Select committee: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Recommendation 22
Seventh Report - Food security
Published 28 Jul 2023
Paragraph 86
Addressed to Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Food Security All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
We welcome the steps taken by Sainsbury’s and Tesco to voluntarily stop offering volume price promotions on HFSS food, and call on other supermarkets and smaller shops to swiftly follow their lead in the continue absence of legal restrictions to help tackle the widespread problem of unhealthy eating. We challenge all food shops to go further and to stop all promotions of HFSS food, including single purchase discounts offered to their loyalty scheme holders, and also cook-at-home meal deals such as for pizzas and convenience foods.
From: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, Seventh Report - Food security (HC 622), paragraph 86, 28 July 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 17 November 2023 (deadline 28 September 2023).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government says it "takes all aspects of food security very seriously" but, across the report's recommendations, mostly points to existing measures and gives few new commitments, with some proposals declined or not planned.
- On an annual UK Food Security Report, it says "We do not have plans to make the UKFSR an annual publication" and that the next report will be published by December 2024.
- On the Cabinet Office review of food policy structures, it "agrees with the need for policy coherence and for strong leadership", but points to existing cross-Whitehall structures rather than committing to a review.
- On free school meals, it says it does "not have plans to change the current eligibility conditions" but "will continue to keep eligibility under review"; on a sugar and salt tax, it does not consider "now is the right time".
- On the Shropshire labour review, it is "currently considering the recommendations and intend[s] to publish a response before the end of the year".