Health commitments Q & A
Christine Hancock of the Oxford Health Alliance interviews Richard Evans, PepsiCo UK President, about his plan for healthier growth.
Q Christine
"This is PepsiCo UK's first health report - why haven't you focused on this before?"
A Richard
"Making our portfolio healthier has been a strategic focus for years. From creating our first diet cola in the 1960s to reducing the saturated fat in our crisps by 70-80% through the mid-2000s. PepsiCo also acquired healthy brands like Tropicana and Quaker, and in the UK we created new healthier brands like Walkers Baked. What we haven't done before is communicate the journey we're on. And we've never set out a public vision or targets for the future. This Report changes that."
Q Christine
"You are making progress in some areas, and setting plenty of targets. But how will you tackle the fundamental challenge of wanting to sell more crisps and fizzy drinks when people need to eat less?"
A Richard
"It's true that sizeable numbers of consumers do need to exercise more, consume fewer calories and get more positive nutrition like fruit, vegetables and wholegrain. But it's important to remember that crisps and fizzy drinks are still popular with a huge number of people, and can be part of a healthy balanced lifestyle. To make real progress on health we need to take the consumer with us. We've pledged to use our influence to help change for the better what people are eating and drinking. That will mean reformulating some products to make them healthier, introducing a portion cap on others, creating new snacks that provide positive nutrition, and encouraging consumers towards healthier alternatives."
Q Christine
"Is it realistic to think that PUK can have a noticeable impact on people's health?"
A Richard
"The obesity epidemic is already here, it's serious and it looks to get worse. Clearly, no one company or organisation can head off this crisis alone, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't collectively seek real solutions and start to take action. That's why we're not just focused on making our portfolio healthier, but also on working with government to drive change in the industry, and using our influence in the marketplace to make healthier products more appealing and more widely available."
Q Christine
"Food companies are sometimes compared with 'big tobacco'. How do you respond to this allegation?"
A Richard
"Every time you smoke a cigarette you increase your risk of harm, but foods and drinks are different. We all need food and drink and virtually any product or meal can be eaten as part of a genuinely healthy lifestyle. It's really about balance and moderation. That's not to say that, as a food and drinks company, we don't have a responsibility for the products we make, in the way we market them, and in how we use our influence in the marketplace. We want to be a powerful agent of positive change on health, to use our influence in the marketplace to improve people's health. We also engage with stakeholders openly and transparently. The contrast could not be greater."
Q Christine
"What can PUK do to encourage change in the UK food industry more widely?"
A Richard
"First and foremost, we believe in leading by example. Many argued that major reductions in saturated fat would be impossible. But when we reduced the saturates in Walkers by 70-80% our competitors followed suit to keep up with consumer expectation. We also want to work with our peers, which means sharing best practice and working together with policy makers to support drives towards positive nutrition and healthier products."
Q Christine
"Is PepsiCo globally focusing on a move to healthier products, or are you going it alone?"
A Richard
"The commitments made by the UK business are consistent with the direction of PepsiCo globally to shift the portfolio steadily towards healthier products. Our approach will evolve over time along with PepsiCo's global portfolio transformation and other health initiatives. This is a gradual evolution and one which will play out at different speeds in different countries around the world. It will be influenced by factors such as the breadth of the current product portfolio, availability of healthier ingredients, different regulatory frameworks and the varying needs of people in different countries."
Oxford Health Alliance
The Oxford Health Alliance is a charity committed to preventing and reducing the global impact of chronic disease. It stands for innovative action with diverse stakeholders around three risk factors - tobacco use, physical inactivity and poor diet.
Christine Hancock
Christine Hancock leads C3 Collaborating for Health, the policy and advocacy arm of the Oxford Health Alliance. She is an experienced nurse and health service manager: ward sister at London's National Heart Hospital, CEO for Waltham Forest's health service, General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing and then President of the International Council of Nurses. She is a Governor of De Montfort University and an adviser to Doctors.net.
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