Question reference: S4W-27620
- Asked by: Nanette Milne, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 22 September 2015
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Current status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 1 October 2015
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to encourage healthy eating among children and young people, and what its position is on the findings in the Scottish Health Survey 2014 that 14% of children meet the recommended minimum daily fruit and vegetable consumption and 31% are at risk of becoming overweight.
Answer
The Scottish Government notes the 2014 Scottish Health Survey’s figures concerning children’s weight and diet.
We recognise the need for action and accordingly already have a broad range of actions underway including: statutory nutritional standards for food and drink in schools; the inclusion of food and health as a core topic with the Curriculum for Excellence; the extension of free school meals; the launch of Beyond the School Gate guidance for local authorities and other partners to improve food provision for young people in the vicinity of schools; the Eat Better Feel Better campaign to promote healthier eating messages with a specific focus on families from deprived areas, and the Healthier Scotland Cooking Bus which teaches practical cooking skills to children, teachers and local community groups across Scotland and the funding of child healthy weight intervention programmes.
We are also committed to support a pre-9pm ban on broadcast advertising of food high in fat, sugar and salt, to improve child public health. The Scottish Government has been clear that the advertising of unhealthy food should be restricted before the 9pm watershed, and that if the UK Government is unprepared to take this step, the power should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament. We believe that this step will help to rebalance promotions of food towards healthier options such as fruit and vegetables.