Comments on: Joules on the menu, please

By: Philip

Philip — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 21:23:31 +0000

The British Nutrition Foundation’s Education News (issue 61, March 2012) has an excellent poster, it shows plates of different meals and the energy values are in kJ.
The word calories does not appear. The values in kcal are shown as a supplementary unit. I have an paper copy of the poster. The following link may assist, however I don’t see an online version of this poster called Small change, big difference:-
http://www.nutrition.org.uk/publications/newsletters/education-news

By: Submitted by Philip [Wellcome Trust: Killing off the calorie]

Submitted by Philip [Wellcome Trust: Killing off the calorie] — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 08:24:49 +0000

Readers will be interested in the following online article: Killing off the calorie, Jennifer Trent Staves chomps through the history of the calorie.
Link:
http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/Education-resources/Teaching-and-education/Big-Picture/All-issues/Food-and-diet/WTDV031524.htm

By: Philip

Philip — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 10:57:05 +0000

19 February 2011
Today’s Daily Mail has an article – Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, says Calories on menus could come into effect as early as September.
Link:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1358463/Calorie-count-menu-restaurants-fast-food-outlets-help-eat-healthily.html

“Mr Lansley set up the Food Network, a collection of food industry leaders and consumer bodies, to draw up voluntary measures to improve the health of the nation under a so-called ‘responsibility deal’.”

The Department of Health has NOT had a public consultation on this.

By: Ken Cooper

Ken Cooper — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 21:47:40 +0000

“Who now has responsibility for food labeling in Scotland and Northern Ireland?”

Food labelling policy in Scotland & Northern Ireland is currently still the responsibility of the FSA.

Unfortunately, I cannot see the recent changes in England & Wales having even the slightest effect on the use of “calories” in food labelling

By: Ezra Steinberg

Ezra Steinberg — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 02:01:01 +0000

So, they mention England and Wales, but who now has responsibility for food labeling in Scotland and Northern Ireland?

Let’s hope this is an opportunity for the organizations newly responsible for nutritional labeling to be persuaded to adopt “joules” instead of “calories” or “kilocalories”.

By: Use joules

Use joules — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 22:11:57 +0000

It’s now the responsibility of health departments to ‘Shed Calories’.
The statement below is from the Food Standards Agency’s website
“[Thursday 30 September 2010]
Responsibility for nutrition policy will transfer tomorrow (1 October) from the Food Standards Agency to the Department of Health in England and to the Welsh Assembly Government in Wales.
These changes will mean that the health departments in these countries will be responsible for:
*nutritional labelling
*nutrition and health claims, dietetic food and food supplements
*calorie information in catering establishments
*reformulation to reduce salt, saturated fat and sugar levels in food and *reducing portion size (including in catering)
*nutrition advice, surveys and nutrition research
The Department of Health will also be responsible for supporting the work of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN).
In England, the transfer to Defra of food labelling and food composition policy (where not related to nutrition or food safety) has already taken place.
The devolved administrations are considering whether they want to make any other alterations to their current arrangements for food policy.”

By: Philip Bladon

Philip Bladon — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 11:09:49 +0000

The British Science Association (BSA); no reason was given.

In the letter dated 17 March, Sir Roland Jackson the Chief Executive of the BSA did go on to express his personal views about this matter.

By: A

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:20:35 +0000

Has the BSA given any reason for not having a position on this? Surely it would work in their favour somehow if they supported this proposal. Don’t say that this is another ignorant refusal against progress. Seems to be a British trait which needs to be stopped.

By: Philip Bladon

Philip Bladon — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:16:14 +0000

The British Science Association doesn’t want to take a position on this matter.

In a letter dated 17 March 2010 from the BSA’s Chief Executive, Sir Roland Jackson he states “I have to say this is an area in which the British Science Association does not take a position”.

Way back in 1972 The Royal Society recommended doing away with the Calorie/calorie/kilocalorie; now almost four decades later the British Science Association doesn’t support this.

Considering this position, does the BSA support the speedy completion of metrication in the UK?

By: philh

philh — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:54:15 +0000

The apparent refusal by the FSA to replace the calorie with joule may be motivated by the same thinking as the department of health resisting the centilitre in place of the “unit” of alcohol.
Government departments tend to draw upon the techiques of advertising for publicity campaigns. They are more used to manipulating public perception rather than informing it.
The calorie and “unit” are buzz words used to connect with an otherwise apathetic audience who lack curiosity or interest in a proper understanding.
The aims of such campaigns may be laudable but it raises the question as to whether the ends justify the means.
A weak understanding of basic science must underpin a poor understanding of basic nutrition. Like the wider issue of a single system of measurement, it isn’t the only factor but it should at least be recognised as a key enabler.