very wide range of schools, parents, caterers and health professionals.  More recently, our spirits have been somewhat lifted by School Food Trust data demonstrating the biggest increase in healthy school meal uptake in recent years.

You will be aware of the wealth of independent research describing the health, behaviour and education benefits to children from healthy school meals.  Consequently, we implore you not to introduce any measures that will undermine the existing nutritional standards.  Rather, we consider that a wise Government would recognise these benefits and work hard to extend healthy school meal provision and further improve their uptake.

Change4Life

We were pleased that in your speech to the Faculty of Public Health on 7 July you recognised that the UK has the highest obesity rates in Europe and that there is a need to “create the right environment” to tackle this serious problem.  However, we were alarmed about your proposals to make food companies one of the main sources of funding and channels of information for the Change4Life campaign.  There are seemingly never-ending examples of companies marketing fatty, sugary and salty foods directly to children - and to their parents - in a drive to increase their sales and profits.  Such inappropriate marketing has been roundly condemned, not least by expert medical and public health organisations. Recent World Health Organisation recommendations on the marketing of foods to children also warn against such conflict of interests.

We note that the Coalition programme for government acknowledges the need to “take action to protect children from excessive commercialisation” and specifically to “crack down on irresponsible advertising and marketing, especially to children”.  We therefore look to you to ensure that children are indeed protected from this irresponsible marketing of unhealthy food to children, via robust regulation that is consistent across all marketing media and creates a level playing field for the food industry.  Voluntary approaches have repeatedly been shown to be ineffective and we would be deeply concerned if the Coalition government were to rely on industry self-regulation.

We request a meeting with you at the earliest opportunity to share perspectives and evidence.  We would be pleased to arrange a small delegation of experts drawn from the Children's Food Campaign member organisations to help facilitate our discussions.

We very much look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,

Signed by signatories from:

Children's Food Campaign
Academy of Culinary Arts
Association of Teachers and Lecturers
Baby Milk Action
British Dental Association
British Society for Paediatric Dentistry
Caroline Walker Trust
City University
Child Poverty Action Group
Consensus Action on Salt and Health
Diabetes UK
Faculty of Public Health
Food Matters
Friends of the Earth
GMB
Good Gardeners Association
Health Education Trust
Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome Help (HUSH)
Hyperactive Children's Support Group
NASUWT
National Oral Health Promotion Research Group
National Union of Teachers
New Economics Foundation
Northern Ireland Chest Heart & Stroke
Royal College of Physicians
tfX: The UK campaign against trans fats in food
UNISON
Unite, Health Sector
Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation
Weight Concern