Britain's biggest coffee shops have promised to take salt and fat out of sandwiches and cakes eaten by tens of millions of customers as part of a new campaign against junk food launched today.
The Independent has learned that seven chains – Starbucks, Costa Coffee, Pret A Manger, Caffè Nero, Eat, Greggs and BB's - have made public commitments to change hundreds of products that contribute to heart disease and obesity.
The moves, to be officially announced by the Food Standards Agency today, could improve the health of tens of millions of customers who are unwittingly consuming high-calorie foods.
At present nutritional information is not displayed in coffee shops' "freshly made products", meaning that many customers are unaware of the threat posed by sandwiches, snacks and pastries loaded with salt and saturated fat.
A large coffee and a muffin at Costa Coffee or Starbucks, for instance, can contain more than 1,000 calories – around half of an adult's recommended daily intake – while other chains such as Pret A Manger have been criticised for selling mayonnaise-heavy sandwiches.
Among the commitments are that-Pret a Manger will for the first time display calorie counts Starbucks review its range and change at least 10 best-selling products Eat will reduce salt in soups and make sandwiches and salads healthier.
n Costa Coffee will sell only food rated healthy by the FSA n Greggs will remove hydrogenated fat, artificial colourings and flavourings from its pies Each commitment given by the chains will be reviewed by the FSA every six months as part of a rolling programme to transform the health of coffee shops. The agency is targeting the £1bn-a-year coffee-shop business in an attempt to reform takeaway and restaurant meals, which now account for one quarter of the food we eat.
Officials are concerned that improvements made by shops and supermarkets to reduce salt, sugar and fat will be undermined if customers get a taste for more unhealthy food at cafés. Nutritionists from the FSA have been working with the chains to show them how they can cut harmful nutrients by employing simple techniques like switching from full-fat to semi-skimmed milk and cooking chicken without skin.
Changes are likely to be introduced gradually to ensure that customers do not notice a change in the taste of their favourite snacks and sandwiches. In an interview with The Independent, the FSA's chief executive, Tim Smith said: "Behind the scenes there's quite a bit of reformulation work going on.
Whether the sandwich shop chooses then to brag about that or make it a marketing advantage, I don't think we're so interested in. But some of the changes will be invisible, so your BLT (bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich) might be a BLT, but it might have lower-salt bread, low-fat mayonnaise and less fatty bacon."
Among the biggest changes customers will notice is the trial beginning in some Pret A Manger outlets next month, which will see calorie counts displayed on the price tag below sandwiches.Many of the chains say they have been quietly removing fat and sugar from their products for the past two years. Starbucks said it had doubled the number of healthier-choice foods in its stores in the past two years.
In January this year, the US coffee giant cut the amount of salt in its sandwiches by 14 per cent. Costa Coffee, the country's biggest coffee shop chain, has reduced fat by using tuna canned in water rather than oil. Pret A Manger is talking to its suppliers about cutting the salt in its Irish cheddar cheese, while the chain has already dropped its pecan pie and replaced it with a Bird Bar full of seeds, while replacing farmed with wild salmon has halved fat.
The sandwich chain's food and communications director, Simon Hargrave, said: "Instead of a stick approach where you are exposed for too much salt in one sandwich they're [the FSA] saying we can change things in small amounts over time.
It's a much more practical approach. A few years ago we would have signed off a sandwich without even thinking of the salt." The campaign – backed by the Government – comes amid predictions that 60 per cent of men, 50 per cent of women and 25 per cent of children will be obese by 2050, unless action is taken.
The Public Health minister Dawn Primarolo said: "These commitments will help people make healthier choices and will go some way towards our aim to make healthy food the norm." Many products, though, will remain treats, such as Pret's All Day Breakfast, with almost 600 calories. "You should only be eating one once or twice a week," said Mr Hargrave.