The Food Standards Agency’s (FSA’s) board decided against calling for a ban on trans fats when it met last week, preferring to see saturated fat levels reduced in people’s diets.
As predicted by Food Manufacture, the board will advise UK health ministers that voluntary measures to reduce trans fats have resulted in such low consumer intakes that mandatory restrictions are unnecessary.
A review of evidence by the FSA showed that voluntary action by the UK food industry had already delivered what could be expected through the most restrictive legislation. It said average dietary intakes have come down to just 1% of food energy - half of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition’s recommended maximum intake.
The FSA said saturated fat posed a far greater health risk than trans fat because the amount people eat is 13.3% - well above the recommended level of 11%. Saturated fat is a major contributor to heart disease, the leading cause of premature death in the UK.
The FSA board’s decision was welcomed by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) for being sensible and based on solid evidence. The FDF’s director of communications Julian Hunt said: “We have been saying for some time that the industry has been working hard over a number of years to dramatically reduce trans fats in foods, responding to consumer concerns. As the FSA’s detailed research makes clear, we are leading the world when it comes to reformulating out trans fats.”