The report, Carrots or Chemistry? by children's food company Organix, calls for the UK food industry to adopt a strict code of practice. It follows a survey of a wide range of food targeted at children, including breakfast cereals, burgers, dried fruit snacks and soft drinks, that found a third of them contained colourings, including dyes that have been banned in Scandinavia and the US.
Three-quarters of the children's food surveyed contained flavourings with widespread use of flavour enhancers, including monosodium glutamate, which can cause hyperactivity and is banned in baby food. More than one in four of the foods examined contained preservatives and many brands did not display nutritional information. The research also found high levels of salt, sugar and fat.
Organix commissioned Mintel to establish the attitudes of parents of children under five towards their children's diets. Almost nine out of ten parents felt unable to rely on children's food ranges to provide their children with a healthy diet. Seventy per cent of the parents felt unable to say that they know enough about nutrition to feed their children healthily. Only 9 per cent of the parents could say that they had no concerns over the food they give to their children.
Organix managing director Lizzie Vann says that current legislation means children as young as one year old are treated the same as adults by the food industry. She said, 'It is time the Government and those involved in producing and marketing children's food take responsibility.
'This country needs a code of practice which will transform the way our children eat. While the baby-food industry is subject to strict regulation, this is not the case for food targeted at children. Current legislation governing food aimed at young children is inadequate and confusing.
'We believe the Government should use the baby-food industry as a model to introduce comprehensive new legislation which regulates children's food up to the age of six years. This should include restrictions on the use of additives, maximum allowable levels of pesticide residues and guidelines on minimum levels of nutrients.'