§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list all the measures he has taken to reduce sugar consumption in the United Kingdom diet; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. GummerIn 1987 my Department introduced guidelines on nutrition labelling. These have encouraged manufacturers to give nutrition information on food labels, including total sugar declarations, thus enabling consumers to compare products more easily and to help them choose a balanced diet. We are currently pressing for a satisfactory Communitywide system for consumers in negotiations on proposed Community directives on nutrition labelling. As announced in July, we shall be introducing regulations to control nutrition claims such as "reduced sugar", "no added sugars" to ensure that consumers are not misled. We are also actively considering those recommendations which fall to my Department's responsibility in the recently published report by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy on "Dietary Sugars and Human Disease".