Memorandum submitted the Federation of
Bakers and the National Association of British and Irish Millers
The Federation of Bakers represents the interests
of the UK's bakers of sliced and wrapped bread, rolls and bakery
snacks. It is a £3 billion industry at retail sales value
and employs 20,000 people. nabim represents UK flour millers,
using some 5.5 million tonnes of wheat each year to produce about
4.5 million tonnes of flour.
The terms of reference of the Efra inquiry state
that it "will inquire into the ways in which messages about
food are communicated to consumers by food producers . . ."
This submission briefly summarises the role
the trade associations in the milling and baking sectors play
in communicating messages about food to consumers.
The role of trade associations should not be
underestimated. They deliver generic messages to the consumers
via the media in a way unattainable by individual companies and
therefore have an important input into shaping opinion. Despite
these messages often being portrayed as parochial and biased,
they nevertheless establish, in conjunction with other interested
parties, the ground upon which policy debate takes place. The
current discussion of obesity and healthy eating is perhaps the
most egregious example.
Trade associations also have a role communicating
directly with consumers through a variety of other means. Website
activity is very important. Good examples of the very positive
and important messages that can be conveyed through this media
are contained in the Food and Drink Federation suite of consumer
websites, which they will no doubt discuss in their submission
to you.
Other mechanisms include direct mail; the use
of respected third parties to endorse and promote responsible
messages; school based activity, and promotional events from trade
shows to media opportunities.
The milling and baking industries are in a very
strong position because nutritionists, dieticians, scientists
and Government all say that on a population basis we should eat
more starchy carbohydrates such as bread. Around a half of our
energy should be coming from this source. Neither, as the latest
National and Diet Nutrition Survey shows, does the population
achieve national targets for fibre consumption. And specific population
groups have lower average intakes of certain nutrients. Calcium
intake among teenage girls and young women is of particular concern.
Bread and other starchy carbohydrates are a
great source of fibre, particularly wholemeal products. And white
flour is fortified by law with calcium as well as niacin, thiamine
and iron. It makes bread one of the best, most nutritionally dense
products we can eat. The industry messages about the nutritional
benefits of bread and starchy carbohydrates already resonate with
a host of messages disseminated by many third parties and therefore
have more chance of being absorbed by consumers. The biggest challenge
to this healthy eating message, promulgated by government, nutritionists
and industry alike, is the widespread obsession with faddy dieting.
Research shows that the way to lose weight and maintain that loss,
is through a balanced diet. I enclose a research paper from Dr
Susan Jebb of the Medical Research Council which clearly demonstrates
the point [Not Printed].
In this context, the baking and milling industries
have worked very closely to find effective ways of communicating
the balanced diet message to consumers. Alongside our day to day
communication work we have initiated a number of specific programmes
which include:
— The Flour and Grain Education Programme—a
web-based educational tool that matches the requirements of the
curriculum to information about farming, milling and baking for
Key Stages 1-4 and which includes lesson plans and teaching notes.
It is approved by the government's National Grid for Learning.
— Direct Communication with health
care professionals (HCPs). Both on a regular and informal basis
and through a twice yearly newsletter we are able to keep HCPs
briefed on the nutritional issues around starchy carbohydrates
which they can use in their work with patients.
— Research. There is often a lot of
misinformation about nutritional messages and faddy dieting. We
have done work which looks at consumers' health perceptions of
bread; analysed the issues of wheat intolerance and the Glycaemic
Index to put scientific fact into the public domain to challenge
misperceptions.
— We are also soon to heavily promote
the message about healthy eating through the Vitality Eating System.
This will build upon the Health of the Nation report by promoting
the benefits of an orthodox diet low in fat and higher in complex
carbohydrate. It will be unbranded and targeted at younger consumers.
The Vitality eating System will be fronted by Cat Deeley. Given
her high profile and position as an aspirational role model we
expect the VES to be very successful. It also answers the call
made recently by the Food Standards Agency for celebrities to
endorse healthy eating messages.
— Promotional activity. This would
include attendance at consumer based exhibitions, recipe features
for magazines or promotional activity around British Bread Month
in October. All activities carry the healthy eating message.
19 April 2004
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