http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1183
UK Co-op chain bans MSG and 21 food dyes; health food desire in UK, Asia,
France: Feed Me Better school lunch campaign, Jamie Oliver: Caroline Walker
Trust: Lindsay Partos, Novis NutraIngredients.com: Murray 2005.07.13

[ Comments by Rich Murray are in square bracketts.
These news reports all arrived Monday July 11. They indicate a rapidly
evolving worldwide citizen consensus for healthy, non-toxic food. It is
unprecendented for a huge business to take its own initiative to ban MSG and
21 food dyes.

http://www.truthinlabeling.org/ Truth in Labeling Campaign [MSG]
Adrienne Samuels, PhD The toxicity/safety of processed
free glutamic acid (MSG): a study in suppression of information.
Accountability in Research 1999; 6: 259-310. 52-page review
P.O. Box 2532 Darien, Illinois 60561
858-481-9333 adandjack@...

http://www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info/ Food Intolerance Network
Sue Dengate sdengate@... ]

http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?n=61213&m=1NIE711&c=qwefmyelbnwqznt

Openings for natural colours as Co-op bans food additives

11/07/2005 - New opportunities for natural colour suppliers arise as the
UK's Co-op chain bans a raft of food colours, along with the flavour
enhancer,
MSG from all its own-brand food products, reports Lindsey Partos.
[ Novis FoodNavigator.com editor ] [ jess.halliday@... ]

The company said it had made the move following consumer concerns about
children's diets and "potential links to food intolerance".

The ban covers the common flavour enhancer MSG and 12 colourings, all of
which are legally permitted.

These include Sunset Yellow (E110), Tartrazine (E102) and Quinoline Yellow
(E104).

The latest ban brings the total number of colours banned by the Co-op to 21.

"The removal of MSG and these colours is in direct response to [consumer]
concerns, even though we have had to de-list a number of products as a
result," says Christine Clarke, head of Co-op brand.

As the functional food trend continues to soar, food and beverage
manufacturers are increasingly on the hunt for natural colours - fuelling
growth in the colouring foodstuffs market and outstripping the base line
growth of the European colours market in general valued at ?195 million in
2001.

The European colouring market is expected to experience a compound annual
growth rate of only 1 per cent for the period 2001-2008. In contrast, the
colouring foodstuffs market is currently experiencing growth of an estimated
10 per cent to 15 per cent, driven by consumer interest in natural
products," says Frost and Sullivan analyst Lyndsey Greig.

In addition to the influence of the functional food trend, the shift from
synthetic colours to natural equivalents is underpinned by consumer
suspicions that all E-numbers are unhealthy.

"Colouring foodstuffs include fruit and vegetable juices, concentrates and
dried, powdered extracts. They do not contain any carriers or additives, and
may be listed as ingredients, rather than as food additives," adds Greig.

There are three main classes of colour in foods: natural colours, browning
colours, which are produced during cooking and processing, and additives.

After reviewing 2800 own-label food and drink products, the firm
reformulated 53 brands to replace the colours and MSG with natural
alternatives where possible, the firm tells FoodNavigator.com.

Among the reformulated products are mushy and processed peas, which commonly
use the well-known artificial colour Tartrazine (E102) and the less
well-known Green S (E142).

The Co-op has replaced these with naturally-derived colourings.

All Co-op sausages no longer contain Carmines (E120) and Co-op chicken and
mushroom pasta sauce now has no added MSG.

Numerous children's products have also been reformulated, including dolly
mixtures and flying saucers, which contained Quinoline Yellow (E104),
Cochineal (E120), and Indigo Carmine (E132).

When reformulation was not an option, the retailer opted to totally delist
the product from its range. And so some 27 products are not longer
available, including marrowfat peas where no acceptable alternative could be
found for Green S (E142), and prawn cocktail shells, which contained
Carminic acid.

In addition, pink and white marshmallows, canned strawberries in syrup and
Chinese style spare ribs are now off the shelves.

The UK food retailer claims to be the first supermarket group to ban a range
of commonly-used colours and MSG in all its own-label foods.

Copyright - Unless otherwise stated all contents of this web site are ©
2000/2005- NOVIS. - All Rights Reserved.
For permission to reproduce any contents of this web site, please email our
Syndication department: Administration & Finance .
Full details for the use of materials on this site can be found in the Terms
& Conditions.

http://www.co-op.co.uk/ the Co-operative Group
Co-operative Group Head Office Address:

If you want to write to the Co-operative Group please use this address and
address it to the department or person you want your correspondence
directing to.

the Co-operative Group (CWS) Limited
PO Box 53 New Century House Manchester M60 4ES UK
phone 0161 834 1212

Customer Relations customer.relations@...
Phone: 0800 0686 727 Minicom: 0800 0686 717

the Co-operative Group a business with principles -- Our Difference

Our business

We are the largest consumer co-op in the UK.

We were set up in 1863 and we now have food stores, a bank, an insurance
business, funeral branches, car dealers, travel agents, pharmacies and
farms.

We employ over 75,000 people, have more than 3,000 high street outlets and
offer online and business-to-business services. In 2003 our sales topped £8
billion.

Food

Of our 3,000 outlets, over 1,700 are food stores. We are the UK leader in
top-up food shopping with our Welcome convenience stores based in
neighbourhoods throughout the country. We also have supermarkets and
medium-sized Market Town stores serving local communities.

http://www.frost.com/prod/servlet/frost-home.pag Frost & Sullivan
*************************************************************


"What the National Heart Forum says:"

"Junk food is food that provides 'empty calories' and has high
concentrations of
refined sugars, fat, salt, colourings, preservatives, artificial flavourings
and artificial sweeteners."

http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/news-ng.asp?id=60837-uk-doctors-join

UK doctors join chefs in fight against childhood obesity
TV food ads creating nation of nutritionally confused kids
Food takes majority slice of pocket money
Childhood obesity figures provide new impulse for obesity strategy
Ireland to follow neighbours' initiatives against obesity


Children should reject soft drinks to stay healthy

23/06/2005 - British doctors called yesterday for a ban on unhealthy food
and drinks in vending machines and on junk food advertising and sponsorship
to help slow the alarming weight gain in children, writes Dominique Patton.

They also want school meals to be subjected to strict guidelines on sugar
and fat content, as well as minimum levels of vitamins and minerals.
The recommendations were published by the British Medical Association (BMA)
in a major report, 'Preventing Childhood Obesity', launched yesterday.

The BMA, which represents around 130,000 doctors, or about three quarters
of those practicing in the UK, says that there are around 1 million obese
children under 16 years of age in the UK. If current trends continue, at
least one fifth of boys and one third of girls will be obese by 2020.

The soaring rates in obesity have led to an increase in childhood type 2
diabetes and will lead to more future cases of heart disease, osteoarthritis
and some cancers, according to the report.

Dr Vivienne Nathanson, head of the BMA's science and ethics group, said:
"Children are being bombarded with mixed messages. On one hand they might
learn about healthy eating at school and then they go home and spend hours
watching TV and see celebrities eating hamburgers, crisps or drinking fizzy
drinks. Children and parents are surrounded by the marketing of unhealthy
cereals, snacks and processed meals - this has to stop."

Worldwide over 22 million children under five are severely overweight.
Experts say junk food and low exercise levels, combined with the popularity
of computer games and television, are behind the growing obesity rates.
The new report laid much of the responsibility for tackling the epidemic
with the government, calling on it to mount a sustained public education
campaign to improve parents' and children's understanding of the benefits of
healthy living, and also subsidise the cost of fruit and vegetables to
encourage healthy eating.

However it also requested that manufacturers be legally obliged to reduce
salt, sugar and fat in pre-prepared meals to an agreed level within a
defined time frame, and that celebrity endorsement be restricted to products
that meet nutritional criteria laid down by the Foods Standards Agency.

Although there is no precise figure of how much obesity costs the country's
national health service (NHS), every year it spends at least £2 billion on
treating ill health caused by poor diet. Costs are likely to increase unless
measures are put in place to halt this growing problem.

Childhood obesity has become a major political issue in Britain partly due
to a successful campaign by 'Naked Chef' Jamie Oliver who revealed the poor
quality of food being served to children in state-run schools.

Yesterday, another celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay, teamed up with the Food
Standards Agency's Focus on Food campaign running this week to highlight the
importance of food education in schools. Ramsay will visit schools to give
children tips on how to cook.

It is estimated that about 10 percent of children or at least 155 million
youngsters worldwide are overweight or obese.

Copyright - Unless otherwise stated all contents of this web site are ©
2000/2005- NOVIS. - All Rights Reserved.
For permission to reproduce any contents of this web site, please email our
Syndication department: Administration & Finance .

http://www.jamieoliver.net/

http://www.feedmebetter.com/

Jamie Oliver's been campaigning to ban the junk and get fresh, tasty and,
above all, nutritious food back on the school dinners menu.
Help us prove that school meals can be better.
Start a revolution in your school dining hall.
Learn more about the campaign, or read the amazing story of how it happened.

http://www.feedmebetter.com/why/howithappened.php

The first episode of Jamie's 4-part TV series Jamie's School Dinners was
broadcast on 23 February. Jamie signed up as a dinner lady at Kidbrooke
School, Greenwich, to revitalise the comprehensive's meals on a budget of
just 37p per child, for1200 kids. Using culinary magic and legendary
passion (plus the help of feisty Nora and her crack troupe of dinner ladies)
Jamie battled, negotiated, penny-pinched, cooked, chopped and peeled his way
through his toughest challenge yet.

It was very hard work. Nora and Jamie were head to head. The kids cried.
Parents slipped burgers to their children through the school gates. But by
the end of the show, Jamie had won over the council, the caterers and the
kids. He proved that it was possible to switch from a junk food menu and
provide nutritious meals like Hot & Kickin chicken
and Sweet Potato and Lentil Korma-- and all within the budgeted 37p.

But what was really needed was more money from the government.
The Feed Me Better campaign was launched with the website as a magnet for
anyone wanting to support the campaign. The plan was to gather 10,000
signatures to present to Number Ten. But things soon got out of control...

After a week, we had 25,000 signatures. Then 70,000. Then 100,000. The
computers hosting the website were melting. Our petition thermometer broke--
and broke again. Over 200 people were signing per minute. Thousands of
visitors turned to millions. Over 5 million people visited the site while
the TV show was on air. Parents, teachers and dinner ladies swarmed our
forums with stories and suggestions on how to make a difference.

Suddenly, up and down the country, parents and children were sharing Jamie's
disgust at the state of kids' school dinners.

The headlines in the papers were deafening. Jamie was on the front pages of
all the papers: The Guardian, the London Evening Standard, The Daily Mail.
And On Radio 4. On Parkinson. Celebs Kenzie, McFly, Ellen McArthur and
Chelsea's Frank Lampard all weighed in to support the campaign.

Even newspapers from the US and weighty medical journals like The Lancet
were backing the campaign. "Jamie Oliver has done more for the public health
of our children than a corduroy army of health promotion workers or a £100m
Saatchi & Saatchi campaign," the Lancet said.

Jamie wrote his Feed Me Better "white paper" listing the top five things
which The Government needed to change and put it on the website. The
department for education responded with its first tentative statement in
February. They promised an independent school food trust guaranteeing
tougher, minimum standards for school meals. But all the while remaining
uncommitted on what was most needed: hard cash.

Not enough, said Jamie. Parents, headmasters and newspapers agreed.
Throughout March, as Jamie's struggle on TV captivated the nation, pressure
mounted on the government from all sides. 116 MPs signed a cross-party
motion backing FMB. The website petition hit 200,000.

Four days after the broadcast of the last episode, and just over a month
after the campaign launched, Jamie delivered his petition of 271,677
signatures to the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street. It was one of the
biggest ever web-petitions. All these people had signed up their support for
Jamie's motion to ban the junk and get healthy food back on the menu. Tony
Blair thanked Jamie for his "remarkable work" and announced that the
government would take immediate action over school meals.

School kitchens would be rebuilt, dinner ladies trained, parents would
become involved, all overseen by an independent School Food Trust. All this
would be supported with a pledge to spend £280 million was pledged to raise
the average cost per child per meal from 37p to 50p for primary schools and
60p for secondary schools across the country.

This fantastic result was thanks to all of you: the parents, teachers,
dinner ladies, and kids who supported the Feed Me Better campaign. We got a
huge result. Without you guys it would not have been possible.

Since the program, Greenwich has been rolling out Jamie's menus to all its
56 schools in the borough. The Mayor of London has bought a Feed Me Better
starter pack for every school in London. Other schools up and down the
country are making changes too. Of course, this is just the beginning. You
can still help and work for change in your local area. The new Feed Me
Better schools packs are now available to help you change things in your
school. They contain help, advice, info, and recipes.

http://www.feedmebetter.com/why/manifesto.php

The problem
Who's behind FMB?
About the TV series
What is junk food?
How it happened

Manifesto for change

It's meals that count. A lunch time school dinner should give kids a third
of their daily nutritional requirements. That's why it should be packed with
not only fresh produce, but all the proteins, minerals and vitamins needed
for health and growth. Diet also affects kids' behaviour, their physical and
mental development, and their ability to learn - another good reason to ban
the junk and go fresh and tasty.

Recently, many suppliers to Scottish schools had to re-develop their food
products. Why? Because they weren't nutritious enough to meet their newly
introduced basic standard. So what does that mean kids in England are
getting?

Schools urgently need clear nutritional standards to help them improve
school dinners. Plus, a minimum threshold would automatically exclude a lot
of junk foods from school meals. And Ofsted needs the standards if school
meals are going to be included in their inspections from Autumn 2005. Kids
need better food now!

This conscientious, dedicated but mostly invisible part of the workforce
determine the health of our future adult population. Let's invest in them.
Let's make being a dinner lady into a true vocation. Introduce real
qualifications. Commit money for core skills training.

Every new cook entering a school kitchen should have basic cooking and food
preparation skills (many of the younger staff working in school kitchens
don't). Training will also keep them motivated, in touch with each other,
and up-to-date with new nutritional advice, healthy menus and kitchen
management skills. In short, they'll feel proud of their work and feel like
they're making a difference.

Introduce a whole school approach to food education. Many of the kids Jamie
gets coming in for training at 15 can tell you about drugs but don't know
what celery or courgette tastes like, let alone how and where they're grown
and how to cook them. This is because they don't learn about food at school.

Put cookery back on the curriculum. Teach kids how food comes from farms,
not packets. Link lessons to the school dinners menu. Train teachers,
parents and carers. Take FMB home!

On average, dinner ladies have between 35p and 45p to spend on food per
meal, the cost of a bag of crisps. They need at least double that, 70p per
child, to provide a varied and nutritionally balanced menu. Why doesn't the
government commit specific new funding for school meals? More money for
overtime for dinner ladies. More money for training kitchen staff to keep
them motivated. More money for kitchen upgrades and equipment. More money to
put better food on the plate, basically.

Privacy policy | Terms & Conditions | © 2005

http://www.feedmebetter.com/why/junkfood.php

The problem
Who's behind FMB?
Manifesto for change
About the TV series
How it happened

What is junk food?

What the National Heart Forum says:

There is no universally accepted definition of junk food but broadly it can
be defined as 'non-nutritious food'. It provides calories or 'fuel' for the
body to fill children up but has few health promoting nutrients such as
protein, vitamins and minerals.

It is food that provides 'empty calories' and has high concentrations of
refined sugars, fat, salt, colourings, preservatives, artificial flavourings
and artificial sweeteners. Things that eaten in excess can prove detrimental
to health at any age.

However, it is not necessarily harmful to eat junk food occasionally and in
moderation.

What the Oxford English dictionary says:
Junk food (noun): Food with little nutritional value.

The effects of junk food on children

A diet consisting mostly of junk food can have the following effects on
children:

a lack of energy
poor concentration - impairing the ability to learn in class
hyperactivity and behavioural problems
mood swings
constipation
obesity

In the longer term obesity causes other serious and sometimes life
threatening health complications including:

heart disease
high cholesterol
diabetes
heart attacks
strokes
sleep apnoea

What the Government says:

To see what the government says visit the Department for Education and
Skills website's 'Healthy school lunches for pupils in secondary schools'
section.
The DfES website provides practical school dinner recommendations and
self-monitoring checklists for nursery, primary and secondary schools in
England. These indicate what your local school should be doing.

Revision of school food guidelines eagerly awaited

Hungry for success, a report full of recommendations on School meals in
Scotland, is considered by public health professionals to be the gold
standard for School lunches as they are nutrient, rather than food based.

The guidelines for England are currently being revised by the Caroline
Walker Trust and due out summer 2005.

Privacy policy | Terms & Conditions | © 2005

http://www.feedmebetter.com/why/about.php
"Jamie's School Dinners" TV Series

http://www.cwt.org.uk/ The Caroline Walker Trust
Sarah Ivatts PO Box 61 St Austell, PL26 6YL UK
Tel: 01726 844107 Fax: 01726 844453 cwt@...

The Caroline Walker Trust was founded in 1988 after the death of the
distinguished nutritionist, writer and campaigner, Caroline Walker.
Established to continue her work and in her spirit, the CWT depends wholly
on donations, legacies and project grants.
The work of the CWT is particularly targeted towards vulnerable groups and
people who need special help. We have produced nutritional and practical
guidelines for:
> school meals
> under-5s
> older people in residential and nursing homes
> looked after children

http://www.cwt.org.uk/press.html 23 June 2005

National Heart Forum and Caroline Walker Trust Press Release
'Feeding them better' with the appliance of science

The new 'Nutrient-Based Standards for School Food' for England and Wales are
being launched on Thursday 23 June 2005. These are very timely in the wake
of Jamie Oliver's 'Feed me Better' school food campaign and the Government's
commitment of £280 million to urgent improvements.

Paul Lincoln, chief executive of the National Heart Forum, said: "Jamie
Oliver's campaign dramatically exposed the woeful inadequacy of current
minimum standards for school food in England and Wales and triggered a
welcome but long overdue rethink about what we feed children in schools. If
we seriously mean to tackle the crisis in children's eating and diet-related
ill-health, nutritional standards for school food must be raised to a
meaningful benchmark; one which is scientifically based on what we know
about the nutritional needs of growing children. To achieve the sort of
transformation of the school food service seen in Scotland, these standards
must be supported by a range of wider reforms to overhaul catering practices
and restrict processed food."
He concludes: "Parents, schools, caterers and the government all recognise
the problem; we believe these standards provide the proper tools to fix the
problem. Anything less will be tinkering."

Where and when:
The launch take place 11.45am - 1.00pm on Thursday 23 June 2005, at the
Charles Dickens Primary School, London, SEI 1QP. Lunchtime in the school
dinning hall.

Members of the Expert Working Party who compiled the report will be
available for interview, as will the head teacher, children and dinner
ladies on the day. Journalists can have lunch on tables with the School
Council (made up of 24 children) to find out what they think of school food.

Contacts:
Journalists interested in covering the launch please contact Carol Glover,
Communications Manager at the National Heart Forum on 0207 383 7638 if you
are interested in attending the event or to contact spokespeople for phone
interviews.

http://www.heartforum.org.uk/ National Heart Forum

Tavistock House South Tavistock Square London WC1H 9LG
++44 20 7383 7638 Fax ++44 20 7387 2799 webenquiry@...

Who we are:
The National Heart Forum (NHF) is an alliance of 50 national organisations
working to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, the UK 's biggest
single - yet largely preventable - cause of death and disease.

Our work is very wide ranging from influencing urban design and promoting
cycle routes, to producing nutritional guidelines for school meals, to
tobacco regulation.
The NHF's chief executive, Paul Lincoln, and our medical and health policy
experts, are happy to comment and engage in media work on the following
subjects:
Nutrition
Food marketing to children and teenagers
School meals
Salt and health

Advances in the prevention of chronic disease and the risk factors
Coronary heart disease
Raised blood pressure
Obesity

Smoking
Tobacco regulation
Smoke-free public places

Exercise
Physical health and the built environment
Active transport policy - walking and cycling

Hot topics in the NHS and Government health promotion policy

International and EU public health policy

Joe Harvey, chair of The Caroline Walker Trust said: The challenge to reform
the food service in our schools is a formidable one. For far too long we
have worked on the objective of seeing how cheaply we could provide food in
schools rather than setting the appropriate quality standards, costing them
and providing the funding accordingly. These new standards not only update
the previous ones but add a strong dimension in terms of accompanying
recommendations on policy and infrastructure. Nutritional standards have to
apply to the service throughout the day and be consistent with the taught
curriculum - they must be applied not just to the midday meal but to
breakfast, break time and vending operations. So they must be able to be
translated into attractive menus, giving children a practical education in
healthy eating which is enjoyable and so replicable in their lives both as
children and then when they in turn become parents.

This process will require considerable investment in time, product,
equipment, facilities and training, but most of all in a political
commitment from government to governors to deliver a food service for
children that we can all be proud of.


http://www.bma.org.uk/ap.nsf/Content/BioWeaponsII
British Medical Association Dr Vivienne Nathanson, head of the BMA's
science and ethics group, vnathanson@...

Med Confl Surviv. 2003 Oct-Dec; 19(4): 331-4.
Bioterrorism: how should doctors respond to the threat of biological
weapons?
Nathanson V.
British Medical Association, London WC1H 9JP. ahutchinson@...

Planning for the threat of a biological weapons attack includes preparations
to recognize and identify an attack and its scale.
Training is the key element of any response, but it is not possible for any
health service to maintain sufficient extra capacity to deal with a massive
bioterrorist threat.
Training must include both first- and second-line responders.
Subject to issues of confidentiality, information about plans should be as
widely available as possible.
Planning for prevention is also important.
This should include stopping the production and dispersal of weapons under
international humanitarian law and establishing the ethical basis on which
doctors and scientists would not become involved in the production of
biological and other weapons. PMID: 14703131


http://www.food.gov.uk/ Food Standards Agency

http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2005/jun/fsanewsjune2005published
Anyone wishing to subscribe to FSA News should email
kypros.ioannou@..., tel: 020 7276 8839.

http://www.food.gov.uk/aboutus/contactus/ extensive email list

http://www.food.gov.uk/aboutus/how_we_work/profiles info on executives

http://www.food.gov.uk/aboutus/ourboard/boardmem/ very detailed info on the
Board members

Advisory Committee on Research (Secretariat)
Andrew Dunn 020 7276 8785 Andrew.Dunn@...

Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the
Environment (Secretariat)
Khandu Mistry 020 7972 5020 Khandu.Mistry@...

Committee on Mutagenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the
Environment (Secretariat)
Khandu Mistry 020 7972 5020 Khandu.Mistry@...

Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the
Environment (Secretariat)
Keith Butler 020 7276 8522 Keith.Butler@...

Expert Group on Vitamins and Minerals (Secretariat)
Jillian Pitt 020 7276 8938 Jillian.Pitt@...

Food Advisory Committee (Secretariat)
John Caseley 020 7276 8799 John.Caseley@...

Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (Secretariat)
Angela Inwood 020 7276 8924 Angela.Inwood@...

Composition and technology related to wine, spirits and other alcoholic
drinks:
Derek Hampson 020 7276 8140 derek.hampson@...

Allergy and Food Intolerance Policy on Labelling (inc 'May Contain' and
non-prepacked foods) and Awareness
First point of contact for all policy matters relating to food allergy
enquiries:
Dionne Davey 020 7276 8531 dionne.davey@...

Allergy and Food Intolerance Research
First point of contact for all research into food allergy enquiries:
Ruth Dadswell 020 7276 8516 ruth.dadswell@...

Complaints FSA complaints co-ordinator:
Barbara Richards 020 7276 8610 barbara.richards@...

Dietetic Foods
Akki Khan 020 7276 8143 Akki.Khan@...

Environmental Contaminants
Inorganic contaminants (metals) & Organic contaminants -(dioxins, BFR's,
PAHs and PCBs):
David Mortimer 020 7276 8731 David.Mortimer@...


Food Additives
Miscellaneous additives, colours, mineral hydrocarbons and extraction
solvents:
Andy Furmage 020 7276 8570 andy.furmage@...

Sweeteners and Flavourings
Sweeteners, flavourings and enzymes: Donna Griffith-Sackey
020 7276 8581 donna.griffith-sackey@...

Toxicity of Chemicals in Food
Keith Butler 020 7276 8522 Keith.Butler@...
***************************************************************

http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/news-ng.asp?id=60822-asia-increasingly-rich

Asia, increasingly rich opportunity for health food makers

22/06/2005 - Spending on health foods has been identified as the number one
consumer trend in Asia although overweight and obesity percentages are set
to rise, according to a survey released by TNS Asiapanel, reports Claire
Johnston.

More consumers than ever in Asia are making a move towards a healthier
lifestyle, with a recent TNS survey revealing that spending on health foods
is the number one 'mega trend' in consumer behaviour.

Based on the responses of a panel of nearly 40,000 households across
different countries in Asia, the biggest concern amongst shoppers is to eat
healthy -- evidenced by significant year on year growth in spending on health
foods.

Revealed to be the most health conscious were the Taiwanese consumers. In
2004, over 50 per cent of the total grocery bill of each Taiwanese household
was spent on healthy products, such as fruit and vegetables, RTD tea,
vitamins, cereals, yogurt products and liquid milk.

Vietnam also showed similar increases being the country in which more
households than any other - 90 per cent - expressed a willingness to pay
more for health foods and drinks.

Comparing the percentage of overweight or obese by country, Asia is fairing
much better than the Western World -- although it seems to be catching up as
the survey reveals a significant growth for snack foods purchased by
consumers in several countries.

"Health and well being is a worldwide concern and whilst obesity levels
across Asia remain relatively low in comparison to western nations, the
positive trend in consumer spending on more health conscious food products
across the region is heartening -- especially in Taiwan and Vietnam where the
latest figures point to a recognition that action needs to be taken if
obesity is to be reduced and prevented respectively,"
said director of TNS Asiapanel, Helen Passingham-Hughes.

However, for countries such as Malaysia and Thailand where obesity, snacking
and convenience foods are on the increase, the findings should serve as a
wake up call, she added.

With the survey showing a massive 91 per cent year on year increase of
snacking products purchased in Vietnam, the growth in snack foods could
potentially see Asia's currently low incidence of obesity rise.

Copyright - Unless otherwise stated all contents of this web site are ©
2000/2005- NOVIS. - All Rights Reserved.
For permission to reproduce any contents of this web site, please email our
Syndication department: Administration & Finance .
Full details for the use of materials on this site can be found in the Terms
& Conditions.

TNS Head Office Taylor Nelson Sofres plc.
TNS Westgate London W5 1UA United Kingdom
44 (0) 20 8967 0007 Fax: 44 (0) 20 8967 4060

TNS is one of the world's leading marketing information groups. Through our
network of offices in more than 50 countries we provide marketing
information services to leading national and multi-national companies
operating in over 80 countries.

http://www.asiapanel.com/about.htm
What is an Asiapanel and how does it work?
A panel is a permanent, syndicated and representative sample of one defined
population (typically domestic households) which is used to regularly and
continuously observe and measure consumers' product purchase behavior.
All family members are trained to fill in the buying diary on entry to the
home, which is either posted or collected by interviewers weekly.

In some countries we have advanced in-home bar code scanners, and in these
all family members are trained to scan any barcoded purchases on entry to
the home using a hand-held electronic terminal. Non-barcoded items (for
instance, loose fruit and vegetables) are recorded using a patented codebook
in conjunction with the terminal.

The result is a highly detailed and constantly updated picture of consumers
purchasing across Asia.

http://www.asiapanel.com/contact.htm

Asiapanel, regional co-ordination
Helen Passingham-Hughes +(60)3 2176 3300 Fax: +(60)3 2162 1958
asiapanel@... www.tns-global.com

INTAGE Inc.
Asiapanel, Japan
Michihiro Ota +(81) 424 76 51 60 Fax: +(81) 424 76 51 96
asiapanel@... www.intage.co.jp
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http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/news-ng.asp?id=60738-industry-fails-to

Metabolic syndrome to explode among European children
Obesity moves higher on French political agenda
France targets hidden sugars
One third of French adults on a diet

Industry fails to halt French ban on school vending machines

17/06/2005 - The French government last night rejected an amendment to its
ban on vending machines in secondary schools, set to be introduced in
September, writes Dominique Patton. [ editor of Novis
NutraIngredients.com ]

Members of the ruling UMP party wanted to amend the law by adding an article
to allow vending machines to provide products such as fruit or healthy
drinks or foods that could be approved on a list drawn up by the education
and health departments.

They claim that the new law will result in the loss of jobs among the small
and medium-sized businesses that supply vending machines, and referred to a
statement issued in September last year by the French food safety authority
(AFSSA) that said the ban should not have any effect on bottled water or
fruit.

However Yves Bur, vice-president of the governing party the UMP, denounced
the amendment as the result of intensive lobbying by distributors of foods
and fizzy drinks for venching mahciens.

The amendment is the third attempt in the last year to overturn the planned
law.

In a statement the politician said that the lobbying merely aimed to
preserve economic interests without taking into account the health of French
children.

Around 16 per cent of French children are said to be overweight or obese,
double that of 15 years ago. Five million adults in the country are obese.

AFSSA also reacted to the proposed change by stating that while it was not
opposed to water being available in schools, fruit should be offered as part
of a meal and not through vending machines, which would encourage snacking.

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http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/12/tribun/fiches_id/691.asp
M. Yves Bur ybur@...
*************************************************************

Rich Murray, MA Room For All rmforall@... 505-501-2298
1943 Otowi Road Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505 USA
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/messages
group with 187 members, 1,183 posts in a public, searchable archive

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1182
Joining together: short review: research on aspartame (methanol,
formaldehyde, formic acid) toxicity: Murray 2005.07.08 rmforall

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1071
research on aspartame (methanol, formaldehyde, formic acid) toxicity: Murray
2004.04.29 rmforall

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1143
methanol (formaldehyde, formic acid) disposition: Bouchard M et al, full
plain text, 2001: substantial sources are degradation of fruit pectins,
liquors, aspartame, smoke: Murray 2005.04.02 rmforall
*************************************************************