As Ms Guthrie pointed out, the National Dairy Council supports a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle in accordance with Government guidelines. All the information we provide is based on up to date recommendations and scientific and evidence based data. The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland invited submissions in phase one of the consultation process and subsequently decided to proceed with proposals to adopt the United Kingdom's nutrient profiling model, without amendment and in full. It has supported its decision by stating there are no justified nutritional grounds for not adopting the UK model. I will present a number of key points which contradict the BAI position.
Data from Irish food consumption surveys support an exemption for cheese and show it is beneficial to include cheese in the diet of Irish children and teenagers. Insufficient calcium intake among Irish children and teenagers is a concern, as the BAI's working group acknowledges. The figures indicate that 37% and 28% of Irish girls and boys, respectively, between the ages of five and 12 years have insufficient calcium intake. Among teenagers the equivalent figures are 42% and 23%, respectively.
In addition to being a valuable source of protein, cheese provides a range of other nutrients, including, to name but a few, phosphorous and B vitamins. Implementing the UK model would suggest it is healthier to consume products such as diet cola, which has little or no nutritional value compared to cheese. Overweight and obesity are problems and the National Dairy Council welcomes and commends any decisions or actions aimed at tackling them. We would like such action to be implemented at soon as possible. Research shows that cheese is not an issue in this respect as overweight and obesity broadly doubled in the period from 1990 to 2007, during which cheese intake has remained relatively static.
On the national surveys and saturated fat content of cheese, the population dietary goals suggest that 10% of total energy should come from saturated fat. The data collected as part of the national children's food survey and national teens' food survey clearly show that only 1% of the total energy or calories consumed by children and teenagers comes from cheese. It is clear from these surveys that there are no justified grounds for restricting the advertising of cheese. On the contrary, they indicate that it is beneficial to include cheese in the diet of Irish children and teenagers.
The United Kingdom nutrient profiling model has been criticised by a number of Irish researchers and organisations. One of the major criticisms levelled at the model is that its conclusions are based on an amount of 100g. For visual purposes I have brought with me approximately 100g of cheese. As is clear from the amount, 100g does not reflect the typical portion size of cheese consumed. The food pyramid recommends a portion of 28g and surveys show that Irish children and teenagers consume even less than the recommended portion.
The UK model was developed in 2004-05 and is somewhat dated at this point. We understand that previous drafts of the model included calcium. These were justified to reduce the weighting of calcium, partly due to concerns that manufacturers would fortify foods with additional calcium to achieve clearance. This matter is being addressed at European Union level and the National Dairy Council has been informed by the Food Safety Authority that fortification for such purposes would be viewed extremely negatively. It is also important to note that the model in place for this purpose in the United Kingdom is not used in any other country. The food standards agencies of Australia and New Zealand have implemented a version of the UK model in respect of health claims but have amended it significantly to address concerns and flaws they have identified.
The implementation of this model will result in public confusion. As Ms Guthrie stated, the Department of Health's food pyramid recommends three servings from the milk, cheese and yogurt food group and five servings from this group for teenagers. One serving is equal to one third of a pint of milk, a carton of yogurt or a matchbox size piece of cheese. The implementation of a model categorising cheese as less healthy would contradict the Department's guidelines and inevitably result in consumer confusion. It is noteworthy that the consumption of cheese is promoted throughout the European Union via the school milk scheme under which a range of cheeses is eligible for subsidy.
Clearly, significant initiatives are in place to promote the consumption of cheese. If the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland implements its proposals, it runs the risk of jeopardising this good work and accentuating misinformation and misconceptions regarding cheese, a healthy balanced diet and dietary guidelines in general.
I propose to raise a couple of other concerns that have been identified in respect of the BAI proposal. It is a matter of record that the external expert appointed by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland during phase one to review nutrition submissions was one of the scientists who contributed to the development of the model in the UK. A number of submissions made by nutrition experts during the first phase of the consultation were, perhaps, not sufficiently acknowledged or recognised. An example is the Food Safety Authority of Ireland which stated: "The inclusion of cheese with less healthy food products which are subject to advertising restrictions presents some challenges to the adoption of the UK nutrient profile model in Ireland". This specific submission goes on to explain how difficult it would be for children and teenagers to achieve their calcium requirements if cheese was excluded from the diet. That is simply due to the overwhelming volume of milk or yoghurt that would need to be consumed to achieve calcium requirements. This would be a particular problem for the younger children within the higher calcium requirement lifestage. That is just one example of the submissions that, perhaps, was not sufficiently recognised. Needless to say there are numerous others, including a submission from Professor Mike Gigney, University College Dublin, who voiced concerns regarding the implementation of this model in Ireland. That concludes my summary of the key information of the NDC's concerns of the BAI's proposals.
We do not believe the implementation of the UK nutrient profiling model is in the best public health interest for children or teenagers and it could be viewed to be somewhat flawed. I ask Ms Maeve Gutherie to conclude.
