Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that (a) all food provided through the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme is sourced at the highest quality and (b) healthy eating is promoted more widely in schools.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
Suppliers of fruit and vegetables to the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme are required to adhere to all elements of law in the United Kingdom. They are required to supply produce which meets Government fresh fruit and vegetable marketing standards, and the standards set for the Red Tractor food assurance scheme for UK-sourced foods, or Globalgap, the international equivalent for fruit and vegetables sourced from outside the UK. Schools are encouraged to use the scheme as an opportunity to educate children about fruit and vegetables and to encourage the consumption of a healthy, balanced diet.
The standards for school food are set out in the requirement for School Food Regulations 2014 and are to ensure that schools provide children with healthy food and drink options, and to make sure that children get the energy and nutrition they need across the school day. The Government encourages all schools to promote healthy eating and provide healthy, tasty, and nutritious food and drink. Compliance with the School Food Standards is mandatory for all maintained schools, academies, and free schools.
The School Food Standards regulate the food and drink provided at both lunchtime and at other times of the school day, including, for example, breakfast clubs, tuck shops, mid-morning break, vending and after school clubs.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what discussions he has held with local planning authorities on ensuring that developers build homes that have enough (a) internal space for families to (i) store, (ii) prepare, (iii) cook and (iv) eat healthy food and (b) external space to grow fruit and vegetables.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Government is committed to ensuring that the planning system creates sustainable, healthy places with high-quality homes.
Local councils have the option to implement the Nationally Described Space Standard to set minimum space standards in their local area where this can be justified, as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
The National Design Guide, which supports the NPPF, sets out the ten characteristics of well-designed places and recognises that well-designed homes provide internal and external space that support the health and wellbeing of residents.
In addition, the National Model Design Code, which guides local councils in the production of local design codes, emphasises the need for new development to provide high-quality internal and external living spaces that meet a range of needs. This includes sufficient space for the storage and preparation of healthy food as well as opportunities for food growing.
Asked by: Lyn Brown (Labour - West Ham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the adherence to international human rights standards at Kenyan fruit farms that have links to businesses in the UK.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are aware of the allegations made against the American multinational, Del Monte. The UK Government is clear that it expects all UK businesses to respect human rights throughout their operations, including their supply chain, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs). The UK was the first State to produce a National Action Plan (NAP). As outlined in our NAP, the UK has a range of judicial and state-based non-judicial mechanisms that help to support access to remedy for human rights abuses by business enterprises both in the UK and overseas.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment impact of ultra processed foods on people's health.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Government encourages everyone to have a healthy balanced diet in line with the United Kingdom’s healthy eating model, the Eatwell Guide, which shows that foods high in fat, salt or sugar should be eaten less often or in small amounts.
UK Government dietary guidelines are based on recommendations from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). SACN is currently carrying out a scoping review of the evidence on processed foods and health and aims to publish its position statement in the summer of 2023.
There is currently no universally agreed definition of ultra-processed foods. However, a diet high in foods classified as processed is often high in calories, salt, saturated fat and sugar and low in fibre, fruit and vegetables, which is associated with an increased risk of obesity and developing chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for health policies of the quality of food provided by foodbanks; and whether he plans to provide vouchers for people using foodbanks to purchase healthy foods.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Department has made no specific assessment and has no current plans to provide vouchers for foodbanks. Through the Healthy Food Schemes the Government provides a nutritional safety net to those families who need it the most. Healthy Start, the Nursery Milk Scheme and the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme together help more than three million children.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to provide financial support for parents of children who cannot use Healthy Start vouchers due to their children's dietary requirements.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
Healthy Start can be used to buy, or be put towards the cost of, fresh, frozen or tinned fruit and vegetables, fresh, dried and tinned pulses, plain cow’s milk and infant formula. Healthy Start beneficiaries are also eligible for free Healthy Start Vitamins.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to encourage food growth in the horticulture sector.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
An innovative, productive, and competitive agricultural sector is one of HM Government's key priorities, it is crucial to the resilience of our food system as well as an important part of our wider economy, and we are committed to supporting it.
At last month’s Farm to Fork Summit we announced a wide range of measures to support the horticulture sector, including a replacement Fruit & Vegetables Aid Scheme for England from 2026, expanding the scheme to ensure that more growers, including those involved in Controlled Environment Horticulture such as glasshouses, are able to benefit. This improved scheme will play a vital role in our farming reforms and help increase domestic horticulture production. Also announced was a review of the horticulture supply chain to help ensure farmers are paid a fair price for their produce.
Defra regularly engages with the horticulture industry to understand what support they need to continue to produce great food. Our discussions with industry representatives, help inform future policy development and help us understand what support the sector needs to help it thrive.
Asked by: Jo Gideon (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the potential revenue generated by by extending the Soft Drinks Industry Levy to include (a) milk-based drinks and (b) fruit juice; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gareth Davies - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The exemption for milk-based and certain milk substitute drinks will next be considered after the Office for Health Inequalities and Disparities completes its voluntary sugar reduction reporting programme, expected later in 2023.
The primary aim of the SDIL is to encourage producers to remove added sugar from soft drinks. There are no current plans to review the exclusion of fruit juices packaged and sold without added sugars.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to promote healthy eating in schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department encourages a healthy balanced diet and healthy life choices through school funding, legislation and guidance. Schools are encouraged to have a whole school approach to healthy eating through the National Curriculum and school food provision.
The standards for school food are set out in the Requirements for School Food Regulations 2014. These regulations are designed to ensure that schools provide pupils with healthy food and drink options, and to make sure that pupils have the energy and nutrition they need throughout the school day.
1.9 million of the most disadvantaged pupils are eligible for and are claiming a free, healthy and nutritious school meal. An additional 1.25 million infants enjoy a free meal at lunchtime, following the introduction of Universal Infant Free School Meals.
The School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme also provides over 2.2 million pupils in Reception and Key Stage 1 with a portion of fresh fruit or vegetables each day at school. Schools are encouraged to use this as an opportunity to educate pupils on the benefits of a healthy, balanced diet.
The importance of a healthy diet is also included in the science curriculum for both primary and secondary school. Healthy eating is covered through topics relating to nutrition and digestion, which cover the content of a healthy diet and the impact of diet on how the body functions.
The relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance states that by the end of primary school, pupils should know what constitutes a healthy diet (including understanding nutritional content), the principles of planning and preparing a range of healthy meals, the characteristics of a poor diet, and the risks associated with unhealthy eating. By the end of secondary school pupils should know how to maintain a healthy diet and understand the links between a poor diet and health risks.
Healthy eating and opportunities to develop pupils’ cooking skills are covered in the design and technology (DT) curriculum. Cooking and nutrition is a discrete strand of the DT curriculum and is compulsory in maintained schools for Key Stages 1 to 3. The curriculum aims to teach pupils how to cook and how to apply the principles of healthy eating and nutrition. The Department has also introduced a new food preparation and nutrition GCSE to provide pupils with practical cookery experience and teach them the underlying scientific concepts of nutrition and healthy eating.
The Healthy Schools Rating Scheme celebrates the positive actions that schools are delivering in terms of healthy living, healthy eating and physical activity, and supports schools in identifying further actions that they can take in this area. This voluntary rating scheme is available for both primary and secondary schools.
Asked by: John Cryer (Labour - Leyton and Wanstead)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of (a) public health measures to raise awareness of the potential risks of ultra-processed foods, (b) introducing measurable reduction targets for consumption of ultra-processed foods and (c) ensuring that ultra-processed foods do not appear as good choices on the NHS Food Scanner app.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Government encourages everyone to have a healthy balanced diet in line with the United Kingdom’s healthy eating model, the Eatwell Guide, which shows that foods high in saturated fat, salt or sugar should be eaten less often or in small amounts.
United Kingdom Government dietary guidelines are based on recommendations from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). SACN is currently carrying out a scoping review of the evidence on processed foods and health and aims to publish its initial assessment in the summer of 2023.
There is currently no universally agreed definition of ultra-processed foods. However, a diet high in foods classified as processed is often high in calories, salt, saturated fat and sugar and low in fibre, fruit and vegetables, which is associated with an increased risk of obesity and developing chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes and some cancers.
The Good Choice badge helps people identify healthier options using the NHS Food Scanner app and when shopping in store and online. The app and wider Better Health tools supports families on their journey towards having a healthier diet, as making the step to the healthiest option may be too far for many people in one move.