Top Editors ... From scapegoat to saviour?

Title: From scapegoat to saviour?
Date: 25/04/2007
Autor: By Lynda Searby

Legislators and industry are working fast and furious to provide solutions as the obesity debate continues to rage in Europe and throughout the world

New regulations restricting advertising of food and drink with high fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) levels during television programmes aimed at under 16s came into force in January in the UK. This dealt a heavy blow to an industry already reeling from last September’s ban on HFSS foods in schools.
More significantly perhaps, it represented another crushing defeat in what is increasingly becoming a battle for food industry independence amid mounting calls for tighter regulations from lobbyists and consumer groups. And it is not just in the UK that manufacturers are feeling the mounting pressure to take action against obesity.
In France, a ban on vending machines in schools has been in place since August last year, and as of February, food manufacturers will be required to either pay a 1.5% levy or include a compulsory health message in any promotional activity.
In a move that surprised many observers, in November, Latvia became the latest EU country to banish so called ‘junk foods’ from schools and nurseries. This move followed hot on the heels of the Russian government’s decision in August to outlaw snacks from schools.
Portugal, Switzerland and The Netherlands are also considering advertising bans or restrictions in advertising specifically to children; while advertising to children via terrestrial TV has been illegal in Sweden ever since commercial TV first started.
Many food manufacturers argue against the need for such draconian measures, on the basis that self-regulation is a more effective approach, and in any case, most have signed up to voluntary codes that go beyond the law.
According to Johanna Lavender, corporate affairs manager with Kraft Foods. “If you look at what the industry is doing around advertising and GDA (Guideline Daily Allowance) labelling, the industry can move far quicker than traditional legislation. So I think that, where possible, self-regulation is the best way to tackle obesity.”

The EU Platform on Diet, Physical Activity and Health, initiated two years ago by Markos Kyprianou, the European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection, has served as the main vehicle for industry to demonstrate its voluntary actions on obesity.
Through industry associations such as the CIAA, UNESDA (the Union of European Beverages Associations and ESA (the European Snacks Association), food manufacturers have committed to affirmative actions. UNESDA’s commitments include, for example, the promise not to advertise to children under 12 or actively enter into any commercial activity in primary schools; and that in sales situations consumers are offered a range of drink options including no- and low-calorie products. To date 104 soft drinks companies across Europe have signed thecommitments.
Kraft Foods is approaching the obesity issue by focusing on three key areas: providing more choices, more information and consistent messaging.
“In terms of choices,we know that consumers are interested in eating more fruit, vegetables and wholegrains, so we’re looking at how we can add those to our products, whilst reducing fat, salt and sugar,” explained Ms Lavender.
Examples of products developed in line with this strategy are wholegrain crisps marketed under the Estrella brand in the Nordic countries, and Kraft’s Extra Light Philadelphia cream cheese brand, which tastes virtually the same as regular Philadelphia but contains just 5% fat. “We’ve been able to do this via a proprietary technology that uses whey protein,” said Ms Lavendar, who also pointed out that to provide consumers with more information, Kraft is including more nutritional information on the back of packs. “At the moment 99% of our products in the EU have the ‘Big 8’ on the back and the ‘Big 4’ if it’s a small pack. It will be on 100% of our products by March.”
In a bid to provide consistent messaging, Kraft is committed to rolling out GDA labelling across all its brands in the next few years. “There will be a calorie flash and energy information front of pack and extended nutrition information on the back of packs which will explain the amounts of nutrients per serving and per 100g as well the percentage of GDA that represents.”

Asked why Kraft joined seven other multinational food manufacturers to adopt a GDA system rather than the controversial traffic light labelling system, Ms Lavender said diplomatically, “Research has shown that consumers find the GDA system easy to use; it helpfully, not dictatorially, gives them information and enables them to make
choices, by contrast to an approach that demonises certain foods.”
One area in which the food industry does - in principle at least - welcome intervention from law-makers - is health claims. The forthcoming European health and nutrition claims regulation (see p17 for further information) is designed to control claims such as ‘good for your heart’ and ‘low fat’, in a bid to stamp out unfounded claims on food packages - which manufacturers like Unilever and Kraft view as a positive step.

Nutrient profiling

What the food and drinks industry isn’t so struck on is the concept of nutrient profiling, a system which will prevent foods with high levels of sugar, salt or fat from carrying claims.
“We remain firmly opposed to the concept of nutrient profiling,” says UNESDA’s Sam Rowe. “We do not believe classifying foods as good or bad is appropriate or useful. We firmly believe that there is no such thing as bad foods but only bad diets and the challenge is to educate people to eat in a balanced way.” But it’s not all negative. There’s no doubt the obesity crisis has imposed some onerous obligations on food manufacturers, but it has also brought a host of new revenue opportunities. As the food manufacturer’s role in the debate shifts from scapegoat to saviour, the very companies blamed for contributing to the problem are expected to come up with solutions.
While in many cases these have arrived in the form of reformulations to reduce fat,sugar and salt, heightened interest in weight management has also spawned some genuine innovation. Product introductions claiming to ‘satisfy hunger’ and ‘suppress appetites’ have catapulted the unpronounceable word ‘satiety’ from obscurity into everyday use.
It’s a trend that has already been clocked by market research analyst Euromonitor International, which forecasts that ‘satiety’ could have the legs to surpass both the GI and low-carb phenomena.

And with innovations like Lipid Nutrition’s PinnoThin and DSM’s Fabuless, there’s no doubt the ingredients are there to make this happen. Pine nut oil, extracted from the seeds of the Korean pine, forms the basis of PinnoThin . This active ingredient is said to stimulate the hunger-suppressing hormone CCK (cholecystokinin) and GLP1 (glucagonlike peptide). Fabuless, a combination of oat and palm oils, works by preventing the digestion of palm oil droplets until relatively deep in the small intestine. Undigested fat arriving in this part of the small intestine, known as the ileum, triggers an ‘appetite satisfied’ signal to the brain.

Campina, one of Europe’s largest dairy firms, has used Fabuless in Optimel Control, a one shot dairy drink aimed at weight conscious consumers in The Netherlands.
Swedish company NutriTech has developed Aktivated Barley, an ingredient that has been clinically proven to increase energy levels (through slow burning complex carbohydrates) and lower LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Aktivated Barley contains a high proportion of the soluble fibre betaglucans, which manage blood sugar levels and can promote weight management through their high fibre content.
NutriTech has launched two end-products in the UK which are formulated with Aktivated Barley. Aktiv Everyday is a chocolate covered energy bar, and Aktiv Meal Replacement Drink is a ready to mix beverage.
For the most part, though, the ingredients being used in satiety-inducing products are good old proteins and fibres, whose ability to satisfy has been known for years.
“Probably the most studied compounds regarding satiety are not necessarily the sexy compounds, but the nutrients that have the most supporting information, like fibre and protein,” says Sue Potter, vice president of nutrition with Tate and Lyle. “Protein and fibre really do have an effect on satiety, so if you want to get the biggest bang for your buck, a combination of the two is the way to go scientifically.”

This month (February), Tate and Lyle launched Enrich, a new service designed to help food and beverage manufacturers create products that are rich in nutrients but taste as good as regular brands.
One of the three areas covered by the new offering is ‘Obesity and Weight Management’. Tate and Lyle has developed prototypes in three categories - dairy, beverage and bakery - to demonstrate how fibres, proteins and selected essential vitamins can be used in products to promote satiety.
Flavoured Water Enrich, for example, is an ingredient concept for lightly carbonated or still flavoured waters. Besides satiating fibre and protein, drink prototypes contain calcium, vitamins B6 and B12 (essential nutrients that function as coenzymes in metabolism of protein, carbohydrates and fat), vitamins A and E, and various minerals.
Belgium-based Orafti, meanwhile, has been busy building a scientific case for incorporating its prebiotic chicory rootderived fibres in products with a satiety sell.
A new pilot study in humans has demonstrated that Beneo oligofructose can curb hunger and lower energy intake. A likely explanation for this effect is that oligofructose fermentation in the colon modulates the release of gut hormones in the blood, which send signals to the brain influencing appetite and consequently food intake.
Naturis is another ingredient supplier flying the flag for fibres in addressing the obesity issue. Naturis is working with a number of companies to design weight management concepts using soluble and insoluble fibres, fruit-based carbohydrates and beta glucan from oats.


This article was reproduced with permission from Food & Beverage
International (copyright Haydon Jackson Publishing Ltd)
www.foodandbeverageinternational.com