Plans to lift quotas on sugar production in the European Union could worsen health problems such as obesity, campaigners say
Controversial agricultural reforms by the European Union could cause sugar levels in food and drink to rise, experts have warned.
Campaigners said it was “perverse” that the EU was planning to lift sugar production quotas at a time when health authorities are advising people to reduce their consumption of the ingredient.
Under the current system production of sugar within the EU is restricted to 13.3 million tonnes a year. However the quota is due to be scrapped in 2017 as part of a series of reforms to the Common Agricultural Policy.
The move is expected to make sugar cheaper for food and drink manufacturers, prompting fears it will encourage them to use rising levels of the ingredient. Dr Aseem Malhotra, science director of Action on Sugar, a campaign group, said it would be “disastrous” for public health.
An “options for action” paper produced by the UK Health Forum, a coalition of heart disease specialists, for Public Health England, the quango, last month raised concerns about the change, saying it "may influence sugar intakes & public health."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10948024/EU-plans-too-sweet-for-health-activists.htmlStatistics: Posted by maureenho — 06 Jul 2014, 09:30
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