The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has spoken out to remind the government that many retailers already make a continuing contribution towards tackling obesity, following recent publication of the Obesity White Paper.
The organisation said that shops have long been helping to reduce people’s calorie intakes by producing clear nutritional labelling, changing portion sizes and reformulating products.
The UK's seven biggest food retailers committed themselves earlier this year to uphold all relevant pledges in the government's Public Health Responsibility Deal which concerned food and alcohol.
"There is an obesity problem and the government is right to look for solutions," said the BRC’s director of food policy, Andrew Opie.
"Retailers have long recognised they have a part to play. They've been contributing to calorie reduction for years by changing recipes and portion sizes alongside promoting fresh fruit and vegetables and improving nutritional labelling.
He added: "But understanding consumer behaviour is key to tackling obesity. Reducing the calories in a product doesn't work if people just eat something extra as well. We are doing a lot to help, but individuals have to take responsibility for the choices they make and there must be recognition of the role of exercise and education."
