47% of the cereals studied by Action on Sugar contained a third of the maximum recommendation for children ages four to six. E+
High-sugar breakfast cereal should be a “medicine” only for children, as suggested by the Minister of Health.
Will Quince said that he allows his children to eat such cereal, “but not every day”, as he argued that manufacturers should “help parents learn what is really in their products.”
G- Mr. Queens said the decision about what their children eat “is largely up to the parents” as he rejected calls for such foods to be plain packaged.
His comments were in response to calls from the health group for kid-friendly packaging to be removed from breakfast cereals and high-sugar yogurts.
Action on Sugar has called for such packaging to be removed from products with a high or medium sugar content. , salt, or saturated fat, as recommended by the Department of Health for nutrition.
Activists raised concerns about the use of “child-friendly packaging” of sweet breakfast cereals. Photo: Alamy Stock Photo
During an interview with Times Radio, Mr Quince was asked if he allows his children to eat high-sugar cereal for breakfast. on a regular basis.
He said, “It's one of those things where it has to be in moderation, and yes, I give my kids this cereal, but not every day.”
“And really what we need to do and I think the companies that make these products should help educate parents about what's actually in their products and make sure it's fun and not everyday product. should be edible.
“But that's up to the parents to decide.”
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Campaigners expressed concern about the use of “kid-friendly packaging” for sweet breakfast cereals, citing examples such as cartoon characters and bright colors.
Asked if the government could force manufacturers to use plain packaging for such products, Mr Queens said: “I don't support this kind of nanny government intervention. Why? Because it's my responsibility as a parent to teach my child what to eat and what not to eat for daily consumption and as a treat.
“I like Krave cereal as much as anyone else, but I would me every day? No, because I know the consequences of it.
“I want to tell my children about this. This means we need to empower people to make healthy choices, which means putting information such as calories, sugar and salt content on the front and center of packages. It's already there, but if we need to go further, we can look at it. But I think plain packaging is too much.”
“Kid-friendly packaging”
Action on Sugar study at Queen Mary University of London compared cereal and yogurt to “child-friendly packaging” “. ”, offered by various companies in the UK.
47% of the cereals and 65% of yogurts studied were found to contain one third of the recommended maximum amount of sugar for children four to six years of age per 100g.
This includes products supplied by supermarket chains. Lidl and Aldi, as well as the international brand Nestle, had the highest average sugar levels in a package aimed at children.
In 2020, Lidl announced that it would remove cartoon characters from all packages of its own brand of cereal in the UK.
A spokesperson for Nestle said: “We are committed to developing food and beverage products that are delicious, nutritious and environmentally friendly. We offer a wide range of cereals and yogurts to meet consumer demand and ensure there is an option to suit everyone.”
Aldi stated that it is “committed to reducing sugar in key areas that lead to sugar consumption in children, as part of its work to combat childhood obesity.”
The company added that labeling brightly colored packaging as appealing to children is “misleading” and leads to “skewed results.”
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