SOME of the nation’s favourite fast food meals could be banned if a new NHS “calorie cap” is given the green light.
Dame Sally Davies, the outgoing Chief Medical Officer, wants the Government to limit the size of all restaurant and takeaway meals.
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Under new NHS plans, the proposed cap of around 951 calories could see popular meals from McDonald’s, KFC, Nando’s and Domino’s scrapped from menus.
Top doc Dame Sally has made the proposals in bid to tackle the nation’s fat epidemic.
In her final report, she warns we are “nowhere near” solving childhood obesity – with one in three primary school kids dangerously fat, double 30 years ago.
She also wants new taxes on junk foods, or plain packaging if they are not made healthier by 2021. Other recommendations include:
- Ban food and drink on trains and buses
- Overhaul VAT so all unhealthy food is covered and use cash to make fruit and veg cheaper
- Only offer water or milk as a drink to kids at nursery or school
- End marketing and sale of junk food at major sporting events and concerts
A 951-calorie limit at restaurants and takeaways is in line with guidelines from Public Health England.
But the new rules puts a number of customer favourites at risk of being scrapped…
McDonald’s Quarter Pounder with cheese and large fries – 1,194kcal
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KFC’s Mighty Bucket for One – 1,235kcal
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Domino’s Large Pepperoni Passion – 1,920kcal
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Nando’s Fino Pitta with Peri-salted chips – 1,243kcal
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Critics accused her of championing the “silliest extremes of the nanny state”.
Her proposals put her on a collision course with Boris Johnson who is opposed to “sin tax” levies on items high in salt, fat and sugar.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock asked Dame Sally for ideas to help halve childhood obesity by 2030.
Speaking to The Sun she said we are now in the “last chance saloon” and ministers would be failing kids unless they took “bold action”.
The report warns there are 1.2million obese children in England, leading to 120,000 youngsters with asthma and 650,000 kids with fatty liver disease.
Discussing the possibility of a “calorie cap”, UK Hospitality Chief Executive, Kate Nicholls, told the Daily Star: “A blanket cap on calories for all portions of food and drink consumed out-of-home sounds like a knee-jerk and unfair measure.”
On its website, McDonald’s says: “McDonald’s believes that the national obesity issue is a shared responsibility, and a complex one.
“The company’s starting point has been to look at recipe improvements and providing parents with all the nutritional facts.
“That’s why McDonald’s has been committed to lowering the salt, sugar and fat levels in Happy Meal menu items over recent years, whilst being careful not to undermine the taste.
“Along with this, there’s been improved nutritional information included on most packaging and the backs of all tray liners in restaurants.”
