By Charlotte Webster-
The CEO of Nestle, Mark Schneider (pictured) needs to step down and apologise to the public for the news that 60% of its product do not meet health standards.
After, leaked internal documents this week which revealed that more than 60% of Nestlé’s food products are unhealthy and don’t meet a ‘recognised definition of health, the news calls for accountability. And the Buck stops with the company’s CEO, Mr. Schneider.
The world’s largest food manufacturer revealed only 37% of its food and beverage portfolio scored at least a 3.5 score under Australia’s health star rating system – an index recognised internationally by nutritionists and food health researchers.
The leaked presentation revealed that top Nestlé executives were warned some of their products ‘will never be ‘healthy’ no matter how much we renovate.’
Two-thirds of the company’s products, which include Maggi noodles, Nescafe and Nespresso, were exposed as not meeting certain standards.
According to the documents, which were obtained by the Financial Times, 70% of Nestlé’s food products achieved fewer than 3.5 stars, while only 4% of their beverages gained a ‘healthy score’. Unsurprisingly, 99% of the company’s confectionary and ice cream products scored lower than 3.5.
Some of the worst performing individual products were Hot Pockets’ pepperoni pizza, which contains almost half the recommended daily allowance of sodium, and orange San Pellegrino, which scored the lowest possible rating under a different health scoring system.
In the midst of all that, its CEO, Mark Schneider
The presentation continues: ”We have made significant improvements to our products… [but] our portfolio still underperforms against external definitions of health in a landscape where regulatory pressure and consumer demands are skyrocketing.
The extent of Nestlé’s health issues is particularly striking for a company which in 2018 came top of a list of the world’s largest food companies working to ‘encourage better diets’ by the Access To Nutrition Foundation.
The leak comes as the company reportedly prepares to launch fresh commitments on nutrition as part of a global push to promote healthy eating and tackle growing rates of obesity.
Yet, the irony is that the company cannot be trusted because it has been selling products that fall way below the accepted health standards . An inquiry is necessary, and the British public need to know what steps has been done to rectify the situation.
In a statement, Nestlé said:
”In recent years, we have launched thousands of products for kids and families that meet external nutrition yardsticks. We have also distributed billions of micronutrient doses via our affordable and nutritious products.
We believe that a healthy diet means finding a balance between wellbeing and enjoyment. This includes having some space for indulgent foods, consumed in moderation.
They added: ‘Our direction of travel has not changed and is clear: we will continue to make our portfolio tastier and healthier.’
The statement fell short of calling for an inquiry into its poor food standards which may already have affected several of its consumers.
The Food Standard Agency(FSA) was contacted in relation to this article, but said nutritional foods do not fall within their remit, directing us to the Department Of Health, who did not comment .