Soon, bakeries to have 'healthy shelf'

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Health-conscious persons are often let with no choice at a bakery. However, things are changing. After introducing a draft regulation which proposed to ban sale of food containing high, salt, sugar and fat (popularly known as junk food) within 50 metres radius of school campuses, the food safety department is bringing ‘bakeries’, which is a popular hangout for students, under its safe food initiative. 

Interestingly, the Bakery Owners’ Association is open to the safe food proposal of the food safety department. In a recent meeting of food safety department which was attended by representatives of Bakery Owners Association, nutritionists, dietitians and experts, the bakery owners agreed to the idea of setting up a ‘healthy shelf’ in their bakeries, which will have healthy snacks. 

Food safety officer Karthika S said that the bakery owners were receptive of the idea of a healthy shelf. “The healthy shelf will have healthy items such as steamed snack that have less sugar, salt and fat content and are devoid of trans-fats. As a pilot project, we asked the bakery owners to suggest some bakeries where health shelf can be implemented. As per their suggestion, it will be implemented in five bakeries in Thiruvananthapuram in the pilot scheme," she said. Ambrosia, MRA, Supreme, St Michales and Azad will provide healthy shelf in the pilot scheme.

Michel David, owner of St Michels in Thiruvananthapuram, said that the healthy shelf will come up in their outlets by January 1. “We will provide a tag ‘corner for conscious persons. It will have health items such as our traditional snack varieties like ‘ada’, ‘kozhukatta’, ‘vattayappam’, ‘kumbilappam’ etc and also wheat bread, oats bread and other multigrain breads. We also will try to introduce healthy alternatives of burgers and cakes. The food safety department has agreed to provide all supports,” David said. 

However, David added that less than 10% of consumers are seeking healthy items. “Recently, I got an order from a faculty in Kerala University for 400 pieces of steamed snack and dry ginger coffee. I suggested food safety department to launch awareness campaigns so that people choose healthy food items,” he said.

The food safety department has also requested bakery owners to reduce trans-fat contents in food items. The bakery owners informed the practical difficulties and asked the department to provide awarness to manufacturers and distributers. The department asked association to provide details of manufactures of products which have vanaspati, margarine etc.