Maureen Mulvihill, Health Promotion Manager, Irish Heart Foundation said: “Consumers and public health have lost a vital battle today where the odds were stacked against them by 10 to 1. It would appear that the €1bn spent by industry to influence our MEPs to vote in favour of Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs) on front of pack was successful to the detriment of population health.

“This is extremely disappointing at time when obesity is at epidemic levels in our country and indeed in Europe. Traffic lights using red, amber and green colours to denote high, medium or low levels of fat, salt and sugar in a food product, are best understood by consumers. Yet today MEPs voted in favour of GDA labelling which on its own has been shown to be confusing, not fully understood and misleading. By failing to vote for traffic lights, we delay the fight against obesity and ultimately against the predicted 40% rise in chronic conditions such as stroke and heart attack, losing vital opportunities to protect our nation’s health.

“The aim of new food labeling regulations was not to confuse – but to improve consumer understanding of key nutrients in foods. But it appears other pressures were at play and once again, public health will suffer the consequences.”

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