Sweets and chocolates tempting children and adults at checkouts in supermarkets have been removed from all Tesco stores in west London.
All 13 Tesco Metro and Express stores in Hounslow have replaced the sugary treats with more healthier snacks including dried fruit, nuts and cereal bars, in an attempt to reduce "pester power" and encourage better lifestyles.
From now on every food item at checkouts at Tesco stores will either be one of your five a day, have no red ratings, be in calorie-controlled snack packs or be deemed a healthier snack by the Department of Health.
Public health minister Jane Ellison said: "This is a very welcome move by Tesco, responding to the clear demands of their customers, and raising the bar in the roll out of healthy checkouts.
"This initiative will help people to make healthier choices, which all contribute to reducing the long-term cost to our nation of obesity and ill-health."
In 1994 the larger Tesco stores took sweets away from the checkout but the policy has now been rolled-out to every single store.
Company research shows 65 per cent of its customers said removing sweets from the checkout helps promote healthier lifestyles and to make better food choices.
David Wood, Managing Director of Health and Wellness for Tesco said: “We hope this will make our customer’s lives easier, as taking sweets and chocolates off the checkouts will really help parents with young children.
"As a parent of two young children myself, I know how challenging it can be to navigate the checkouts with children in tow.
"The response we’ve had from parents has been overwhelmingly positive, so it’ll be interesting to see if other supermarkets follow our lead and do the same thing.”
The supermarket giant is also encouraging healthy eating in other ways including making food on its shelves healthier with a new Healthy Living range as well as working with farmers and suppliers to help schoolchildren understand where the food they eat comes from as part of its Eat Happy project.
What do you think of the new health move made by Tesco management? Leave a comment or send your thoughts to salina.patel@trinitymirror stating which Tesco store you shop at.
