Barnardo’s chief executive Lynn Perry said: “The food we eat as children has a huge impact on the rest of our lives – affecting our ability to concentrate in school and our chances of growing up happy and healthy.
“Today’s announcement that the government will be working with supermarkets to make the average shopping basket more nutritious, is a welcome step in the right direction. Our research earlier this year found that more than a quarter of parents were having to buy unhealthy food for their children every fortnight, simply because they couldn’t afford healthier options.
“We hope these announcements are the first of many, as the government prepares its child poverty strategy and 10-year plan for the NHS. Children must be at the forefront of these plans – because, against a backdrop of rising type 2 diabetes, obesity and other diet related diseases - we need to see comprehensive action if the government is to achieve its ambition of creating the healthiest ever generation of children.”