Behind the campaign is the British Dietetic Association’s (BDA) Dieticians in Obesity Management Specialist Group (DOM UK) and the Children’s Food Campaign.
It comes as a survey by DOM UK, conducted in partnership with Slimming World, found that parents are being pestered by their children to buy junk food at checkouts.
Of the 1,923 adults polled, 64 per cent of which were parents, 83 per cent said they have been pestered by their children to buy unhealthy snacks while queuing at the supermarket, and 75 per cent admitted to giving in to their children’s demands.
Over 90 per cent of respondents said that junk food at the checkouts contributes to obesity in adults and children.
When asked which shops are the worst offenders for having lots of junk food at the tills, Asda came out on top, followed by Morrisons and Marks and Spencer.
Two thirds of parents said they felt strongly enough to complain to the store, but only a few had done so.
More than 35 per cent of respondents said they would like to see all foods and drinks removed from checkouts.
A further 30 per cent suggested having only healthy food and drink items on sale at checkouts.
As part of the ‘Junk free checkouts’ campaign, shoppers are being encouraged to share a photo or their experiences of checkout displays filled with sweets and other unhealthy snacks on the campaign’s ‘wall of shame’.
For the best performing stores that don’t put sweets and chocolate at the checkout or in queuing areas, there is a ‘wall of fame’.
Parents can also download ‘pass and fail cards’ from the campaign’s website to give to stores and carry out an audit of their local supermarket.
The campaign, which has received the backing of the British Dental Association, comes as a new voluntary code of conduct on the marketing of products high in fat, sugar and salt, is being drawn up by the Government in consultation with the food industry.
However, campaigners say there have been 'conflicting signals' from the Department of Health about the scope and strength of the new code.
Speaking on behalf of the British Dietetic Association, obesity specialist Linda Hindle said, ‘Unplanned calories from foods high in fat and sugar purchased at checkouts contribute towards poor diet and poor health, including obesity, heart disease and diabetes, which may lead to premature death. Eating sugary or acidic food and drink also directly contributes to tooth damage. Although dental decay is completely preventable, one third of 12 year old children have a filled or extracted tooth, a sure sign that the rot of poor diets is already setting in.
‘Far too many retailers are unwilling to stop pushing unhealthy food at the checkout and queuing areas. It may be lucrative for them but, as our survey found, it is deeply unpopular with customers and nudges purchasing behaviour in the wrong direction. If retailers can’t act on their own, then we hope to see robust action from the government to tackle this problem.’
Malcolm Clark, co-ordinator of the Children’s Food Campaign, said, ‘Since our Checkouts Checked Out report in 2012, a few supermarkets, including Co-op and M&S, have responded by displaying more healthy snacks near the till. Lidl has even temporarily trialed "guilt-free" lanes. But Asda, Morrisons and many others have barely improved at all, and none have permanently broken their junk-pushing habits.
‘Unlike the Government, we have no problem naming and shaming the worst offenders at the checkout. And we urge people to do likewise, to post their pictures, to do a simple audit of their local stores, and to hand in pass or fail cards at the till.
‘All retailers, including Whsmith and other high street stores, need to take a long hard look at their marketing practices and acknowledge that the time for such cynical promotion of sugary, salty, fatty products is over, for good.’