Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I take Mr. Macey's point but my concern is that in the case of sugary drinks, there is probably a small number of large market players. I am not sure whether the wider food industry is the same but some of the businesses relate to ultra-processed foods such as cakes, breads, processed meats and snacks including cookies. There is a large number of manufacturers, so I wonder whether it will have the same effect.

Another concern I have with regard to designing this, which my party colleague Deputy Conway-Walsh mentioned, relates to how we can ensure it is targeted properly. Obesity levels, as bad as they are throughout the State, have a greater impact in deprived areas. I am not sure whether it was in the Irish Heart Foundation's briefing notes or the commission’s findings, which are stark, that it is stated that a healthy calories approach costs ten times more than an unhealthy one. The issue is that ultra-processed foods are a lot cheaper than healthier foods and, therefore, in areas of higher deprivation low-income families use them as part of their staple diet. The danger is that if we do not get industry to move, we will just impose a greater burden on them given the alternatives are still probably going to be more expensive than ultra-processed foods. Does Mr. Macey have any concern in that regard?