Module 3

It can be difficult to eat well all the time, when most things around us encourage the opposite. The food environment refers to the many factors around us that influence what we eat, such as what food is available, how it is advertised and the way it’s promoted.

This module focuses on how the food environment can influence the types of food and drink that we buy and eat, which can impact on our health.

By the end of this module you will:

• understand how the food environment can influence dietary behaviours
• be able to describe how eating out of home contributes to dietary intakes
• understand how consumer information, such as food labelling, can help to make healthier choices about food and drink

It’s difficult to eat well when most things around us encourage the opposite, and this can lead to poorer health over time.

Right now, the food environment strongly promotes low-cost foods that contribute too much to our intake of energy, fat, saturated fat, salt, and sugar. These items are not needed for a healthy diet.

Improving our population’s health has never been more important. The food environment needs to change to make it easier for everyone to access an affordable, healthier and more sustainable diet, with more fruit, vegetables and fibre, and fewer unhealthy foods. 

You can watch our video to learn how the food environment is influencing our food choices.  
 

Research has shown that the use of consistent food labelling across as many food products as possible will help consumers to become familiar with its format, and to use it to balance their diet and control their energy intake.

Nutrition labels provide information on the nutrient content of foods and drinks. There are two types of nutrition labels:

• back or side of pack
• front of pack

Back or side of pack nutrition labels

By law, most pre-packed foods and drinks in the UK must provide nutrition information on the back or side of food packs. These labels should display the energy (in calories and kilojoules) , total fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, total sugars, protein and salt content per 100g/ml of the product. Information may also be provided voluntarily on some additional nutrients such as fibre, and vitamins and minerals.

Most pre-packaged foods also display nutrition information on the front of pack, though this is not mandatory and is done on a voluntary basis.

These labels show:

• the portion size. These are suggestions and may not be the same as the amount actually consumed
• the amount of energy, fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt per portion
• energy per 100g of the product
• the amount that a portion contributes to your daily diet is given as a percentage of the reference intake

Front of pack nutrition labels are often colour coded, which can show whether a product is high (red), medium (amber) or low (green) in fats, sugar and salt. This makes it easier to identify and choose healthier versions of similar products (e.g. choosing between ready meals). Many of the foods with front of pack labelling will have a mixture of red, amber and greens. So, when choosing between similar products, it is healthier to go for more greens and ambers, and fewer reds.

The food and drink we buy and consume from the out of home environment tends to be less healthy, and accounts for 25% of the calories we consume.

The food and drink we buy and consume from the out of home environment tends to be less healthy, and accounts for 25% of the calories we consume.

Opportunities to eat out, “on the go” and have food delivered are greater than ever. Most people in Scotland eat out at least once a week, which could include:

• picking up a snack from a convenience shop
• buying a drink from a vending machine
• buying a sandwich for lunch
• eating in the work canteen
• having dinner in a restaurant
• ordering a takeaway

On average, people in Scotland eat out and on the go about 4 times a week, accounting for around 25% of the calories we consume. Many of the popular choices when eating out or ordering in are high in energy (calories), fats, sugar and salt including, chips, burgers, cakes, biscuits and pastries and sugary drinks.

Offers and promotions are often on less healthy food, and can make it harder for people to make healthy choices.

Tips to follow when eating out or ordering in:

• calorie information: 
  • some outlets provide calorie information on their menus or menu boards, either in shops or online. 
  • compare the calorie content of meals with how many calories are needed each day (around 2,000 for the average woman, and 2,500 for the average male)
• nutrition labels: nutrition information on the front and back of pack of pre-packaged foods can help identify healthier choices

To help achieve a healthy diet:

• the food and drink we buy and consume from the out of home environment tends to be less healthy, and accounts for 25% of the calories we consume
• the food environment needs to change to make it easier for everyone to access an affordable, healthier and more sustainable diet, with more fruit, vegetables and fibre, and fewer unhealthy foods
• nutrition information displayed on the front and back of pack can help to identify healthier choices
• calorie and nutrition information on menus, menu boards or online can help to choose healthier options when eating out