Mr. Shane Dempsey:

The food industry is deeply embedded in the economic and social fabric of Ireland. We are here to say we want to be an active partner in solving the problem of childhood obesity and recognise we have a responsibility in this regard. We are here to engage with the Government on the issue and commend the committee for the work it is doing to this end.

I want to take a few minutes to outline how food companies are actively living up to their responsibilities to provide the solutions that might inform the work of the committee. I respectfully ask the committee to recommend to the Government that it adopt a whole society approach that will draw in all stakeholders who have a role to play in resolving this issue. I will take members through the types of policies that would make a major difference in tackling childhood obesity. We can discuss a number of them.

Slide No. 4 sets out the food companies' contribution under a number of headings. Heading No. 1 is reformulation, in respect of which companies reduce nutrients in products; heading No. 2 is information - companies provide information and adhere to strict marketing and advertising guidelines in the promotion of their products and communications with consumers; under heading No. 3 is listed the companies that produce and market a range of products, including reduced variant products, and offer products of varying portion sizes to consumers. The final heading is active lifestyles and wellness, in respect of which companies support local community activities and, at national and EU level, support the multi-stakeholder forum such as the Nutrition and Health Foundation,NHF, and the EU platform on diet, health and physical activity.

Slide No. 5 shows the statistics from a recent survey that FDII carried out of its members. Let me highlight some of the elements. Some 82% of FDII companies have engaged in the past three years in reformulation of their products; 76% have reduced their salt content; 50% have their reduced saturated fat content; 58% have reduced their sugar content; while 60% have launched alternative products. We spoke about variants; this includes actions by companies such as the 68% which had variant portion size information on their products and the 46% which had introduced products of reduced portion size.

The issue of trans fat was raised at other committee meetings. It is important to note that the FSAI reported that trans fat levels in the population were within guidelines mainly owing to the work of food companies and FDII members in removing trans fat. The industry is taking steps to deal with the issue. I will now outline the further steps we propose to take to deal with it.

FDII members believe partnership and engagement are the way to solve obesity. Most members will agree with this. They have asked Food and Drink Industry Ireland to create a platform on which the industry and the Government can collaborate to solve the problem together. Our approach is called the Live Well Project. Slide No. 6 presents our ideas in graphical format and I will highlight some of the key points. The first pillar is that all participating members sign up to a pledge reinforcing their commitment to inform, provide choice, reformulate products and promote healthier lifestyles. The second pillar is that member companies work with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, FSAI, on the issues of reformulation, choice and fortification on an annual basis, similar to the approach used to the salt reduction programme. The third pillar involves a national workplace wellbeing campaign aimed at creating healthier workplaces. The fourth pillar is to engage with some of Ireland's leading health professionals to identify the key research projects that will give us the necessary insights into tackling obesity. The fifth pillar lists the food categories such as cereals, bread and confectionery, on which we will work in union and consultation with the Government to agree specific initiatives where a difference can be made.

Most experts agree that obesity, childhood and adult, is a very complex problem that requires all stakeholders to work together. Slide No. 7 has a series of quotations from the UK Foresight report of 2008, the European Commission and health professionals. The message is that everyone needs to pull together. I am not under any illusion. We all have different views on how it should work, but it is important to get together and use a platform such as the Live Well Project to address the problem.

Slide No. 8 highlights the complexity of the problem, but as it is not very clear, I have a map of the 109 factors which drive obesity. These factors are interdependent and inter-related and some are more important than others. Slide No. 9 groups the factors together under the following headings: food consumption, individual psychology, the biology of the individual and food production. The point the slide makes is that obesity is a very complex problem. If one targets a single factor, the others that influence obesity are still at play. We need to get everyone involved, food companies, schools, parents, sport groups and NGOs, to address the problem.

Slide No. 10 outlines the principles of a solution. The first is a strategy for a societal response in which all stakeholders are involved. The industry want to be an effective partner in the process. Intervention should be long-term and sustained. Early and sustained interventions aimed at prevention are key to dealing with childhood obesity. Physical activity has a major role to play in dealing with it. We are willing to work with the Government on the principles of a solution to deal with the issue.

Let me outline a case study of how the partnership model will work. In 2004 the FSAI and FDII began work on salt reductions initiatives across the industry. Slide No. 11 shows some of the results of that initiative. There was a 20% reduction in the salt content of bread; a 25% reduction in the salt content of soups and sauces; a 48% reduction in the salt content of breakfast cereals since 1998 and a 19% decrease in the salt content of crisps. That demonstrates what can be done when the industry and State agencies work together to bring the population along. The last Irish Universities Nutritional Alliance, IUNA, survey found that while the level of salt consumed by people in foods had reduced, the level of discretionary salt intake had increased, in other words, people were starting to shake it on food. This highlights the complexity of the issue. One needs to supplement the efforts of the industry and the Government with information directed at particular groups.

Slide No. 12 relates to labelling and shows the guideline daily amount levels. Labelling was mentioned at the previous committee meeting. The industry introduced labels in 2009 and allocated significant resources to having them put on products. The statistics on slide No. 13 speak for themselves. Some 95% of own brand products and 83% of branded goods carry information on GDAs. This is another example of the industry working together to make a difference.

Slide No. 14 refers to food advertising and marketing. It is important to state the level of exposure of children to advertising of food products has reduced greatly. That has been a trend in recent years. In Ireland voluntary steps by the industry have led to the level of exposure of children to advertising on Irish television services dropping from 36% to 7%. This is a contentious issue which will come up in the question and answer session.

Food companies have a very high compliance rate with the existing Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland advertising guidelines. They have their own internal codes as well. I mentioned the EU bodies earlier. Food companies are committed to the EU advertising pledge. A recent audit showed that there is almost 100% compliance with that across the media. A report that was compiled recently as part of the BAI consultation showed that the advertising of foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt decreased by 48% between 2003 and 2010. Under the current BAI proposals, with which everyone at this meeting is familiar, cheese will be included in the advertising ban even though one in three Irish children has an inadequate calcium intake. We believe the reason for its inclusion was the failure to lean strongly enough on data from the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance. If we are to address childhood obesity, the point needs to be made time and again that science has to be used as part of an evidence-based approach. The world class data from the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance, which was compiled at a cost of €7 million to the Irish taxpayer, is the best data and is the envy of other countries. It should be used when decisions on policy are being made.

The introduction of vending machines in our schools is a contentious issue that has been mentioned by the joint committee previously. I am sure we will talk about it again. I would like to say at the outset that there are no vending machines in primary schools in Ireland. In 2005, FDII and its members established guidelines for vending machines in schools. All relevant FDII members are complying with those voluntary guidelines. It is worth noting that members consult school management when they are stocking products. We have established that schools control the product mix, the introduction of vending machines and the number of machines. It is also worth mentioning, from FDII's perspective, that most schools are stocked by third party operators.

The effect that any potential increase in the rate of taxation that applies to soft drinks would have on the obesity crisis is another issue that is being examined at the moment. The evidence that taxation reduces obesity, or has any impact on obesity, is very sketchy. The reality is that taxation will more than likely affect wealth and not health. That has been the experience in Denmark. It is interesting to note that Italy has rejected any proposals for food taxation. I return to the point that all policies, regardless of their specific features, have to be balanced and have to be part of a holistic response.

FDII is respectfully asking this committee to recommend that the Government should lead a whole-of-society approach to childhood obesity. We are requesting that the committee engage with the proposal that has been made by the industry on the LiveWell project. We suggest that the committee should avoid policies that are not based on evidence and programmes that target food companies. Education and information must form the basis for policy interventions. We have cited the use of the data from the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance in that context. I would like to finish by restating the commitment of Irish food companies to work with the Government to solve this issue.